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 experimenting with my newest Kickstarter find, the 3Doodler. When I first backed this project way back in the middle of 2013 I couldn’t wait to get my hands on it. I had dreams of ways to incorporate the instant plastic with my polymer clay designs. The 3Doodler is now in the MoMA store. Very cool!
BTW, see the blue hair made from the cane in the tutorial I just made in my last post using the Czextruder. I’ve used the same cane only in purple on the pin below.
I had to wait until December to get my 3Doodler. I played around with it a bit and realize that I would have to spend a little time trying to master it. I’m still trying, but I think there is some interesting applications here. I’ve found that I am able to apply it to the raw polymer and then bake it as long as I support the 3Doodler plastic with Polyfill.
This pin combines the 3Doodle squiggles and my Stroppel Cane. (see video on the right hand side of this page)
It is surprisingly durable, hard to break, you have to cut it with scissors. Until I get a better control over the pen I’ll be happy with how it adds fun to the pieces I usually make.
Interesting don’t you think? You see here my first attempt at control, hehe. I know, get to work Alice.
Step one on the table top is finished. I’m going to love having this table around with samples of my faces. Lots of fun here, great therapy for sure.
I’m constructing and baking everything right on the glass. When it’s cool I’ll pop it off and glue it to the table top. I think I might have a piece of glass cut to fit to protect it.
See ya’ back here soon.
 This is a silly little table that my husband and I used as a telephone table when we were first married. Most of you can relate to a telephone table, but some of you may not remember a time when you had an actual phone connected to the wall.
We had a cord that could reach all the way into the living room. That was the only way you could talk for more than 5 minutes, I could cook, fold clothes, and watch the kids playing.
When we moved to our new house we didn’t need the table anymore. My Mother, Father, sister and brother-in-law bought a three story victorian house together and they had tons of room. The table went to stay with them and now it’s come back to live with me.
I’ve painted it lots of fun colors and have covered the bottom shelf in polymer clay with one of my faces and some of my colorful canes. I’m starting to work on the top when I have time and I’ll also be adding bits of PC on the legs.
It’s a piece that has been touched by every member of my family at one time or the other. No hurry on this piece it’s just something that will capture a lovely memory in time and link it to the present.
 Mary, Andree, Sue, Lori, Earnestine, Alice, Niki, not shown, Ruby and Audrey I was so excited to welcome some of the members from the South East Florida Polymer Clay Guild to my studio. We spent two days playing with clay and enjoying each other’s company. Thank you all for coming……
I’m sorry to say that I did not take any pictures on the first day and Ruby and Audrey had already left by the time I remembered my camera. This time I was lucky to get in the picture because my husband happened to drift through the studio and I enlisted his help, a bit blurry, but hey!
Oh and our wonder dog Ceasar is shown at the bottom of the picture, okay, “kind of ” shown, really blurry…but he was so happy for the company.
We made face canes and then we made Flamingos. Not everyone wanted to make bracelets, so we have Lori’s punk candle ring and Andree’s sculpt to go on a mirror frame. Lori’s needs some feathers and Andree’s needs some skinny legs, they’ll finish up at home. Everyone else is going to be sporting a funky new bracelet. I think everyone did a fabulous job and enjoyed working with Ultralight.
Thanks so much to Mary Marzano for all the time she put into organizing the weekend. I’m not sure who had more fun, me or everyone else, I think maybe me!
To find out more about this guild, when they meet and where, visit the SEGPCG website or join them on Facebook.
The group came on a great weekend. It was downtown Sebring’s second Friday event and my good friend Janet King was the featured artist at Highlands Art League’s Yellow House reception. So we all met at the hotel and went to Janet’s reception then back to the hotel for dinner. There was Jazz on the circle and all the shops were open downtown. The next day was the Roaring 20’s craft show downtown, but we were busy in my studio with clay.
 Janet F. King Janet’s work is incredibly beautiful and I’m lucky to own a piece or two. Once you see her work, you’ll want to own a painting of her’s too.
If you’re in Sebring, be sure to take the time to visit the Yellow House, if not, visit Janet on her website at Janet King Watercolors. com
In April of 2010, I was experimenting with a different kind of face cane and made 13 bracelets from it. I’ve sold several of them and have but a few left. I started photographing this one to put in my etsy Shop to sell. It has a flower that looks like a poinsettia so I thought it would be perfect for the season and I’d better get it posted.
When I looked through the lens, what did I see but a Stroppel cane that I used for a collar and a hat band. I started to laugh because my memory is so bad. At least about dates and when I did what. I knew I’d been making Stroppel canes for quite awhile, but didn’t realize it’s been almost 2 years.
 If you look close at the bottom of the bracelet, you can see the date. Now I’m thinking I’ll keep this one, I have another one that is even more Christmasy. I hope this made you laugh, it sure made me glad that I date things.
I did list another pen and ink face bracelet that I finished last week. It’s in my Etsy Shop.
I had to share this trade with you. Julie and I met for the first time a couple of months ago and we decided to trade our creations.
This pendant is an amazing piece of art. Not only did Julie make this incredible face cane she constructed the kaleidoscope canes she’s used for the frame. I’m thrilled to have this wonderful piece but also to have gotten to know Julie and see her work on this piece. You can see more of Julie’s work on her blog Julie Eakes. Her most recent cane is a beautiful portrait of her grandmother.
This is my part of the trade, the picture shows all side of the bracelet. Once again I think I got the better part of the trade. Thank you Julie
I’ve just posted this new girlfriend bracelet in my Etsy Shop. She’s the third one I made and I can tell you the truth, I’m having a blast. Each bracelet uses a bunch of clay and canes, but it’s worth it in the end because these bracelet just make everyone smile.
On another note………
I want you know that I continue to be amazed at all the incredible polymer pieces that are being created by artists around the world using the Stroppel cane. From France to Romania the Stroppel cane has taken many shapes and been including in many designs. I’ve have been gathering each one as they come to my attention and “pinning” them to my Pinterest page.
If you make something using a Stroppel cane, please let me know and I’ll added it to my Pinterest board.
If you want to watch the video it’s just to the right at the top of this page.
When Randee Ketzel sent me two of her Stroppel cane bracelets, well I was blown away by her thoughtfulness. I will always treasure them. I wanted to send Randee something in return so I decided to make a girlfriend wearing something well…..Stroppel! If you want to see her in her Stroppel cane sweater, she’s on Randee’s flickr site.
I sat down to make more girlfriend slides and thought why not do a series of Stroppel Sweater Girls. So now I’m just laughing and making sweater girls. I figured you can wear one or two or even three. You could collect as many as your neck will hold. lol… Okay now I’m just being silly.
Both of these girls are for sale in my Etsy shop and there will be more to come. Thanks Randee for the inspiration.
I just want to take the time to thank Cynthia Tinapple from Polymer Clay Daily once again for another feature about the Stroppel cane. This morning she linked to several polymer clay artists that have been experimenting with the technique and I have to say that I am truly delighted by the results. Thanks to everyone who is playing and posting about the Stroppel cane, it’s been so much fun!
Now on to what I’ve been playing with……new profile face bangles.
I’ve been working on these new bangles in between having so much fun with the Stroppel cane. In fact the one on the bottom of the pile is one I was working on while on retreat and it has some Stroppel cane on it. But in my head I saw this style bracelet made with my face canes and a couple of other ways I haven’t been able to out of my head and into clay yet.
These are just the prototypes, still working on perfecting the process. But I’ll have some up for sale on Etsy before the week is out. I’m working on more ideas, so be sure to check back and see what mischief I’ve been up to.
I just noticed how much purple is in each of these, well, I like purple and I guess it shows. And lime green……….
This is a view of the backs. These bracelets really make a wonderful canvas for just about anything you want to create. I’m having fun again, but when don’t I have fun when clay is involved?
Thanks to Laurie Prophater and her inspiration bracelet that I’m so lucky to own from our trade. It was the shape that just made my head start to whirl. It was the first time I’d held one like it in my hands and had the free time to ponder. Retreats are a very good thing, gets your imagination jumping.
Laurie’s blog is Ornamental Elements or you can visit Laurie’s Etsy site.
I had this portrait idea in my head for awhile now and thanks to an idea nudge from a flickr friend I finished this girl last night. It’s a portrait mirror, I just covered the mirror part because of the reflection.
I’ve been having fun trading with new friends on ficker. I traded with Doreen Bell, an amazing Mosaic Artist, you can see her work here on Flickr. I traded several of my girls for a project she wanted to work on involving a mirror and the Seven Dwarfs of menopause. Here’s the crazy funky wonderful “Libby the Librarian” a hand held mirror Doreen created to make me laugh.
And you just gotta laugh at this girl. She’s even reading Alice in Wonderland.
Anyway, my girls on a mirror, I thought hmmmm sounds interesting, so I borrowed her mirror idea, thanks Doreen, and created the girl above. We Never Stop Blooming.
The other fabulous mosaic artist that I traded with is Laura Pattison in Spain. She wanted a crazy business card holder and I wanted one of her famous rainbow mosaics. I think we are both happy, I know I’m more than thrilled. You need to check out Laura’s work here on flickr
So that’s what I’ve been up to, plus a hundred other things, *g*. Have a great week-end.
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