#2015PCChallenge : Week 35 : caned bangles

Hi !

I discovered that I had a 2oz slab of Premo wasabi with me . I was not sure what I could do with it. I made a skinner blend of it with white and paired it with a skinner blend of navy blue & white. These were the results.
I actually liked the cane and the color wasabi waaay more than I thought I would. I unfortunately reduced the canes too much ( never know when to stop :( ).

Thanks for dropping in ! Have a great day :)

#2015PCChallenge : Week 19 : Neck pieces , mirrored style !

Hi !

It is already week 19 for the #2015PCChallenge! Wow ! That's a lot of learning for me :)

I have accumulated a lot of scrap clay during this process , as I tend to experiment as much as I can.This particular pieces were made from a recent cane experiment.

I recently joined the 52 weekly cane projects group on Facebook.The theme of the week when I joined was homestead. A little hobbit home immediately came into my mind.This picture by Ted Nasmith is what I was thinking of.
I did not know of the artist before I searched it out , even though the picture has been a favorite for years.I feel really terrible about that.

Anyway , my cane looks nothing like I planned ( LOL) , it was pretty fun never the less. I think I should proceed like a sane person from week 1 and THEN go into the second year :)

I used up the spare pieces from making the cane and also the pieces left over after reducing it,

Both the pieces are made using the Natasha bead technique. Even though it is an easy technique on paper , I found it takes some restraint from me to form these pieces.

The primary piece reminds me of a bubbling brook ( as the saying goes) , the plants in it swaying to a rhythm unknown to us.It is finished with silver colored chain.

The secondary piece reminds me of wahat I think plants on a ice would look like.It is finished with cotton cord and some rainbow beads , I still have plenty left over :)
I had cut a rather unlikely piece for the secondary piece. I cleaned it up a bit , but I left the trailing "tail" pieces as it is.If you notice , it has two separate Natasha pieces joined together.

In case any of you were wondering , here is my cane and "the idea". They definitely don't match! I sure have a long way to go!Please ignore the spelling comedies , if you can read my handwriting.

Thanks for reading through ! Have a good day !

New toys and Skinner blends !

Yaaay !
 I finally got my pasta machine and I am soooo happy that I bought it .Frankly,I did not think it was a requirement at all as I was quite happy with my rollers.The pasta machine has definitely reduced the physical effort I needed to soften and  condition my clay.I  am finally getting sheets of even thickness , without wayward angles ( as long as I am careful of course ! ) which has really helped me with making my bangles more even , requiring much less sanding from me.

I also bought a silicon covered roller , but it hasn't matched up to my expectations yet.
I got a replacement Makins extruer as well , mine had broken down a few weeks back.This was bad as I needed them to make the base for my bangles and cuffs.I also use the extruder for reducing a lot of my canes. Did I mention I love making retro canes ?

One of the greatest gifts my pasta maker gave me is the ability to make Skinner blends.I have made them before,using regular rollers.A very labour intensive process , with no assured returns. I mean It was exhausting , and I never did get around to doing anything very satisfying with it as the quantities I made were very less.
The pasta machine has finally changed that. I am able to finally make blended canes ! I haven't yet learned the best color combinations out there , so that's something I have to work on.

Here is my first Skinner blend with the pasta machine :)

Thanks for reading , have  a great day !