Polymer Clay Canes for Beginners 27 videos, step by step, beginner cane workshop
What people are saying about this tutorial.
jennifer rose
Just finished this first workshop on how to make canes, and I must say I learned so much. This is exactly what I have been looking for, someone who could explain cane making in a step by step that process that I could replicate. I watched the videos, went into my studio and began to create all of the canes Alice showed. I finally have results I can be proud of, and I say thank you so much for doing this workshop. My only question now is when do we get more workshops. If you are only going to take one online class let it be this workshop. Thank you Alice for your hard work, and your dedication to helping others learn the joys of polymer clay.
Online Workshops with Alice Stroppel
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I’ve been looking forward to this week for about six months. The four of us, Julie Eakes, Meisha Barbee, and Laurie Prophater planned to meet at my home studio and just sit and clay for a week. Then Studio 215 happened and the timing was right for one of this talented group of artists to teach a class at my new studio. Polyform Products provided Premo clay and we were set. Thank you Iris Weiss and Polyform Products
Meisha said yes and taught a full house this past week-end and Julie and Laurie have agreed to teach in the future. Happily that means another trip to Florida.
In the photo above you see us in my studio at home claying away. We didn’t leave the house that day.
But it was on to Studio 215 the next day to get ready for Meisha’s workshop.
These were just some of the beautiful samples Meisha had on display, forgive the photography, I’m responsible.
Below are the finished piece created by a very talented group of students.
Everyone had a great time, learned a lot and went home ready to explore these skills a bit more. Just take a look at these happy faces. Meisha is an excellent teacher, everyone agreed.
Can you tell that we laughed quite a bit? I just loved having everyone here.
I’m happy to say that I now have work for purchase at Studio 215 from Meisha, Julie, and Laurie. Here are just a few samples. I don’t think they’ll last long.
 Meisha Barbee
 Laurie Prophater  Julie Eakes
The next day found Julie, Meisha and me at the Ringling Museum of Art. We toured Ca’d’Zan the mansion and the museum and then jumped over to St. Armands Key to put our feet in the sand. Laurie had left us by then and we missed her smiling face.
We had a great time but we weren’t very popular on Facebook when Julie posted this picture. (notice the people in bathing suits in the back ground) Cold times up north…sorry guys.
Thanks to everyone for making this a happy week at Studio 215 and beyond.
Texas artist Randee M. Ketzel is Studio 215 on June 13th and 14th and bringing with her a ton of fun with this Beachcomber bracelet. I can’t wait for this workshop and to spend some time with Randee. I haven’t meet her in person yet, but I know I’m in for a treat. I’ve heard rumors that she’s kind of fun to be around. Okay not just kind of!
Plus I know for a fact she’s extremely generous. She sent me almost the first bracelets she made using Stroppel canes. See my post about it here. Thanks again Randee, they are still so special.
Randee will be incorporating a wealth of faux techniques in this beachcomber workshop. Students will learn how to create realistic driftwood twigs with fungal embellishments, fossil limestone with opal inclusions in a variety of styles, including miniature cycladic goddess figures, faux sea glass, and jade artifacts–scarabs and cicadas.
Students will create at least one bracelet, and have an abundance of elements left over for more projects..necklaces, pendants. earrings and more!
Lessons on seamless stringing and use of a power drill will be included. All materials and tools provided.
Join us for a trunk show featuring Randee work on Friday evening June 12th 5-8 pm. Also for sale will be autographed copies of Randee’s recent book Polymer Clay Gemstones: The Art of Deception.
Randee M. Ketzel came to polymer clay by way of a youthful career as a bench jeweler; when impending motherhood frowned upon such diversions, she turned to alternative materials, and in decent middle age, discovered–or was discovered by–polymer clay. She has happily immersed herself in its wonders ever since. She currently lives, breathes, and teaches the exquisite art of polymer clay in Austin TX with her beautiful children, wonderful husband and an impossibly fluffy little dog.
Her work may be viewed on Flickr , and on Etsy, at RMKdesign. Her work has been featured on Polymer Clay Daily, in national magazines, and art museum stores.
Download the Beachcomber Bracelet workshop application, and save your spot for this workshop.
I have a lot to do this week. I’m very excited to tell you that I am going to Sandy Camp in California next month. I’m going to be doing a demo. Thanks so much to the San Diego Polymer Clay guild and Nancy Ulrich for letting me join everyone this year.
I’m very excited to get to spend some time with my buddy Meisha Barbee. After all she’s kind of responsible for me deciding that the Stroppel Cane was worth sharing. Remember our collaboration featured on Polymer Clay Daily? Fun!
I’m spending some time making girlfriend bracelets to take along with me plus some other goodies.
But in-between I’m using scrap to create some fun pieces. Jainnie Jenkins named them Scappy girls. Love that, thanks Jainne.
The hair and clothes are mostly from scraps. I textured them, cured them, then stained the whole piece. Mounted it on mat board and then framed them.
So many ideas too little time.
I have a big silver project I’m working on too this month and it doesn’t even include this pile of silver I brought home after a thrift shop adventure that put me into overload. *g*.
Wish me luck!
If you’re going to be at Sandy Camp, see you there.
I”ve been creating several pieces for samples and demos for my cane mapping workshop with the Florida Gulf Coast Polymer Clay Guild in June.
This is a follow up class to the cane workshop with FGCPCG several months ago. In that class, using Premo clay donated by Polyform, we created several canes and the group went away with homework to make lots more.
In this workshop, we will be using those canes to create pictures to frame.
These are from royalty free clipart. They are cane mapped and flat except the parrot which is more of a 3D effect.
I always look forward to spending the day with this guild, they are so much fun.
Here are a few finished and framed pieces
This picture shows you just how happy I was to be asked to teach for three days at Maureen Carlson’s Center for Creative Arts. I was in Jordan MN at Maureen’s Center over a week and a half ago and I wish I were still there or at least lived close enough that I could visit, spend the night and enjoy the camaraderie of fellow seekers of artist expression or just plain good company.
Last night I was at Highlands Art League in Sebring, FL giving a polymer clay demo and Chuck and Vada Thomas were there. Like me, they saw Maureen on the Carol Duvall show in the late 1990’s and heard her mention that she had a center in Jordan where you could take a class and spend the night in the dorm rooms upstairs. They called Maureen and were shortly on their way to Minnesota. Maureen remembers them and says that Chuck’s sweet potato carving and wooden gnome carving still grace her shelves. It’s a small world, even here in this little county in Florida Maureen has touched many people.
These are a few of the polymer clayers that were at Maureen’s. Kit is pictured below, but sorry to say we never did get a picture of Ann Poulson and Kit Wojcik on the day they were there, Maureen took this of Kit on another day. Sorry Ann.
 Linda Garbe, Maureen Carlson, Beth Wegener, Karen Nelson, Renee Carlson, Anne Brown  Kit Wojcik We did face canes and pen and ink and cane mapping, and as usual, there were some wonderful pieces that were created. We all enjoyed each other and everyone finished pieces that they really liked. In fact Kit went back to Maureen’s another day and she, Maureen, Renee kept working and creating more projects. they said they had a ball with the Stroppel Cane.
Anne ‘s face cane was it was really good. She made this bracelet with a slice. Wish you could see it on her, taking pictures of a face on the curvature of a bracelet doesn’t do it justice.
Karen created this fabulous, funky, colorful cane mapped cat. I’d say she likes purple. She kept saying, “I’ll never be able to do this, I don’t like intricate work”. But oh how wrong she was, I think she had a good time too.
Renee hasn’t finished this butterfly, but I hope to have pictures when she does. Just so fabulous I can’t wait to see the finished piece.
Linda had fun with her faces and made a beautiful bracelet and cane mapped design. Wonder what she’s going to do with them?
Beth was in a avian mood and made several stunning birds. Wish I’d gotten a better photo of her work. Try and zoom in on this bird, it’s beautiful. Beth if you read this, send pictures, pretty please.
A shot of the classroom. It’s the best place to be, seriously just like home, full of touches of Maureen’s art and others all around the room.
Anne Brown created this beauty that holds special meaning to her. It really made me happy to see the smile on her face when she finished it.
Maureen combined her cane mapped piece with a pen and ink face and accents to create this enchanting pendant. I love this piece.
Now really, who would have ever believed that Maureen would be sitting in classes taught by me? Not this girl! She was pretty well behaved and as expected, a model student, accept when she and Renee were cutting up and laughing too hard.
Renee made these when Kit came back another day to play.
And Kit made these excellent bracelets on that day. Two are from Stroppel Canes and the last features her pen and ink face.
More after class fun and co-ordinated “homework” by Renee. Love them both.
Just to show you how much fun we had and what a crazy bunch of woman were in attendance, Linda made these outrageously fabulous earrings that she and Karen are modeling. (she didn’t make them in my class, she just brought them to share.) They’re titled, Ears to You Mr. Spock. How Funny! You should take a look at some of Linda’s videos, her work and stories are wonderful and you’ll learn something, I promise you.
There are picture on Maureen’s website, showing the outside of the center and the dorms. Here’s the charming room I stayed in. Complete with WiFi and all.
When you first walk through the front door you’re charmed and know you are at Maureen’s. Wee Folk, Maureen and her husband Dan’s creations, are everywhere, smiling at you from all directions. Look to your right and you see the stairs leading up to the dorm rooms upstairs.
Look to your left and be lead through Maureen’s workspace into the classroom.
Peaking into Maureen’s office you are greeted by this jolly life size Santa and Maureen freely admits that it’s a museum of sorts, housing many pieces of her’s and other artists. Love the positive words dancing across the walls.
Here’s Renee’s sweet dog, Poochie, keeping great company among some of Maureen’s favorites surrounding her work space.
Maureen sells finished items but also all the supplies you might need for any of her class. See…. once you get there, you never have to leave. Unless of course you’re tempted by charming antique shops and delightful cafes, then you might want to stretch your legs with a walk up the street. Or maybe sit by the sweet babbling creek out the back door.
So there you have it, a very full, fun filled 5 days at Maureen’s, a dream come true. Now to start planning my trip back, maybe as a student taking a class with Maureen or one of her guest artists.
Here’s Maureen, Anne and me on the last morning, I hated to leave. Anne was driving right by the airport on her way home and graciously offered me a ride. Thanks so much Anne.
Come over ….or up …….or down to Maureen Carlson’s Center for Creative Arts in Jordan, MN. Join me at Maureen’s for three full days of fun filled classes, take one class or all three, spend the night or just come for the day.
Check out the dormitory rooms at the Center. How could we not have fun? Just like at school except everything you do here is fun, even the homework. Watch this video and see how peaceful it is at Maureen’s.
Isn’t this the coolest thing you can think of to actually own? Your very own shop where you have a fabulous studio to create in, you can teach classes and week long workshops, have guest instructors visit and on top of that students get to sleep upstairs. Slumber party!! Retreat time for sure.
Well this is exactly what Maureen Carlson has and I’m lucky enough to be a guest instructor on September 21 – 23 2012. I’ll tell you more about the three classes I’m going to teach in a minute.
I have been a fan of Maureen and her work for years. One of the first polymer clay books I bought was her book Family and Friends in Polymer Clay. Then I watched her on the Carol Duval show and loved her more.
When I finally was able to concentrate on polymer clay alone, I started two blogs, this one and The Figurative Artbeat. Maureen was kind enough to allow me to do an post on her and her fabulous work. It was the first time I actually contacted Maureen and then we met at Fandango that year were she was demonstrating her new face bead molds, she is just as fun and warm and inspiring in person. We’ve been friends ever since.
I’ve have wanted to visit her Center for Creative Arts for years, so this year is it. If you’re a fan of Maureen’s and want to experience the fun of her center, come on and explore it with me, we’ll have the best time, I know we will. Plus I’ll be sharing some of my favorite techniques, tips and ideas with you.
Now… I’ll be teaching three of my favorite things. Profile Face Canes, Cane Mapping/Contouring, and Pen and Ink. Each class is filled with as much information as I can fit into one day. August 21st is the reserve – by date for all three classes so be sure to follow the links below and let Maureen know you want a reservation.
Sept. 21 – The Profile Face Cane – reserve your spot here
Making this profile cane is surprisingly easy and we’ll spend some time making hair canes too. We can make bracelets, pins, or slides. I promise you we’ll giggle. Plus you’ll get a pdf file and a video link for later reference.
You can make pins from your face canes, put them on vessels or glass vases.
Or a cocktail shaker, how funny is that. Here’s three side of the same shaker.
Sept. 22 – Cane Mapping/Contouring – reserve your place here
This class is super fun and so far everyone that has taken this class with me has produced some wonderful pieces and had many “ah ha” moments. It’s a class about opening your mind to the possibilities that await you with all those canes you love to make.
These fairy dresses were made using my cane mapping technique, so was the design on the necklace below. Tracery tied for second place with the judges and won first place members choice in the IPCA’s Progress and Possibilities 2011. I’ll even show you how to display some of your work when you’re not wearing it. The fairy dresses above are actually pendants.
 Tracery - Alice Stroppel As you can see it’s a technique that can be used in many ways, big and small. Be sure to bring lots of your old canes, plus we can make some new ones.
Sept 23 – Pen and Ink on Polymer Clay – reserve you table here – With this class you’ll receive a pdf of face patterns and a link to a video for future reference.
Now this class is a blast. Again…you can use this technique on polymer clay bracelets, pendants, buttons, plaques, canvas, or whatever you can think of.
You can use just black and white or you can go full color. You don’t have to do a face, you can do simple graphics and produce fabulous pieces.
I created this cat and mouse pendant for a friends, fun I think.
This one is a favorite too. I’ll demonstrate how to construct these windows for your drawings and how to cover a bracelet.
There are endless ways to use this pen and ink technique, your imagination will run wild. And you won’t be able to leave until we’ve all made a Stroppel Cane.
So do not delay, Maureen and I would love to see you there. Reserve-by date of August 21st.
Sometimes things appear when you aren’t expecting them. Well, I guess that isn’t entirely true. I wanted to create something new to teach that could incorporate several skills and still have my love of whimsey and pops of color. So I was kind of hoping something would come to me.
I’ve been busy getting ready for my trip to GA to teach at Creative Journey Studios and to have a few things to add to my inventory there when this sunshine piece popped into my mind. I worked on another sun a couple of weeks ago and had thought about teaching that, but it’s complicated and I wanted something I could teach in a day.
The closure on this necklace was a bonus thought that came to me. I was impressed with the closure that Melaine West came up with using magnets. I was having trouble with the closure on my appleman and Jan Montarsi aka Jembox, suggested I use magnets. I haven’t gotten around to playing with them yet and was happy to be able to share in Melaine’s solution on how to use the magnets. She has saved me hours of testing and I think it is so generous of her to share her method. Thanks Melaine, your work is simply stunning.
I thought I might use Melaine’s idea somehow in this necklace that I envisioned, but I hadn’t ordered any magnets so another idea pushed that one right out of my head.
Here’s my answer when you don’t have magnets, not as sophisticated as Melaine’s but this is a different kind of necklace……. cut a channel for your necklace cord to slide into, drill a hole in the back of a small accent piece made from pc and glue in your cord. Easy!
Now, I’d love to teach this class for your guild or group. Complete with a bit of easy to master sculpting… yes you can…..some fun cane work…teaching you to jump out of that box…….(I’ll be working on some new and different canes to include) plus some contouring work. I had so much fun making it that I know it will be a fun class.
Anyway, I’m happy with this guy and wanted to share my new closure with you and show you a bit about how my crazy mind works…jumping from one thing to the next until something just has to spill out.
How one project can lead to another and other artists can spark an idea that ends with an finished product that is my own is an amazing thing and something I hope I never stop doing.
I gather inspiration from everyone and everything, I hope you do too.
I’ve been blending colors and making tons of Skinner blends for my up coming class at Beads F.O.B. in Sarasota, FL. I had such a good time the last time I was there giving a class and I’m delighted to be going back. I’ll be there not this weekend, but next weekend, Saturday and Sunday, Jan. 14th and 15th. If you’re in the area, I hope you’ll come join us. And if your not in the area, I hope you get out of the cold and take a trip to FL. Call Beads F.O.B. to sign up and reserve a spot. 941-921-0871
The class will be about canes, canes, canes, and how to make this shaped bracelet. You’ll love this bracelet, I get a million compliments when I wear mine. As a bonus, we’ll be looking at color mixing as well.
I am going to expand on the canes I’ll be teaching and this class is for new and relatively new caners. I have been collecting inspirational photos for years and will be spending the next week constructing canes.
Just tapping into the world of geometrics provides a unlimited amount of ideas for canes.
Looking at colorful graphics is enough to get my brain spinning. It doesn’t mean that once I sit down to actually make a new cane that it will end up looking anything like these. Photos of all kinds are just a jumping off point for me, with color, shape and shading.
Just do a google search for say…..circles. click on the “image” link at the top lefthand side of the page and tada…….all the inspiration for circles you could ask for. You can to the same for any shape, color or subject. Just don’t get lost and forget about your clay.
Of course I can’t make Skinner blends without making scraps and scraps always lead to a Stroppel cane. I make this one with orange and blue as my separator colors and the rest of the scraps are just waiting their turn. Naturally, we’ll be making Stroppel canes in this class too.
 Come on…join me in beautiful Sarasota, I’ll love to meet you.
You might be wondering if you are in the right place. This happy girlfriend place has not gone over to the dark side, not in the least. This is the time of year to get out there are buy yourself a skull to use as a guide when you are building a foil base for your polymer clay heads.
I’m teaching a sculpting class after the first of the year and I have a very large skull I bought years ago that has the bones showing on one side and with the skin covering the bones on the other side. But it was not cheap, so for my class I’m suggesting that they buy an inexpensive plastic skull for my class and to have for future reference. This skull is about 4″ x 4″. Or you could go large and buy a scarier big one.
Next thing is to always be on the look out for anatomy books at garage sales or used book stores. I have some really fabulous books I’ve picked up along the way and they help me a great deal.
So if you want to try your hand at sculpting some day, get out there before the serious Halloween party animals and get yourself a plastic skull.
I just have to tell you …. I love teaching …. and …….. I love teaching new caners. The smiles and looks on the faces of the ladies in my class this weekend at Beads F.O.B. in Sarasota just put me in a good mood for the next month at least.
Thanks to Karen at Beads F. O. B. for keeping all the paperwork straight and Marty for all her work and for letting me come join the fun. Looks like I’ll be going back to teach again soon so check back to see when you might be able to come join us.
We made so many canes and turned some of them into beads and some into pendants, I’m only showing the pendants here.
Joan was having a great time and already had plans for a volunteer project and began working on it before class was over.
 Marlene I heard this high little yell from Marlene and wondered what was wrong. It was all excitement at her table, she had just successfully reduced that little leaf cane and was tickled with herself. It reminded me of the first time I reduced a cane and all the possibilities that were running through my head.
 Marty Marty made earrings and enjoyed the whole creative process. She is one fun polymer clayer.
 Lois I looked up one time to see the biggest grin on Lois’ face. She had just made several successful canes in a great combo of colors and I could see the wheels turning behind those smiling bright eyes.
 Christine Christine said she couldn’t go to sleep the first night and couldn’t wait to get back to work on her canes on Sunday. Her enthusiasm shows in her work.
 Cathe Cathe’s work is big and bold. Her color combinations are bright and work so well together.
I’m so sorry that Marina had to leave early and I didn’t get a picture of her work.
(two days later, update) Marina sent me a picture of her work, I’m so happy to be able to include it. I just didn’t feel right for her pieces to be missing. Thanks Marina!
 Marina Montagut I love how everyone created their own colors and Marina loves to do mini piece. I can’t wait to see what she comes up with.
I also didn’t take a class picture. We ran over time, we were having so much fun, and people started to leave before I remembered the group photo. Thanks to all my student, I really appreciate how easy you made it to show you what I know, it was great fun.
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