CreativeCritters' Blog

CreativeCritters Blog
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Creating a Clay Covered Dolphin Jar for my Best Friend

Published: 04-22-2012 05:03pm
Posted In: Animals
Making a polymer clay dolphin jar Recently my best friend came for a visit, which is always a lot of fun.  Not only is Monica my very best friend (we were roommates in college and have been friends ever since), but she's also one of my best customers!  She always checks out all the sculptures, plushies, and jewelry I have for sale each time she comes for a visit.  This time around she spotted my clay covered jars, which can be found in the Housewares section of CreativeCritters.  She liked them all, but wanted to know if I could make her a special purple jar with dolphins.  She's always loved dolphins and purple is ... » Read More

Making a Fantasy Knit Dragon

Published: 04-10-2012 03:27pm
Posted In: Fantasy
My best friend's son (and one of my favorite little boys!) just turned 9 and they'll be visiting this weekend.  I wanted to make something special for Morgan's birthday and decided a whimsical knit dragon would make a great birthday present.  Morgan loves dragons and I've made him several different types of dragons in the past (even a dragon trinket box). When I first started knitting the dragon I only had a vague idea of how I wanted it to turn out. I didn't follow any patterns or instructions and just made the pattern up as I went along.  This is definitely a one of a kind creation!  I used a combination of knitting looms in diff... » Read More

Celtic Fairy sculpture and Green Man pendant from CreativeCritters

Published: 03-06-2012 12:35pm
Posted In: Fantasy
The theme for the  Polymer Clay Smooshers Challenge this time around is Celtic. At first I struggled a bit trying to figure out what I could make.  Another guild member suggested Googling Celtic Mythology, which led me to images of gods, goddesses, and fairies.  This was just the inspiration I needed!  After browsing through many pages of wonderful images I decided to sculpt a fairy dressed in green.  This is how she started out.   I sculpted her in pieces and pierced holes in each limb so that I would be able to bake the pieces and then insert pipe cleaners secured with super glue.  With all the body parts safely baked I... » Read More

Tips for sculpting with white and light colored polymer clay

Published: 03-01-2012 09:35pm
Posted In: tutorials
Sculpting with white and other light colored polymer clay can be a bit of a challenge.  These light colored clays pick of every bit of hair, lint, and color from anything in the immediate area.  So the most important thing when working with these clays is cleanliness.  1) Clean your workspace thoroughly.  Be sure there is no residue from other clay on your work surface or baking surface.  I use a damp cloth followed by a lint free paper towel to clean and dry my glass topped desk and my ceramic tiles. 2) Clean your tools: shape cutters, cutting blades, sculpting tools, bead rollers, everything that will come in contact with the clay.  Som... » Read More

How to make polymer clay stamped heart earrings for Valentines Day

Published: 02-12-2012 05:36pm
Posted In: tutorials
Materials needed:red polymer clay (I used Premo)liquid polymer clayred Pearl Ex powderstamp of choice2 heart shaped cutters, 1 larger, 1 smallerFrench wire ear hooks4 2" eye hooks4 heart shaped jump ringsround nose pliersflat nose pliers Condition your clay and roll it out on the #3 setting on your pasta machine.  Cut out 2 hearts with the larger cutter, and 2 hearts with the smaller cutter. These will be the backs of your earrings. Place 2 of the eye hooks on the larger hearts, as shown. Add a little liquid polymer clay clay over the wires. We'll cut them to the proper length and form a loop at the bottom after they're baked. Cu... » Read More

Featured Smoosher Vall Dawns Jewelry Designs

Published: 01-17-2012 01:15pm
Posted In: Polymer Clay Smooshers guild member features
Valerie of Vall Dawns Designs creates beautiful jewelry and has been beading for many years. Like many artists she gets a lot of inspiration from family, friends and the world around her. When Valerie was younger she always had to follow a pattern precisely.  She says she's always been a perfectionist so if she didn't get it she just wouldn't do it. Now, however, she become more relaxed and has come to realize that everything doesn't have to be 100% "perfect".  She says "I still have very high standards and hold myself accountable for my craftsmanship but, realize that nature (and people are not perfect)."   She loves to m... » Read More

Love is in the air- even for dragons!

Published: 01-14-2012 05:34pm
Posted In: Valentines Day
The theme for the first Smooshers Challenge of 2012 is Valentines and I recently finished and listed my first entry.  As always, I wanted to sculpt something different and unique.  I wanted to create something a little unexpected.  I toyed around with a few different ideas before an image of two dragons popped into my head.  In the scene I imagined the boy dragon was offering a pretty heart to the girl dragon, who had a look of surprised delight on her face.  Once the idea was formed I got started sculpting the dragons.  I started with the foil armatures for their bodies, making the boy dragon's armature a bit bigger than the girl's.... » Read More

Handmade Hearts for Valentines Day

Published: 01-10-2012 08:30pm
Posted In: Valentines Day
I thought I'd share some of my items with hearts today, since Valentine's Day is fast approaching.  I've got all sorts of handmade hearts at CreativeCritters!  This silly heart magnet is an example of one of my more whimsical pieces ;-) And this cute little angel sculpture is a bit on the whimsical side as well.Of course jewelry featuring hearts is always a popular Valentines Day gift! And I think this sweet little bear says it all ;-)Thanks for checking out my hearts!  I've got plenty more Valentines items available in my shop, and will continue adding more for the next few weeks.  Nothing says "I love you" like a handmade gift from the... » Read More

Featured Smoosher WyvernDesigns

Published: 01-07-2012 01:17pm
Posted In: Polymer Clay Smooshers guild member features
Polymer Clay Smoosher member Nancy, of WyvernDesigns is a graphics and jewelry designer who loves trying new materials and new techniques and is totally addicted to polymer clay. While being completely addicted to polymer clay isn't a requirement for being a Smoosher, it sure does help!  While polymer clay may be her first love, Nancy also enjoy knitting, crocheting, drawing, and painting.  Below is just a small sample of the beautiful and unique creations that can be found in her shop. I love the wide range of things you can find in this shop- everything from cute and whimsical, to beautiful and elegant.  You can also find WyvernDesign... » Read More

Christi Friesen inspired peacocks

Published: 01-06-2012 05:29pm
Posted In: Animals
A while back I discovered this tutorial from Christi Friesen on making a peacock necklace http://www.firemountaingems.com/galleryofdesigns/jewelry_design_gallery.asp?docid=940J&sact=search&kwsearch=christi+friesen.  I also got her book Birds of a Feather.  Both inspired me to try my hand at sculpting birds, one of the few animals I haven't actually created too often.  The pictures of the peacocks were just so colorful and striking I decided to start with some peacock projects.  The first thing I created was this wall hanging. I had these little mirrors that added the perfect amount of sparkle and shine.  This type of project is a great way to... » Read More

Featured Smoosher XPressions Dolls

Published: 12-28-2011 12:18am
Posted In: Polymer Clay Smooshers guild member features
Polymer Clay Smooshers member Xpressions Dolls offers expressive polymer clay art dolls. Each of these whimsical characters are one of a kind creations. They're carefully crafted by hand and highly detailed.  The imagination and creativity that goes into each one makes them a unique gift from the heart. Francine has been creating these fun character dolls for 8 years.  She says "It not only relaxes me and gets rid of the stress of every day life, but it brings great pleasure to be able to give each character a human-like expression that makes them a bit different from the norm."As you can see, this is one talented polymer clay artist!  ... » Read More

Merry Christmas from Michelle and the cats of CreativeCritters!

Published: 12-22-2011 05:09pm
It's been a busy holiday season at CreativeCritters!  Between making custom orders (ornaments, catnip toys, knit stuffed animals, and more!), and making Christmas presents I'm definitely feeling like one of Santa's elves!  That's what Christmas is all about for me though- creating handmade gifts and watching the joy they bring others.  I hope you enjoy this little video I made, with the help of Calcifer and Ginko, of course ;-)Wishing you a very Merry Christmas! ~Michelle of CreativeCritters Become a fan of CreativeCritters on Facebook Follow CreativeCrittersBlog Join CreativeCritters Google+ circles Get CreativeCritters e... » Read More

How To Make a Teddy Bear Christmas Ornament in Polymer Clay

Published: 12-17-2011 08:22pm
Posted In: tutorials
This is my first full length video tutorial.  Join me as I take you through each step of sculpting a cute teddy bear ornament for Christmas. This bear is also available in my shop, just click the picture to be taken to his listing.Thanks for watching!  Have a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! ~Michelle of CreativeCritters Become a fan of CreativeCritters on Facebook Follow CreativeCrittersBlog Join CreativeCritters Google+ circles Get CreativeCritters e-books from Smashwords and Amazon ... » Read More

Free Gift with purchase from CreativeCritters

Published: 12-09-2011 05:13pm
Posted In: Sales
I've been including free gifts with customer's purchases from CreativeCritters since I opened my shop, but I only just got around to adding the Free Gift tag to most of my items (the Global Editor made a quick and easy job of that!).  So now customers know that they'll be getting a free gift with their order (before it was just a pleasant surprise).  And my gifts are also handmade and as fun and unique as the rest of the items in my shop.  I often include holiday magnets like these snowmen, snowflakes, and teddy bears. Or this adorable cat magnet, which made specifically for that customer.If I happen to know the customer sometimes I'll make a ... » Read More

Jewelry and how I started making it

Published: 12-04-2011 05:48pm
Posted In: jewelry
I really haven't been making jewelry for very long ( a few years now), and I probably never would have started if it hadn't been for my cousins.  I always make all the Christmas presents I give to family and friends.  This has forced me to stretch my creative boundaries a bit in order to create items that each person will like.  My cousins all wear very ... » Read More

A special necklace becomes a special Christmas gift

Published: 12-02-2011 01:58pm
Posted In: jewelry
Recently I created a new Christmas necklace from polymer clay beads and vintage beads and findings from Gramma's jewelry box.  The polymer clay beads were created with leftover red and white clay from my candy cane pens along with the teardrop shaped pendant.  I wanted something special for the center of the pendant so I looked through some of the vintage jewelry I inherited from Gramma.  Gramma was pretty rough on her jewelry, so many of her earrings, necklaces, rings, and bracelets were broken.  That's just fine for my purposes though.  I found a broken earring with sparkling imitation diamonds that made the perfect centerpiece for the pend... » Read More
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