This is our last podcast for 2009! There isn't a whole lot going on in the polymer clay world this week, so we'll just say happy holidays, Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, we'll talk next year!

This is the coolest stuff since Premo! Watch as Ilysa shows you what Sukuruken Resin clay is capable of. I'm also going to do some tests soon, because I want to know if I can cure a piece, combine it with polymer, and then bake the whole thing. It's very interesting polymer clay that air drys almost crystal clear, even at a great thickness. EXTREMELY translucent stuff, and flexible.

We received this interesting clay from the company that distributes it, and boy is it fun to work with! It is a moist, heavy waterbased clay with very interesting working properties. We really liked it, so much that we talked about it for almost 7 minutes straight! Check out what we have to say about it...and come back next week to see it on Polymer Clay TV!

Today, learn the easy way to make a Rainbow Skinner blend in the 7 colors of the rainbow. You can learn to make a Rainbow JellyRoll cane and a pretty menorah using hardware like simple, inexpensive hex-nuts at PolymerClayClassroom.com in the full-length video.

Who would've thought that the hardware store would hold so many treasures? Much hardware is metal, which can be embedded and baked right into your clay. Listen as we discuss the many ways to use nuts, bolts, fish hooks? In your polymer clay creations.

Last week we discussed using polymer clay to make all kinds of mosaic artwork. This week, Ilysa shows you what that looks like! Enjoy.

Polymer Clay is such a fun medium to use for your own mosaics. You can use it cured, partially cured, or fully cured! Do soft on soft, bake your tiles and push them into soft clay, or bake your tiles and use them like a traditional mosaic with grout and everything. You can even use them in the kitchen or bath, as long as you seal them with a resin to make them easier to de-germify (polymer clay is porous, so it can harbor germs if not sealed.) Ilysa's mom is not well, so it's a short podcast this week while Ilysa hangs with her. See you next week on PCTV!

Check out this week's video demonstration, where Ilysa shows you more about mixing polymer clay colors. It's important to learn about color- better color produces more interesting designs for your jewelry, accessories, and home decor items!

Ilysa and Kira discuss the advantages of knowing how to mix colors, and how to learn more! Your designs will almost always look better if you don't use the clay directly out of the package, but learn to create your own variations. Be sure to visit next week, when you can see some ideas on how to mix your own clay colors.

If you love Halloween like we do, there's almost no better time to enjoy the various and sundry ways to use clay- to imitate surfaces, to decorate, to scare up a good time! Check it out as we take you on a tour of fun things to make with polymer clay for this spooky holiday.

Enjoy our discussion this week, regarding the upcoming Clay Event in France in March next spring, happenings in the latest Art Jewelry Magazine, and all the fun you can have making ghoulish accessories for Halloween out of polymer clay.

This week, I'll show you how easy it is to use a silicone mold, UV resin, and polymer clay to make a beautiful pendant. You can use any silicone mold that is not too deep- the UV light from the sun or a special lamp has to be able to penetrate all areas of the mold. You can also layer the resin in a deeper mold, it will stick to itself. And you can bake it! We used Magic Glos, a Lisa Pavelka product.

Listen as Ilysa and Kira discuss what's going on this week in polymer clay. Kira has a special technique to share with you, making a mold with Amazing Mold Putty and then layering UV curing resin to create her own molded clear beads! Next week she'll show you on Polymer Clay TV. If you are new to clay, or even an old hat, be sure to check out our workshop on www.CreativeWorkshops.ning.com. With over 2 hours of video, 10 videos on techniques and 2 project videos, plus direct interaction with us in a private forum, it's well worth it, and it will be fun! Also check out the challenge at www.PCAGOE.com this week, you could win a prize just for voting!

Clay characters are fun to make. Thanks to Owen, who was interviewed last week on our show and has the website address www.FiendishThingies.com, we have taken a fresh new look at the category of funky polymer clay characters and monsters. Enjoy this little tour through Etsy and Flickr!

Owen, who makes awesome polymer clay character sculptures, contacted us this summer about somehow getting involved with our website. So we asked him for two things- an interview, and a portrait of us in polymer clay! Of course, we pressured him to do the "glamour shots" version. We'll see what he comes up with! Enjoy the interview, and visit Owen's site: www.fiendishthingies.com.

Watch as Ilysa does a demo on how to hand sew on raw polymer clay! She also shows off an eyeglass case, ready for embellishment, that she baked, then sewed. Polymer clay is so versatile, you can do anything with it- even turn it into an emroidery project. Have fun!

Why not trying sewing on polymer clay? Cured or pre-cure, there are lots of ways to do it. You'll see some next week.

The company sent us some to try, so Ilysa will tell you all about it in today's video. It's a spray, and lots of sprays do pose a problem with polymer clay. I suspect it's something in the propellant, although I'm not a chemist. But most sprays stay sticky and never dry on cured clay. I learned that the hard way long ago when I spray-sealed something with a Krylon fixative and ruined a large, important piece. The stickyness often doesn't show up until later- sometimes months later, so be warned- when trying a new sealer, use test pieces and give them time to age. But PYMII appears to test well with the clay. We suggest sealing your pigment powder and Magic Transfer pieces with it for longevity of the finish. Enjoy!

Next week, we'll be showing PYMII- Preserve Your Memories II, as a sealer. It is a spray that was sent to us by Precision-Blue.com, and some folks in the polymer clay community have been mentioning that it works great as a sealer, so we're going to test the theory! We also reviewed this month's Art Jewelry mag, so have a listen!

Check it out- Ilysa playing with the "new" Pardo clay from Viva-Decor. We got some from them at CHA this summer, and we'll be showing it and talking about it some more soon. We even have some to give away, so if you want to win, just send us a nice email to polymerclaypodcast@yahoo.com.

Sorry folks, a little late due to the fact that we have Lynne Ann Schwarzenberg in the studio filming her first DVDs, as well as Tommie Howell doing some video with us on his area of expertise- figure sculpting. Their videos will be released in time for the Holiday shopping season- so stay tuned for that! Well, the CHA show was a blast as usual- although the only clay company in attendance was Viva-Decor, who gave us lots of Pardo, as well as a couple other products, to try out. The one I am most excited about is actually an air-dry clay that can be reconstituted with water. I am imagining the possibilities right now. Next week we think we'll show our tests with Pardo clay, so be sure to come back for Polymer Clay TV.

Thanks to Lisa Pavelka and Viva-Decor, who discussed and showed off the new Pardo Clay from Germany. By the way, Viva-Decor has WAY more than just the clay. I am very interested in some of their paint products, and plan to try them out on some mixed-media projects I have coming up. We got lots of Pardo to try out, and we'll be doing a PCTV on the clay in the next month or so, so stay tuned!

Well, next week we're off to the Craft and Hobby Association show. It's always a lot of fun to go and see what's debuting in the crafting world. This time we plan to do, and film ourselves doing, a lot of the make & take activities. We figure if we try out some products and tools we'll come up with new ways to use them with clay! Be sure to visit next week, we'll be putting up some of that footage for PCTV.

Today, let's take a tour of flickr. I searched for "polymer clay food" and these are some of the wonderful artists that came up. Shay Aaron appears to be a pro- creating a prolific variety of perfectly executed miniature food items in dollhouse scale. Other artists, such as FilthyFox and Weggart, create food novelty item jewelry with realistic pizza, desserts, donuts and other sundries! Check them out, all their names are in the video so you can find them on flickr. We've created a fun project related to faux food, over at Polymer Clay Classroom-learn a citrus cane and make a fun dessert!

We decided to talk about faux food this week. Polymer Clay can mimic almost anything, and many artists are using it to make very convincing food. You could make miniature food, for say, earrings or a dollhouse...and you can also make food intended to trick the eye. I have seen faux chocolates made from pc that I would pick up and try to take a bite out of! Just google faux food or do a search on youtube, and you can find lots of ways to try this technique. We'll show some next week on PCTV.

Amaco sent us some bead rollers and bead baking racks to try out. I must say, I never tried using them before, and there is a learning curve, at least for me. I'll show you next week on Polymer Clay TV. Enjoy the show! Ilysa and I are going to CHA at the end of July, so remember to drop us an email if you'll be there and you want to meet us!

Last week we talked about how even a 15 year old boy loved the new polyform Bake Shop clay, which is really economical at 99 cents per 2 oz pack, very soft and smooth out of the package, comes in 12 colors, and is just fun to work with. We didn't feel that this is a "professional" grade clay, as it remained pretty soft and spongy after baking and we're not sure about it's strength- but we don't think that's the point. It was just plain fun. Watch Ilysa's demo and see!

We tried out Bakeshop, I tried it with 11& 15 year old boys, and they really loved it. They used it all up! I taught them basic sculpting and caning and they were able to do lots with the clay. It's a bit rubbery both before and after baking, and we haven't strength tested it yet, but be sure to come back next week- Ilysa is going to try it out and do some tests.

Magic Glos is a UV cure resin, single step product that has so many advantages over 2 part resins. First of all, no mixing. Second- it cures in 15 minutes! No waiting overnight to work on a piece. Third, you can bake it!!!! Think about what you could do with this stuff. Best of all, if you live in a sunny area, you don't need special equipment- you can use the sun to cure your items. But, if you're in an area where the sun is unreliable, you can always get a little uv lamp, like the kind at nail salons, to cure your stuff. Check it out. Thanks to Lisa Pavelka, www.heartinhandstudio.com, for letting us try it out.

We discuss Lisa's Magic Gloss UV Resin, as well as the upcoming IPCA Guild retreat, our Synergy II Proposal, book submissions, and other stuff.

This week, join us as we add polymer clay embellishments to our wall decals by LanaKole.etsy.com.

Those vinyl decals for walls are so pretty. Did you ever think about adding some clay embellishments to make them even cooler and more personalized? Be sure to come back next week to watch Polymer Clay TV, where we will show you what to do. Other talking points this week- the book Handmade Nation, the Rise of DIY - was an awesome read. Be sure to check it out. It's about DIY craft artists in America. We also discussed Penni Jo's generous gift- 10 kits to make the cameo you saw last week. Listen to find out how you can win one.

That's right, she bakes a handmade cabochon, stamps a basic image on it, and then builds up color using oil pencils. They blend so beautifully, and Penni Jo makes you feel as if you could do it too. Maybe you can- follow her instructions and watch! The demo is long- be sure to come to our site for the rest.

Christi is such a fun artist to have for a teacher. Her brain is always "on" and her animals just come to life under her deft fingers.

Be sure to visit Polymer Clay TV.com for the whole video- it was quite long!

Be sure to sign up for the Mother's Day Gift Guide, as well as to submit yourself and your Polymer Clay Guild for possible inclusion in our new book about Polymer Clay Guilds around the world! Check out our site for the details. Be sure to come back next week for Polymer Clay TV- a very special demo by Christi Friesen that she did at this year's Orlando Clay Fandango retreat.

This week, see what all the fun is at the Orlando Clay Fandango! Enjoy some of the weekend's events along with us. A Hat fashion show, an auction, and other fun stuff.

This week we're talking a bit about Fandango, also commenting on the articles in the Kalmbach mags Bead Style and Art Jewelry (a good one about Melanie West!) and inviting you to be part of the Mother's Day gift guide- a video with your photos and shop url that will be posted on April 24, all around the 'net. We won't take it down, either. So you'll be advertised forever. For just 5 bucks. Sign up on our sidebar and email us your photos.

We all know and love sugary, sweet, cute Peeps! Ilysa and I are fond of the yellow bunnies. So we're going to show you how to make a set of realistic Peeps earrings you can wear as a Spring Celebration- and keep long after the real ones go stale. Enjoy!

We're back and we had a blast! Christie Friesen, Lynne Ann Schwartzenberg, Penni Jo Couch, Dan Cormier and Tracy Holmes...and bonus, Tommie Howl sculpting away in the daytripper room! We saw amazing polymer clay art and had a great time with the Ladies and Gents of the Orlando Guild.

Take a guided tour through Ilysa's studio, featuring her new glass-topped office table from Office Depot. Who knew an office table would be the perfect alternative for working with polymer clay? And this one was a steal, price-wise, at only $99. So keep your eyes open for new ways to work with clay- we do! Also check out some of the ways she stores her stuff.

In this video, Kira talks about the texture makers and a few things you could do with them.

This week we talk about life, current events, and using the Studio by Sculpey texture sheets to make a cool project- which you'll see next week on polymer clay tv.

Check out our examples of how to show off your business with a nice card holder- and see the whole project at www.polymerclayclassroom.com.

What could be a better introduction to your work, than whipping out a beautiful card case covered with your style of polymer clay art? Next week you'll see Ilysa's version. I should do one too, I'll show you whenever I get to that! Also, coming up is the Orlando Clay Fandango in March. Be sure to stop by their website to see what's new. We'd like to thank them for sponsoring our trip- last year, and this year coming up. It is so great to be able to visit the show and film the artists and share it with the greater community! Speaking of sponsors, we needed to make the business decision this year to skip the Winter CHA show due to lack of personal funds to make the trip. We were contacted by several companies asking us if we would like to film at their booths- which is a great offer, however, first we need to get there. So this year we'll be working on ways to fund upcoming travel opportunities. You can help, just go to the Support our show page and see what you can do to contribute. Thanks everyone, and enjoy!

Why not make Hearts for Heroes this Valentine's Day? A special heartfelt gift for an active USA soldier at war- protecting our country. For more information, watch the video and visit heartsforheroes.com.

This week, enjoy an interview with Jeanette, aka ClayHappy.etsy.com. Ilysa and Kira met her when Ilysa went looking for a butterfly cane, and Kira ordered a Panda pendant for her sister. The quality of Jeanette's work is incredible- the backs of her pendants look like porcelain, and the fronts look like glass. She tells us how to achieve this finish, and will teach you if you convo her.

Using only polymer clay, clay tools, and an inexpensive mirror from the craft shop, you can make a gorgeous and fun mirror! Transfer designs on the back are very popular too!

Ilysa and I talk about how, once again, polymer clay can do almost anything! Pocket mirrors are a great small item that you can do so much with. Ilysa will show you next week how she made hers, using colored pigment powders graciously sent to us by Jacquard to add to our collection! Think about the little blank canvas presented by the pocket mirror- steampunk, caning, mosaic, image transfer...anything goes. Just be sure to embed the mirror securely so it doesn't break or fall out.

It's easy and fun to cover paper mache with polymer clay and mixed media art designs. See the full project at www.polymerclayclassroom.com.