If you missed January's meeting, you missed a great one! Contents of this email include:

*** January Meeting Report
*** Polymer Clay Haven Retreat in July 2000
*** Polymer Clay CD Rom Contribution
*** 2000 Beads for 2000 AD Project
*** Potential Class with Linda Goff
*** February Meeting

***Meeting Report
The Blue Ridge Polymer Clay Guild met Saturday January 8, 2000, at the YWCA on South French Broad Avenue in Asheville NC. Thirteen members were present, including several new faces. (Welcome, Jack, Susan, Diane, and Carol, and Christine!)

As usual, it was hard to settle down and stop chatting, but we finally managed. Heather gave a wonderful demonstration on making polymer clay covered pens, and we all worked along with her and most of us went home with a finished pen complete with cap. Heather is a very thorough teacher and her clear verbal instructions were backed up with a handout. She also covered many options and what-ifs, and while we might never make a pen as beautifully finished as Heather's, at least we know we were taught by the best. Heather's beautiful pens can be seen at http://albums.photopoint.com/j/AlbumList?u=189922. She has graciously sent contact information for pen suppliers -- the info will be at the end of this email.

Several people brought items for show and tell. Renske brought some of her very charming sculpted gnomes, Byrd brought a variety of simple but lovely cookie-cutter ornaments, and someone (Byrd or Heather?) brought items from the recent Balinese Filigree Swap. Heather brought several pieces, including several rock boxes, and Irene brought some of her new work featuring her new look.

We were all refreshed with coffee-flavored hard candies that Renske brought from her trip to Holland.

Edie, the hostess of our first guild bead swap, was not able to attend this meeting. Resultantly, a rather chaotic transaction took the place of what would have undoubtedly been an orderly bead swap. But the eight participants of this swap all have a bead from each other (almost. ahem, you-know-who-you-are) and our guild bead strand has been started.

Byrd has organized our email list through eGroups, so we we be able to better maintain our list and not leave anyone off. If you know of anyone that needs help subscribing, please get in touch with them. And thanks, Byrd!

*** Polymer Clay Haven Retreat in July 2000
A polymer clay retreat, sponsored by Polymer Clay Haven, is scheduled for July 12 - 16, 2000, at Bellarmine College in Louisville, KY. There will be demonstrations, workshops, and classes, taught by a variety of people including our own Byrd Tetzlaff, Katherine Dewey, Donna Kato, Patti Kimle, and Marie Segal, just to name a few. For more information, please visit the Polymer Clay Haven web site at http://polymerclayhaven.com or contact Irene Coyer (aka "the other Irene") at havenmaven@polymerclayhaven.com.

*** Polymer Clay CD Rom Contribution
Our guild has been contacted by Monica Resta, a polymer clay artist in Italy. She is working on a CD Rom featuring a variety of polymer clay techniques and step-by-step projects. It will be published in English, Italian, and Spanish in Spring 2000.

There will be a gallery section featuring one piece of artwork from each guild that wishes to contribute. The choice of what piece to submit will be chosen by guild vote. Anyone who would like to enter some of their work should bring a maximum of three pieces to the February 12 meeting, and we will have a vote to choose a piece. (The actual piece will not need to be sent; a photograph or digital image is all that is needed by the publisher.) Contact Irene at fatbak@pobox.com for more information.

*** 2,000 Beads for 2000 AD Project
Crafty Owl in England is starting a 2,000 beads for 2000 AD project. She intends to collect 2,000 polymer clay beads and will create a large cone-shaped spiral of beads on wire. It will be displayed at the Bead Society of Great Britian's Bead Fair in October and will probably (she hopes) end up in the Bead Museum in Arizona.

The beads must be made of polymer clay, and all must be different. Any sort of surface decoration or embellishment is acceptable. Each bead should measure one-half to one inch long with a hole large enough to accommodate wire (she didn't say what size wire, but she will ream out holes when necessary).

Anyone who would like to contribute beads to this history-making project should bring them to the March 11 meeting. Put your bead(s) in a bag with your name and contact information -- Crafty Owl will document each bead. Irene will collect and package and
send the beads to England. Contact Irene at fatbak@pobox.com for more information.

*** Potential Class with Linda Goff
Linda Goff is a polymer clay artist from the west coast. She'll be in the Knoxville area in June 2000, and it's only a hop, skip, and a jump to Asheville. She has offered to teach a class to our guild if there is sufficient interest. Her fee is approximately $45 per student for a one-day workshop.

Class descriptions:
Wire and Clay Jewelry
Learn how to design and create jewelry using metal wire and polymer clay. We’ll hand shape and wrap a metal wire frame, fill it with polymer clay, and then decorate by cutting and stacking thin slices of clay to create a bas-relief surface. Metallic powders, foils and glitters can also be used for decoration. A variety of colors of wire will be provided. (Technique can be seen at: http://members.aol.com/wire4clay2)

Collage Night Lights and Postcards
We’ll use Gwen Gibson’s tearaway technique (taught with her permission) to make luminous night lights from “clay paper,” acrylic paints, and sheets of translucent clay cut into interesting shapes. Then we’ll perform an amazing feat of artistic time management by using the same sheet of clay to make delightful postcards featuring Gwen’s etched clay technique. Night light parts will be provided. (Technique can be seen at: http://members.aol.com/wire4clay1/lites.html)

Please contact Sara Jane at sjwhyte@email.unc.edu if you would be interested in taking a class from Linda, and which class you would prefer. Please do this ASAP, as Linda will need to know about fitting us into her schedule.

*** February Meeting
Our next meeting will be held February 12, 2000, at the YWCA. Irene will demonstrate the many and various ways to use a linoleum block cutter (a V-shaped gouge) with polymer clay. More info on this meeting will be sent as the date draws closer.

If you have something you would like to show the guild, in the form of a demonstration or a clay-along workshop, please contact Sara Jane at sjwhyte@email.unc.edu.

Supplier info follows:

PennState Industries 1-800-377-7297
www.penstateind.com
Pen is 24Kt "Slimline" Pen and Pencil Kits, #PK-PEN and #PK-PCL

Woodworker's Supply (they have chrome and gold plated pen parts, but I haven't ordered from them yet, but I plan to)
1-800-645-9292
Pen Gold 883-414, Pen Chrome 883-421, Pencil Gold 883-428, and Pencil
Chrome 883-435

Both companies also carry keychains, perfume bottles, other types of pens, clocks, etc that can be covered with clay instead of wood.

Also, Sara Jane added:
Also with MANY pen kits in varying price ranges, online catalog for reference and ordering, and some models in chrome, I found the following suppliers in wood working suppliers:

http://www.hutproducts.com
1-800-547-5461

submitted by Irene Semanchuk Dean, January 11, 2000