Something Out Of Nothing

Rorschach Pendant

...make something out of nothing, I do that every day. I just read an Ornament magazine article about Tory Hughes with that title. Tory is known for her polymer but I like that she said the work is about the artist, not the material.

I swap between polymer and painting. In my recent paintings, I start with watercolor but find more and more mixed media getting put into the piece, so it no longer can be categorized as a watercolor. Though I have yet to incorporate polymer into my paintings, I have found that making skinner blends and mixing colors has informed my painting, and I have discovered color combinations through polymer that I want to use in painting.

In polymer, I have been making natasha or rorschach pendants lately. The fun is in the "what if"color combinations and the accidental nature of the finished piece. Some of my rorschach pendants achieved the intent I started out with, such as the bright, fun piece at the top which came out of making skinner blend spirals, striped canes, and checkerboards within a color scheme.

But then there are leftovers.

scrap pile-"nothing"?

After spending considerable amount of time being "intentional", I wound up with a large pile of scraps. I grabbed some and made these two pieces without regard for any kind of color scheme or superimposing my will over the pattern.

scrap pile pendants- "something"?


It's all good. It's all fun. Keep making something out of nothing!

Why Making Natasha Beads Are Like Painting Watercolors

Natasha Beads

One main reason I paint in watercolor is because I love the magic that happens when colors flow into each other and create interesting abstract patterns and textures. Once upon a time those backwashes and accidental textures were frowned upon with watercolor. Everything had to be perfect. Nowadays more and more painters are shunning perfection and going with the flow by letting things happen in an abstract or partially abstract manner using ingredients such as saran wrap, salt, gesso, etc.

In polymer clay, there are lawless rogues, too--such as Natasha who created the magical Natasha bead. I have fun with these in the same way I anticipate the serendipity of watercolor. Below is a tutorial for making Natasha beads out of scraps of clay.

I cut off ends of several spiral canes and lined them up together. You don't need canes to make a Natasha bead, but at least a few cane ends can add interest the end result.

I rolled them into a log, then twisted the log several times to get the ingredients spiraling around. I then squared the log using a brayer or acrylic roller.

Cut the squared log in half.

The pattern is exposed.

Leaving the two halves in the open-face position, I then cut the halves in half again.

I flip the two outside quarter pieces onto the back, taking time to line up the design. After lining it up, I then shape it into a long, slightly squared bead, shown in the photo at the top.

So oddly enough, this bead may look to some like an intricate pattern, when in fact it is the smushing together of polymer scraps to create a one of a kind original. As in watercolor painting, all the planning in the world can not surpass the excitement of the results you often get when letting things happen by just guiding the process along.