Persistence

I was browsing the Etsy forums the other day and came upon a thread about how someone decided to try polymer clay, because, and I quote: "I thought, how hard could it be to roll out a couple of flat globs and cookie cutter out some circles and rubber stamp em and bake em, right? HOW HARD could that be?? Well, if someone can tell me how to get the polymer clay boogers off of my little plastic rolling pin and work surface and rubber stamp, I *might* be able to clean up and throw the stuff away! urg!!". It never fails to amaze me how some people think they can try something for the first time and be perfect at it. And, incredibly, how they think it's the medium's fault when it doesn't come out right!

All of which made me think about a trait that most dedicated artists and craftspeople have in common, and that is persistence. You hear about passion and creativity and vision, but it's the dedication to keep working at something until you get it right that sets them apart. Or conversely, being comfortable in going in another direction if that's where it takes you.

I'm sure glad I didn't "throw the stuff away!" after my first try! Here is a photo of some of my early, and very amateurish, attempts at polymer. And another of my humongous reject jar (it is 24 inches tall and it's almost full):



Because I'm a persistent person and dedicated to good craftsmanship, my work has progressed to where I feel I'm in control of the medium, instead of the other way around. But I still contribute regularly to that big reject jar in the corner of my studio!

New Work

I've been having a busy summer! I have a hectic show schedule and during the week I try to keep up in the studio replacing inventory. I always set aside a few hours a week, though, to just play and experiment with new techniques and designs.

When I saw the fabulous jewel colors of Byzantia textile paints by Stewart Gill, I just had to have some! I'm just starting to play around with them, but so far so good. I see an elegant series of pieces in the works!



I made these pieces last week, took them to a couple of shows over the weekend and already sold three necklaces and some earrings! It's nice to get something right immediately - usually it's weeks of trial and error!