Central Oklahoma Polymer Clay Guild

Hello Clayers,

The March meeting will be held at the Southern Oaks Recreation Center, 400 SW 66th Street, 6-9, Wed., March 10th.

Due to a death in my family, I will not be able to teach part 2 of the hollow form class this month and will instead, teach it at the April meeting. Penni Jo has graciously offered to teach in my place. She will be unraveling the mysteries of the skinner blend to us and will be teaching us how to make multiple color Skinner Blends, resulting in different effects. She will also be teaching a twist on the Natasha bead called a Ruphia Peche Indian Bead created by Ruphia, the president of the of Corpus Christi Polymer Clay Guild where Penni Jo attended meetings during her stay in Texas. Thanks Penni Jo and Jane for all your help on such short notice! The supply list is as follows:

General Tools needed:

Pasta machine (we will have one to share)

Work surface or work surface cover

Cutting blade

Stylus or needle to make eyes on the indian bead

Skewer or knitting needle

Clay needed in colors you like

General clay tools

Materials needed:

A little bit of flesh and black clay

1/8 to 1/4 oz. each of Indian blanket colors or your favorite bead colors. ( 3 to 6 colors)

If you have a stash of scraps from other projects, you might want to bring them.

Penni Jo has added some additional info about the class.

Guild March Madness ~ Pick up lessons:

1. Revisit the Skinner blend. If you would like to know how to create a specific blend, let us know, we’ll help you figure out colors and amounts needed.

Materials needed:

a. Colors of clay that you would like to skinner blend

b. A specific kind of blend that you would like to have for a project, eg, flower petal, leaf, etc.

Bring any questions you may have about how to blends colors to make certain projects, ie. Calla Lilly.

1. Ruphia Peche Indian Bead using the Inside-out Technique (AKA Natasha Bead) Ruphia is the president of Corpus Christi Polymer Clay Guild where Penni Jo attended meetings during her stay in Texas. Her Flickr site: http://www.flickr.com/photos/24413745@N07/ Etsy Site: http://www.etsy.com/shop/Ruphia?section_id=5350461

*If you are uncertain about the colors you want, Michael’s has clay on sale this week. Four blocks for $5.00. *

This month we will be having our raffle. April, Angela and Jane were the winners of our last raffle and should bring something for the next raffle. Also, everyone bring and idea for a book you would like to add to our library.

Hello Clayers! It’s time for another great clay meeting. This time the meeting venue and date and time have changed and will be held* Wednesday, February 10 at Southern Oaks Recreation Center, from 6 to 9 pm.* We will be trying out this venue and date and time to determine if this change will work for us so please give your input on the change. The physical address and directions are: 400 S.W. 66th Street (The facility is just east of Walker on 55th street next to the park, on the right. Turn right into the parking lot. It is brightly lit and in a safe neighborhood. It is on the street behind the Southern Oaks Library.) [Link to Map]

This month I will be teaching Kathleen Dustin’s technique for creating hollow form vessels. It is rather a lengthy process so we will be breaking the class down into 2 classes, one in February and the other in March. If you do not have some of these items, I will have mine on hand for use. . The supply list is below:

SUPPLY LIST

Pasta Machine

Cutting Blade

Exacto Knife

Baby Powder

Armor All or WD-40

Needle Tool

Scissors

Paper

Black Permanent Marker

Medium Grit/Rough Sanding Sponge

At least 4 0z (or scrap clay the size of 2 blocks of packaged clay) of thoroughly blended scrap clay (make sure you blend the scrap clay until it is of uniform consistency and color)

1 block (2 oz) metallic clay

2-3 blocks of clay (will be making a skinner blend)

The theme for the swap at February’s meeting will be “red and/or pink.” So everyone bring a swap item. Also bring an idea for a book, DVD or magazine to add to our library. See you at the meeting!

There were six members present at our first meeting of the new year. We began with Show and Tell. Angela M. has been asked to create a piece for the next Synergy. She showed her “Idea Tree,” which she had created from old spools, recycled materials, and polymer clay. She also showed two items she had bought from the new Art-O-Mat dispenser at City Arts Center in Oklahoma City.

Program

Lee Ann presented two excellent techniques, making faux wood and creating a pendant using a different mica shift technique, along with a handout with very clear directions.

Business Meeting

Old Business

Election and Installation of Officers: The following officers were elected by acclamation:

• President - Jane L.
• Vice President - April G.
• Secretary - Penni Jo C.
• Treasurer and Web Master - Angela M.

The position of librarian will be decided later.

Annual dues were collected by the treasurer.

Next month’s meeting will be held at Southern Oaks Recreation Center, 66th and South Walker, on Wednesday, February 10, from 6-9 p.m..

There was no new business.

Officers Reports: V.P April G. reviewed our upcoming meeting schedule:

• February 10 - Hollow Vessels with April G.
• March (10 or 13, TBA) - continuing Hollow Vessels with April
• April (10 or 14, TBA) - Penni Jo’s “pointy flowers” and leaf canes from Skinner Blend
• May - Color Collage project from Maggie Maggio’s color book

Treasurer’s Report: Angela reported a balance of $411.86, plus the dues that had been paid during the meeting. Our membership stands at 8.

Bottles of Hope: Nance again asked for volunteers to take over her Tuesday morning BOH project at Norman Regional Hospital, as she will have a schedule conflict beginning soon.

Library Report: Librarian Jane L. praised our latest purchase, Clay So Cute, by Sherri Haab, for having excellent tips and instructions and good “trendy” projects. She would recommend it for beginners and for teenagers.

Drawing for a new addition for the guild library: The DVD Intricate Kaleidoscope Caning, by Sarah Shriver, was drawn and will be purchased this month.

Bi-Monthly Raffle: April, Angela, and Jane were the raffle winners and will bring items for the March raffle.

Announcements: The theme for the swap at February’s meeting will be “red and/or pink.”

Jane reminded us that our own Angela M.’s segment on HGTV’s That’s Clever will be aired Tuesday, January 19th.

Hello Clayers! It’s That time again! Our next meeting is January 9th from 1-4pm and will be held at the Hobby Lobby in Norman (2417 W. Main, Norman, OK). Our Own awesomely talented Lee Ann will be teaching us the elusive Mica shift technique and also her faux wood technique. I know this has been a much anticipated class and we are all looking forward to it! The supply list is a follows:

Wood

1 oz. gold and 1 oz. black

Clay blade, pasta machine, clay roller

Mica Shift

Those above, plus template for shape of necklace, needle tool, cording

Clay

Gold and/or copper 1/2 block (1 oz) each

OR Pearl Colors: Teal Blue Pearl - 2 parts yellow, 3 parts blue and 20 parts pearl

Red Pearl - 3 parts red and 10 parts pearl

Golden Red Pearl - 2 parts red, 2 parts gold and 5 parts pearl

Orange Pearl - 1 part red, 2 parts yellow, and 5 parts pearl

Green Gold Pearl - 2 parts blue, 3 parts yellow, 4 parts gold and 8 parts pearl

Blue Violet Pearl - 1 part blue, 2 parts magenta and 10 parts pearl

If you pick a pearl blend, it should equal about 1/2 block of clay. Please have these mixed before meeting.

Black clay and a plain sheet of clay close to the color you are using.

This month is raffle month! The last one was in September and the winners were, April, Nance and Lee Ann. September winners, please bring an item to contribute to the raffle for this month. Also, everyone bring a suggestion for the book you would like to have added to our growing library

Our December meeting was a lot of fun, with all eight members in attendance! Most brought Christmas ideas and projects to share, so we all went home with a wealth of new techniques and projects to try. April had made a wreath in the delicate, detailed style she is known for. Lee Ann brought a little Santa on a platform, surrounded by clay “candies.” Jane made a snowman from clear ornaments and provided a detailed handout, complete with color photos! Penni Jo and Jane had decorated Christmas balls with extrusions, transfers, and jewels. Angela did an interesting project incorporating a flocking product into her clay. Nance made a snowman pin. Penni Jo demonstrated a method for coating the inside of clear glass ornaments with packaged snowflakes, and Sue demonstrated her recent success making lentil beads. Pictured here are the projects by April, Lee Ann, Jane, and Penni Jo and Jane:

Business Meeting: Old Business:

• Field Trips: Jane asked whether we would like to have more “field trips” like our November meeting at Elements Beadery, and several members were in favor of more such trips.
• Meeting Location: We also continued our discussion about changing our meeting place to Southern Oaks Recreation Center, the second Wednesday of each month, from 6-9 p.m. Penni Jo will check to see whether that time slot is open, and if it is, we will try to meet there in February to try it out.

New Business:

Annual Guild Elections will be held in January. Descriptions of the duties of officers are available online. We were reminded that it has been advantageous for an officer to serve for two years, although this is not mamdatory. After two years, Angela said she feels it is beneficial in most cases for a new person to take the position. We did make exception for treasurer/web master, as it is simpler to have one person continue in those positions. Although there were some conditional volunteers for librarian, the position was left open until storage issues can be addressed. After some discussion, the following slate of officers emerged:

• President - Jane L.
• Vice-President - April G.
• Secretary - Penni Jo C.
• Treasurer and Web Master - Angela M.
• Librarian - TBA

Nance R. will continue in two volunteer positions, BOH Coordinator and Photographer.

Officer Reports: Program Schedule: Vice-President April G. reviewed our upcoming meeting schedule. Some of the dates depend upon whether we permanently change our meeting place and time:

• January 9 - Mica Shift with Lee Ann
• February 13 - (first evening meeting) - Hollow Vessels with April
• March (10 or 13, TBA) - continuing Hollow Vessels with April
• April (10 or 14, TBA) - Penni Jo’s “pointy flowers” and leaf canes from Skinner Blend

Treasurer’s Report: Angela reported a balance of $387.37 and 8 members.

Bottles of Hope: Nance asked for substitute instructors to teach at Norman Hospital beginning toward the end of January, as she will have a schedule conflict. Nance will be teaching children who are cancer patients at Baptist Hospital on Tuesday mornings. She asked members to check for other area hospitals with cancer units, so we can begin more projects to give away Bottles of Hope. She also mentioned that we are running short of the medium-sized bottles, and those will be the best size to use with the children.

Library Report: Jane talked about our November purchase, Food Miniatures, and found inspiring ideas in The Best of Stringing, one of our December purchases. She found Beading 101 and Beyond a great resource for basic information.

Library Drawing: Clay So Cute, by Sherri Haab, was the winning book and will be purchased for our library this month.

Announcements: Angela Mabray’s taped segment for the television show That’s Clever will finally be aired on January 19th.

After the meeting, members who wished to participate did an exchange of Christmas projects.