August Meeting Plans

The August 2010 KC PMC Guild meeting will feature a DEMO plus a Hands-on Make and Take project.


Janie will demo what she's learned in her certification classes about using PMC paste on real leaves to create super-realistic looking leaves (or pods or flowers....you get the idea).  She'll be showing us samples and detailing the steps, but the process to too slow to have us all join in.

And since watching PMC paste dry isn't the way our lively group likes to  roll we're going to add a hands-on project - making a ring with wire. Carol and Lynette will guide you and we call all make at least one ring to take home. See the tools list below.

We also plan to discuss our annual fall Charm Making and Christmas Exchange and start to get ideas from you about what you'd like to learn in 2011. This means taking some time for discussion. Bring your ideas!

Tool list:

• Ring mandrel or dowel rod or ring forms (to shape wire)
• Rawhide Mallet or Nylon Mallet
• Hammers
• Chain nose pliers
• Round nose pliers
• Wire Cutter
• File or emery board

 Materials:

• Wire (we'll have some copper, BYO if you want to use Sterling or other wire)
• Beads (large holed, flat like coins or buttons, or other interesting items)
• Headpins and crystals or smaller beads (if you want to have dangles)

To receive our monthly meeting notices by email (we use EVITE to send out details) please send me an email at "bylynette @ gmail.com" . See information on our website or meeting info here.

July Meeting Projects and Demos

Tuesday, July 20 - 7:00 p.m.

Carving Textures - Janie Clark and Jen Finley

How to make your own texture plates and designs for using with your PMC and Art Clay silver and copper and bronze. Learn to  use carving tools on eraser or soft carving medium to create your own custom texture plates. Photo-polymer plates are another way to make complex plates. PPP plates and supplies available online. 

Prep PPP your art:

1. Original line drawing or copyright free design, copied onto transparency film at Kinko's. Staples, Office Max, etc.  Make sure to have your copies made on the very dark setting.  The lines need to be really black so you can't see any light through them.   Plan to use a 2 X 2" image for your plate.

You can also draw directly onto transparency film with a black opaque marker or paint pen, or use black stick on decals on transparency film.  If you do this with letter stickers, they will be backwards.  Auto striping tape works well, too.

If you are advanced and want to try to use a non-line art image, make sure that it is done in half tones.  No guarantees on how well this will work.

If you use any writing or other images that are directional, they need to be made as a mirror image. 

We will have some extra line art in case you don't bring your own, and some 2X2" PPPs plates available for purchase for around $3 each.

2. A UV light like is used on artificial nails if you have one. We'll have one or two at the meeting.
3. A medium stiff fingernail brush.  Dollar Tree has these for $1
4. A cheap plastic bowl or tub to scrub your plate in.

Carving Blocks

1. Speedball Speedy-cut carving block, or similar- available at Hobby Lobby and other craft stores or at Whole Lotta Whimsey
2.  (or) erasers, soap, wax blocks
3.  linoleum carving tools
4. tracing paper
5. soft lead pencil

More Faux Bone

Photos coming in from folks who finished their faux bone project after last week's meeting.

From Chari Peak - a doll body. (His head is paper clay, body (with bird) is faux bone.)

From Cheryl Colman, a sample of faux bone stamped with ink and rubber stamp. She heat-set with a heat gun and the color stays just fine.

From Linda Maloney - a button ring, held together with a long mini nut and bolt.

A few of the demo samples:

KC PMC Guild Explore Faux Bone

The June meeting was a hive of activity, with participants buzzing with idea as we explored Faux Bone, the carvable medium developed by Robert Dancik. Armed with files, hammers, and other tools each person received a 5/8 x 4" piece of 1/16th inch faux bone. There were also some various sizes of round scrap blocks (thankyou, Judy) to experiment on.

Some people designed, some carved and drilled, gouged and colored with ink and shoe polish.

Some people got their first hands-experience with using a jeweler's saw - remember, don't hold it too tightly, gently move the blade vertically, up and down, and SMILE. It helps you relax.

And don't forget to use your bench pin!

Carol Hale had been working ahead and brought several finished pieces using faux bone and copper, brass, rivets and beads. Her flower pendant is mounted on a textured copper backing. The stem is "sewn" on using fine brass wire and the back is protected with fine suede.

Her collar neckpiece uses brass, beads, jump rings, and rivets. She scribed words and designs, which were stained before riveting them to the piece.

This bird necklace uses copper, rivets and beads.

My favorite piece was a bracelet, each link of faux bone different. The small, pewter figure lashed to the center bead was from one of her very first casting projects.

 Great job experimenting, Carol!! Lynette made a mess, as usual, but we all had fun.

If you were there, send me photos of your finished rings and we will add them here.

Don't miss our next demos. Check our website meeting schedule for upcoming demo topics.

Upcoming KC PMC Guild Meeting topics

Summer at KC PMC Guild is fun! We had a blast last night, sanding, carving and experimenting with Robert Dancik's Faux Bone. Photos to be posted soon!

Coming up:

July: Make your own texture plates for use with PMC

Janie and Jennifer will help you make plates 2 ways:

• carving in eraser rubber (using carving tools)
• using photo polymer plates (uses UV light and light-sensitive materials)

August
Janie will share what she's learning in Chicago about using paste PMC painted onto leaves or organic matter

September
Leanne and Robin will bring a plasma cutter! You'll have a chance to use the cutter to make shapes and rivet them together using a variety of riveting tools and techinques. Here's what they have told us about the evening:

For plasma cutting you need to wear long pants (preferably nothing polyester), closed toed shoes and socks. If you have long hair, it needs to be pulled back...LeAnne and Robin will bring leather gauntlets, protective aprons and eye gear.  We need to do it outside, close to a three prong electrical outlet...I have an extension cord.  It will take a while for everyone to try it.  Riveting can be done inside.  Bring an old tin (decorative tin boxes or tin cans) to cut up. Also bring riveting hammer, bench block, etc. for riveting.

Faux Bone - June 2010 Meeting Demo

Get ready for a hands-on night of learning about Faux Bone, developed by artist Robert Dancik. We'll be learning to saw, drill, file, shape and manipulate this new product. Demo will be led by Lynette Fisk, who has been experimenting already. Those who attended our April or May meetings may have seen these samples.

 Learn more about her experiments on her blog. Those who ordered in advance will have plenty to play with. We ordered extra, so if you missed the order, we WILL HAVE pieces available for you to purchase to make a ring at the meeting. There will be some extra scrap pieces to experiment with. Rivets and long tiny nuts and bolts will also be on hand.

Tools to bring: jeweler's saw, files, rotary drill, scribe, riveting hammer, bench block or hammering surface,
Materials: metal or glass beads, washers, coins, spacers, charms, wire (various gauges).

Additional things you could use: curling iron, toaster oven (we will bring), linoleum block carving tools, alcohol inks, shoe polish, UV resin (we will bring UV light), metal scraps or tubing, found objects

Sample shown here illustrates some of the techniques you will experiment with in June.

More Faux Bone images at Judith Freyer Thompson's site and on Flickr's Faux Bone group.

April Meeting - Viking Knit

In case you missed the Viking Knit demo in April, here are some pics from the meeting and some finished jewelry people shared in May. Thanks to Pat Kuehn for teaching us this technique!

Cheryl works on straightening her knitted wire.

Pat assists Kana in getting started.

Betty works on her wire knitting.

Pulling the finished knitted wire through a wood drawplate - Thank you Pat for making drawplates for everyone.

Some finished jewelry...this is Carol Hale's bracelet, using fabulous glass end caps she found at a Bead Blast vendor.

Finished necklaces from Janice LeMasters.

Did you finish yours? We would love to see it.