I admit...I'm a technological Neanderthal...I don't blog (except here), I don't "face-space", I don't "tweeter-twit", I don't "my-pagey-page"...so, I'm an absolute neophyte when it comes to communicating in the modern age.  I don't miss it.  I don't know if there's something I'm missing...'cuz I don't do it.  I don't own a cell phone...if I can't (or won't) talk to someone while I'm home, I don't want to talk to them at all.  I am not now, nor will I ever be, a slave to "communicating" with others.  I could, perhaps, understand the need (though ever so slightly) if I were working or had kids I needed to keep in touch with...but I'm not and I don't...so where's the need to have myself on standby 24/7 for any idiot that gets or has my number?  The recent commercials by HULU (sp?) are brilliant!  "You're brain is turning to mush, and we're going to take advantage of it...!!!"
Anyway...total non-segue:
I love, love, love mokume gane.  For those of you who don't know it, or have never done it, please go to glassattic.com and read all you can.  There are so many, many different variations...and most are totally gorgeous.  One of my favorties is this:
--translucent clay
 --enough to get your job done...you decide
 --I absolutely recommend Premo! Frost - it cures the clearest of all I've ever used or seen
-metal leaf - any color you want
-alcohol inks - any color you want

condition your translucent, but not too much.  You'll know, because it will get really mushy.  If you're using Kato or another more firm clay, run it through about ten times to condition;  Run the clay through the pasta machine as thin as you can get it.  I would suggest you stop at about # 7...you'll get thinner after you've done everything else.
So, cut pieces about 7" x 7", and line them up.  Take your alcohol inks and drop about three drops on each individual sheet.  LET THE INK DRY...I can't stress this enough.  It will take about 30 minutes for the ink to completely dry.  If you don't let it dry, it wil get caught up in your rollers, and then you're going to have to spend  time completely cleaning the pasta machine...not worth the time.  Once the ink is completely dry, blend the translucent-tinted clay completely.  Then set it all aside and let it cool for about 20 minutes.
Run each colored sheet through the pasta machine until it's as thin as you can get it.  continue running through the pasta machine to the thinnest setting you can achieve.  If the clay starts crumbling, rippling, or sticking to the rollers, set it aside and let it rest for about twenty minutes on a cool surface, then run through on the next lower setting.  You may have to do this a few times as you ramp down on the settings, but it's worth it.
Once you get to the lowest setting, you'll need to manually stretch the clay a bit.  By this, I mean exactly what I say.  Stretch it a bit horizontally, then stretch it a bit vertically.  All you're doing is thinning it out just a bit more.  I lay the sheet of clay over my leg so my body keeps it a bit warm.
Cut each colored sheet to about  5" x 5".  Lay a sheet of metal leaf on top of each sheet.  Lay the sheets on top of each other...raw clay on metal foil...then cut the stack in half and place bottom on top, then cut again and place bottom on top.  Once you have a "loaf", you can slice off thin, thin pieces of it, or you can punch holes in it, or you can do anything you want.  Please, PLEASE go to glassattic.com to get more instructions...I can't do it  completely here.  
Hope you're thrilled with the results.  If I've been totally murky on the details, plese write me...
Cheers!
Julie

I think I've come to the decision that I will stop categorizing my wares in "Jewelry", and start putting them under "Art" with a subsystem of "Self-Representing Artist"....I'm sick and tired of searching "polymer clay" and finding cross-eyed lady bugs, cross-eyed bears, cross-eyed...well, you get the idea.  When I first came to Silkfair, there were MAYBE two pages shown when polymer clay was used as a search criterium.  Now, there's over 21 pages, and 90% of it is kitsch.  That's just fine, if that's what the market wants...it's just not what I want to be associated with.

I've been putting most of my time in to Bottles of Hope.  To explain them, here's the site:  http://bottlesofhope.org/.  I've been doing them for several years now, and it never gets boring.  Use anything you have, any technique, any idea.  The site has suggestions for how to do them.  We have a wonderful lady in our Guild who takes it upon herself to deliver the bottles...she has developed a terrific relationship with the hospital.  I can't do it, though...I hurt too much when I go.  Had the same problem for the two years I volunteered with Special Olympics.  Although I see the bravery, the will to live, the joy in life...I hurt.  Stupid and unnecessary, but there it is.

Anyway, the PC gods have not been throwing their creative darts at me lately, so I've been taking a break...hopefully it won't be long before the overwhelming desire hits me.

Creativity is a rare commodity in this world...what most call creative is someone merely using someone else's idea in a [i]slightly different (if not totally borrowed/stolen) way.  True creativity is doing something no one else has thought of doing (and wished they had) with whatever medium they use...clay, paint, architecture, stone, words, etc....their efforts are for no other reason than to have done it for themselves and the sheer love of their work
I've spent the last two days re-reading Ayn Rand (geez, can ya tell?).  I discovered her in my early twenties when I was just (honestly) realizing how  my (frowned upon) so-called selfishness was really someone elses' problem...not mine.  She's right.  The root of all evil is selflessness...for how can one lose or give away one's self and still be considered human?  Is not one's self one's soul?  And, if so, what does that say of one who considers himself selfless?  I'm no philosopher...couldn't even begin or want to get into a deep discussion on it...not in this medium, anyway.  I recommend to anyone they should read her...among the most famous, "Atlas Shrugged" and "The Fountainhead".  Brilliant.  Her thinking was radical, even in the forties when published, and still holds water today.
So...when I get to the point...if I ever do...of being truly creative with my polymer clay, I will die a happy woman.  I work with my clay for my own enjoyment, and if I get to sell some or give it away, and it makes someone happy, that's great.  My greatest enjoyment will be to push my learning and ability to the limit.

OK, guys and gals, here's a little story to warn you and make your radar go up if it should ever happen to you:

I was invited by a local bead store to have a trunk show...I did not ask for it - she asked ME to come display my polymer in her store.  She was interested in starting classes, and wanted to get her customers in the store to see it.  I did the trunk show.  It was moderately successful.  I made money, the owner took 20% of my sales, in addition to the customers that she brought in who spent more money on additional beads.  She was pleased enough to ask me to come back and do another one.  Great! I thought.  So I did.  Again, I made money, she made money - not only from my sales, but from the customers who came in and bought additional beads.  She then asked me to teach a class at her store.  I agreed, and the owner then asked me to provide her with an example of what I would teach.  I  designed a large clay heart pendant with leaves and flower canes over it, and took it to her to photograph for her website and to display for potential students.  Well, what with the economy, etc., no one had the time or money to sign up for the class, so no class.  I asked the owner to return the pendant because I could sell it elsewhere.  Well, lo and behold, she doesn't "exactly" know where it is, but she'll look for it and get back with me.  Two months later - no pendant AND no word from the owner.  I go to personally find out about it, and "she's still looking for it".  As a matter of fact, "one of her girls is tearing the store room apart to find it".  OK, I tell her...but if you can't find it,  the price of it is $20.  WELL, obviously she knew I was going to ask to be paid for it, because she immediately launched at me with, "I LET you have three trunk shows here, and you made money".  Yes, I said, and so did you.  "Well I don't notice anyone else asking you to do it, but I LET you...no one else is".  By then, I was getting so mad, that if I hadn't left I would have jumped over the counter to rip her bleached hair out.  So, I merely said, "OK", and I walked out...yes, Julie did not get ugly and she held her temper (as outlandish as that may sound).  So, moral of the story is:  some business isn't really business when you're dealing with a shady character with no conscience.  Those shady characters will twist reality to fit their objectives, whether it means screwing you or not.  Should anyone ever ask you to provide examples of what you will teach, get paid for it up front, or take the photos yourself and send via email.  NEVER hand over your work to someone else expecting to get it back.
Oh, yes, the name of the owner?  Michelle.  The store?  The Beading Boutique in Altamonte Springs.  She not only lost a customer due to her thievery and crappy customer service, I will advise anyone I talk to to never cross her doorstep.
Not everyone with a smile on their face is honest or has your best in mind...sometimes making a buck is all that matters to them.

This photo may not look like it has anything to do with polymer clay, but allow me to digress a bit...and perhaps my skewed logic will eventually get on point.
A friend of mine, who is a member of my polymer clay guild, is also very talented in many other arenas.  Karen came to a meeting with a beautiful beaded bracelet she had made, and I drooled.  I have ALWAYS wanted to leran bead weaving and beading, but every time I've looked at one of those diagrams, my eyes crossed.  I simply cannot make heads or tails of the instructions...even when they promise it's for total beginners!!!  Needle A, color A, needle B, color B...blah-blah-blah....can't do it.  Soooo. as I drooled over Karen's bracelet, she took it off and very simply explained how it was done.  Holy crap!!!...I said to myself....I understand now!  I'm a "see-it-and-do-it" person, not a "read -about-it-and-do-it" person.  I went home and that night I made one.  Granted, it wasn't the best in the world (the black and gold one), but, CRIPES!!!!, I could do one now.  So, as is with my usual fashion, I proceeded to make more!  Thus, the other two bracelets in the photo. Now, as I was sitting in front of the TV mindlessly stringing beads (only stopping ever so often to make sure I have the right color!), I started thinking about what else I could do with this simple pattern...what other beads?  what other variations?...and, VOILA!!  Polymer clay in all shapes and colors will be perfect.  Big ones, little ones, round ones, oval ones, mokume gane, striped, etc., etc.  Now that I know the simple construction, I can branch out and use my polymer clay beads any way I want.  I bought a wad of SpiderWire Ultracast Invisi-Braid from Fire Mountain Gems simply because I wanted to try and use it with my stringing...little did I know that it would be the perfect material for these bracelets.  It's the translucent 1lb. diameter.  It's waxy, and I found that burning the end of it with my lighter is better than trying to make a perfect knot.   Yeah, I'm goin' back for more.
So, gentle reader, there's my "almost" polymer clay musing for the day.  Hope your summer is starting out cooler than the one here in Central Florida...Mickey's melting, guys, and it ain't even June yet!
Cheers!

Something I'm always thinking about, and something I'm always fuming about is the concept most people have of polymer clay and its applications.  I can NOT recount how many craft fairs I've participated in, when someone walks into my tent and I overhear them saying to their companion, "Oh, this is like the Sculpey I give to my kids to play with..."..."What?  this is like Play-Doh"?...Or even better (and this is a no-fooling response I got), "I don't know what you're talking about.."  I'm sorry, but if you're in this world, and just a little aware, you'll have heard of polymer clay.  You may not know what it's all about, but you've heard of it...otherwise, you've no reason to be at an art/craft fair...and surely you have enough class to not insult the tent owner/artist...???  
Polymer clay, if one must apply a tag to it, is one of those ephemeral multi-media art mediums.  If one cannot see it as an art unto itself, then look at it that way.  Polymer clay can be used with metal art clay (notice how that's called "art" clay?)...sterling silver, gold, paper, earthen clay...etc.  The list goes on and on.  Perhaps most people don't take it seriously because all they see are the cutesy, dolllar-store things people do with it and then try to sell on the web?  When all I see are lady bugs, angels and the like made of PC, and I see nothing else of value offered on the web...well  I, too, would think this is something to give my children to "play" with...Geez, I know little Sally could make a lady bug that cute!!!
So...do I have a solution, or am I just bitchin'???  Yup,  just bitchin".  Gotta do it every once in a while.  Doesn't mean anything other than getting something off my chest.  Done...over with...get on with the PC!!!!

Yeah, well, there are quite a few things that bring me a sense of euphoria...a REALLY good glass of wine, a job well done (that I'm very pleased with...and I am my toughest critic!)...and finding sites I LO-O-O-OVE to shop on!!!
For my polymer clay, I go to polymerclayexpress.com; shadesofclay.com; and occasionally firemountaingems.com.  Most of my hard-earned dollars are given to PCE, though.  I have found, in endless web searching, that they have the best prices for just about anything I want.
I have three places I buy my gold-filled, vermeil, and sterling beads and findings:  firemountaingems.com; gemstategoldandsilver.com; and, balikusilverbeads.com.  Fire Mountain just has the absolute best prices when you buy in bulk (and a $5 max shipping fee is unheard of!); Gem State Gold and Silver has the best prices for small buys (and the owner is a real sweetie who will call you personnaly about an order!), and Baliku Silver is the best Indonesian supplier I've found for sterling Bali and vermeil beads and findings...and their customer service is second to none!
Yeah, I know this isn't really about PC, but it is kinda!  I've been busy the last couple of days volunteering at an artist co-op I belong to and getting ready for in-laws to visit....complete, thorough, ass-kicking house cleaning....ugh!
Here's a photo of one of the items I entered in the Fire Mountain Gems Beading Contest...still waiting to get results...and keeping my fingers crossed.  Here's also a little something more about me:

http://www.firemountaingems.com/jewelryartists/jewelryartists_bio.asp?docid=ANSTAETTJ&sact=search&kwsearch=notableartist&section=notableartists&artistname=Julie+Anstaett

More on PC later...promise!

I'm in my studio every day.  I call it a studio, but it's actually a bedroom I slowly took over before my husband realized it!  Anyway, sometimes I 'm in there in a fever with ideas I dreamed of or sketched out...or something I saw that has given me an idea.  More often than not, though, I'm just in there putzing around, sitting at my table and staring out on the flora and fauna in my yard ( We have a one acre lot that is completely covered in ferns, trees, wildflowers...well, you can just say I have my own Sherwood Forest outside my back door).
However, one recipe I tried after reading one of my myriad of books gave me the idea to use it with other colors.  It was a recipe for burled maple (redwood?), and the result was so cool (see the earrings on the far left), that I wanted to do it with other colors.  It's simple:
Choose the colors you want...doesn't mater what they are, as the colors will not be completely mixed...so no chance of making mud!  condition the clay, let it rest for a bit, chop it up and put it in a food processor (if you have one for clay).  I have a terrific coffee bean grinder that had not been used for years, so that's what I use.  I put my batch of clay in the grinder, give it a few short burts, then pour out the mixture on to my table.  Make an even layer of it all, then place some wax paper over it and roll it out with a brayer or acrylic roller (this prevents the clay from smooshing all over the place).  If the "nuggets" of your colors are too big, or you want to refine the pattern a bit more, tear up the sheet you've made into pieces, and put it back in the grinder for another go.  Just make sure your clay is cool enough that it won't "melt" into the blades.  My grinder heats up a bit, thus warms up the clay.  Do this until it's as subtle as you'd like it to be, but remember that you will eventually mix all the clay together if you keep doing it.  I find that I don't need to do this more than three times to achieve the result I want.  This photo is of three pairs of earrings I did with the technique.

I find, sometimes, that the simplest techniques can yield the coolest things.  Point in case (case in point?  never could get that right!)....this necklace I did using extruded strings in just black, white, and translucent.  I like it...I think it's, well, cool!  I use Kemper extruders.  I know, I know...people scream and holler and make goin'-to the-holy-land testimonials about the Makins extruder...!!!  Well, I'll tell you.  I used the Makins extruders...in fact, I "used"  four of them within a year..only to have every one of them break.  Now, I'm not saying the Makins is a bad extruder.  It's just not for someone using and extruding all the time, or using and extruding anything other than soft, soft clay...which kinda limits your abiities, ya know?  After having communicated with the Makins owner several times, he told me his tools were made specifically for the Makins clay, and they were "working" on something every clay artist could use.   Don't kow if they have or not, but I'm sticking with the Kemper.  It's indestructible!  I have one for white, one for translucent, one for black and one for all other colors.  It's most annoying to get some little bit of some other color mixed in with white or trans...and believe me, without THOROUGHLY cleaning your extruder, you're going to get something mixed in!  Still, I will take a bottle brush, dip it in alcohol, and run it through my extruder a few times every once in a while to really clean it.  I also use a modified caulking gun to help extrude.  If you're interested in one, go to www.shadesofclay.com.  It's a Canadian company - you pay Canadian Dollar prices - and the shipping is most reasonable.
Anyway, extruding clay is just too, too much fun...you never know what kind of pattern you'll get...and that's the whole idea!  When you do this, always keep in mind the colors you're putting together.  This whole process is based on fluid dynamics, i.e., as the plunger moves, the MIDDLE of the clay is pushed out, and the surrounding clay is moved along the sides.  So, if you put green and orange together in the tube, you're gonna get brown muck as the final product along with bits and pieces of orange and green!  As with this piece, If I had wanted very little black, I would have stacked the clay like:  white, trans, white, trans, white, black...and repeated that until I had filled up the plunger.  Obviously, I wanted black to be the dominate color.  Play with the way you stack the clay to see what you like.  A  .5" (1/2 ") circle cutter is perfect for cutting out pieces to fit in the extruder.  I roll the clay through the thickest setting on my pasta machine, and just start puching out circles.  When the table is full of all the colors I want, I start stacking!  Once you have all your extrusions, start cutting into sections and stacking to make a cane.  Reduce if you want, then start laying slices.  Simple as that.  With this piece, I used the square die...but the round die is just as interesting.

WARNING!!  This may be a repeat...only because my English and spelling was soooo heinous in the first post, I tried editing...it may have worked and it may not have.  If this is a duplicate, hopefully, the spelling is every so much better!!!