Alice Stroppel « Polymer Clay Etc.

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.

Workshops for 2015 at 215

I was pleasantly surprised on New Years day to realize that 215 is going to be lucky numbers for me… 2015… Studio 215. I’m thinking good things are going to happen. I wish us all a happy, successful and productive 2015.

Just look at my class space set up with pasta machines, glass tiles, blades and tons of Polyform tools just waiting for you to come and play and learn. Kind of “leave your baggage at home”. Bring just what you need for that workshop and maybe your favorite blade.

Here are the workshops I’ve scheduled to teach at Studio 215 in January and February. Studio 215 – 215 North Ridgewood Dr. – Sebring, FL

The exciting news for those beginning in polymer, my Studio is fully stocked with pasta machines, glass cutting boards, blades, and all kinds of great Sculpey tools. I have all kinds of things for you experiment with so you can decide if polymer clay is for you before you invest. Or you may just want to come and make a project or two without having to own all the equipment. I’m also reserving one night a week as open Studio night with a small fee for those of you that have no place to work at home or just want to come clay with other enthused polymer people. no need to bring tools or equipment, just bring your project. Mondays will be open studio night beginning in April.

New! Introduction to Polymer Clay

Instructor Alice Stroppel

full day $75

Sat. Jan. 17 9am – 4pm

Sat. Jan 31 9am – 4pm

two evening – 3 1/2 hrs. $45 each class

Mon. & Tues. Jan. 19 & 20 6pm-9:30pm

Mon. & Tues. March 2 & 3 6pm-9:30pm

In this beginner’s workshop you’ll be able to work with polymer clay without the expense of buying all the tools and equipment needed for a successful experience. You’ll learn how to condition, cane, create and cure.

I’ll teach you how to make a Skinner blend and fill you in on some of the rich history of this incredibly versatile medium.

We’ll make a few basic beads and you’ll wear your new necklace home.

Building an Essential Cane Inventory

Instructor Alice Stroppel

one day $75

Sat. Jan. 24 9am – 4pm

Sat. March 14 9am – 4pm

Have you put off learning to cane because you believe it’s too hard, complicated, time consuming, precise, uses too much clay _______ fill in the blank? You not alone, but I can help.

If you like my style of work, I want to assure you that my canes are easy, fun and not at all precise. I don’t make large canes and I use every little bit of clay to make some interesting accent canes to use in all sorts of projects.

I firmly believe that you will be delighted at how much more creative and productive you’ll become if you have your cane inventory waiting for you when an idea hits. If you have to stop and make each component cane before you can begin, most times you won’t even start.

This class is for all levels of expertise, the only requirement is that you know how to make a Skinner blend and that you come to class with your Skinner blends and plugs already made. I’ll provide you with instructions ahead of time.

If you are a beginner, you should begin with my Introduction to Polymer Clay workshop or class before attending this workshop. Or teach yourself the basics online with the many free tutorials available.

Master Class

Instructor – Meisha Barbee

Mica Shift with Appliqué’ Pendant

Meisha Barbee is coming to Studio 215 in Sebring, FL and will be teaching surface design. You won’t want to miss this workshop.

In her own words, “On the first day, students will make an array of small canes in a pleasing color palette to be used in creating a finished pendant. This will include my Signature “Fractured” mica cane.

Students will be encouraged to bring their own personality to the work by applying their unique color and design sensibility. I will provide color consultation to those students who need it.

The second day of the class will be for constructing the pendant. I’m a firm believer that Good Design doesn’t have to be labored. I will share my simple construction and finishing techniques, so every student should go home with finished work they can be proud of.”

No Refunds given after two weeks before class date. Balance due two weeks before workshop begins.

To reserve your seat, contact me at alicestroppel@gmail.com

As a winner of the Niche Award in 2008 and finalist in 2011, Barbee has been recognized as a leader in her field. A member of the International Polymer Clay Association, as well as her local San Diego Guild,

“I’m inspired by good design. I spend my life seeing and responding to good design all around me. It’s just something I do naturally, so I think I’m tuned in to current trends without really trying. Color and design are my passion. I respond to the color and patterns of textiles, textures in nature and architecture, the harmonious balance of interior spaces, and so on. Good design is everywhere. I also appreciate and respect good craftsmanship. It speaks to the integrity of good design, and I always try to execute my designs with that in mind.” Meisha Barbee

$175

Sat. & Sun. – Feb. 21 & 22, 2015

9am – 4:30pm

PLUS – Syndee Holt in May and Randee Ketzel in June! Maureen Carlson in 2016! Amazing amount of fun coming. Stay tune for more information on these Workshops

Alice Stroppel’s Studio 215

Alice Stroppel’s Studio 215

Alice Stroppel’s
Studio 215
215 Ridgewood Dr.
Sebring, FL 33870

What a whirlwind! One month ago I purchased this wonderful building in Historic downtown Sebring, FL. It’s two blocks from where I grew up and so special to me because it belonged to my great friend Janet King and I hung out there loads of times in recent years.

I renovated the building inside and out. I’ve enjoyed having my studio at home and I will still be working there, but I wanted to spend more time teaching and sharing what I’ve learned about this incredible medium, polymer clay.

I will be featuring works by two of my favorite people, watercolor artists and Florida Watercolor Society Signature Members, Janet F. King and Alice Hansen.

I have a permanent fully stocked workshop space for 8 students and room to hold larger workshops for up to 16. Pasta Machines, tools, tiles, etc. I’ll be starting classes for both beginners and experienced polymer clayers in January. I will have everything you need to create your first pieces.

And more exciting news is that I will be hosting workshops with some of the talented polymer and multimedia artists in the country. Meisha Barbee and Laurie Prophater will be here teaching in February and Julie Eakes, master caner, will be here hanging out with us.

Meisha was my partner and made the first collaborative pendant with my Stroppel Cane that was featured on Polymer Clay Daily. An incredibly talented artist and colorist, you won’t want to miss this workshop.

Laurie has promised me an exciting class as well. Laurie is the owner of Ornamental Elements .com and has been featured in numerous magazines including Belle Armoire and Polymer Clay Cafe.

Two artists that inspired me in the early days of polymer are coming to Studio 215. Syndee Holt has promised to come teach a couple of workshops in May of this year. Syndee is a representative for Sculpey and has been featured in more articles and publications than I can mention here. She is the author of Polymer for the First Time.

Maureen Carlson will be here in 2016. Maureen is owner of Maureen Carlson’s Center for Creative Arts in Jordan, MN and has a long list of credits from TV to published books. Maureen has her own page on Amazon.

As you can see, I have great plans for Studio 215 and some surprises so stay tuned.

My posted hours will be Thursday, Friday and Saturday from 11:00am to 3:00pm. But that doesn’t mean I won’t be there most of the time teaching or working on my next big project.

I’ll be posting classes sometime next week but I can tell you now that I will be having open studio night every Monday from 6pm until 9:30pm, prices to be posted later. This will be a time for you to come and play and share and enjoy the company of other enthusiastic clayers.

Grand opening news to come.

Thanks so much everyone for your encouragement and kind words.

Black and White

I drew this woman on canvas last June with the idea that I was going to frame her, she has been patiently wanting to become something. I found this perfect wooden stool at a garage sale this week-end, painted it black and now my girl has a home. I have several other pieces I’ve been working on and will be sharing soon.

She is going to be for sale and I’ll be telling you more about that by the end of the week. I have some exciting news to share and can’t wait for it to happen. See you a a day or two or three.

Alice and the Caterpillar

*********************

‘One side will make you grow taller, and the other side will make you grow shorter.’

‘One side of what? The other side of what?’ thought Alice to herself.

‘Of the mushroom,’ said the Caterpillar, just as if she had asked it aloud; and in another moment it was out of sight.

Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, by Lewis Carroll

I’ve finally had time to working a bit more on my Alice in Wonderland tea set and I’ve added the caterpillar with his hookah. There are so many more characters I want to add to the set so I need to get busy.

The reason I’ve been too busy to work on Alice and her friends is that I took a trip to SanDiego to attend Sandy Camp (a well established polymer clay retreat) and to visit my friend Meisha Barbee. What fun I had and what a great group of clayers there are in California. More about that in my next post.

Character for this side?… maybe the Dormouse and the rabbit that was at the tea party.

Sandy Camp and a New Scrap Technique

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.

Update – Polymer and Silver Upcycling at it’s Shiniest

I wanted to see what would happen when I cleaned the pitcher with silver polish. I really didn’t think there would be a problem. After all polymer is plastic and pretty sturdy.

It worked perfectly. The only thing I needed to do was use an old toothbrush to get the polish off the edge of the polymer. But hey, there was 50% less silver to polish! Fist pump.

The next thing I needed to address was the silver plate coming off the bottom. Since this is for me, I could have left it and no one would have ever noticed, but I believe you should finish every piece to the best of your ability. Just think about all the people that might see it someday. (yes I mean after I’m dead)

Plus the bottom was peeling pretty badly and I’m afraid it would have continued to peel. So I decided to add a border and cover the bottom.

I really didn’t like this, too busy, so I ended up with this extruded purple band.

But I never like to waste anything so on to the bottom the first try went. Still busy, but not seen but by a few. (me)

The plus is that it has sealed the bottom and will keep it from continuing to peel.

So now I can put my flowers back in it and enjoy. But first I need to sign it, you know, so all those people who will see it some day will wondered who the heck was Alice Stroppel. hehehe.

Polymer and Silver Upcycling at it’s Shiniest

I’ve been away on retreat and experimented with several things while I was away. I’ll post more about that as I finish up another project I’m working on, I’m excited about it.

Before I left on my retreat I picked up this silver plated pitcher at a thrift store. The inside has lost some of it’s finish but I think it could be polished up and still used. However, I already have a silver pitcher along with several other so I’m dedicating this one to flowers.

I covered parts of it with polymer clay leaving quite a bit of silver showing. I really like it and will be looking for more silver to pair with polymer.

A couple of years ago my husband asked me what I wanted for my birthday. I couldn’t think of a thing, then an idea came to me. I told him I would love flowers at least once a month and they didn’t have to be expensive.

So now at least once a month, sometimes more, I have a pretty bouquet of flowers to brighten my day. He doesn’t ever have to worry about a birthday present again. I feel loved and special. Win – Win!

Now a I have a dedicated vase just for my special flowers.

I can’t decide if I want to add more clay, I love the way the silver shines through. I decided to give it a day or two of looking at it from every angle and then make up my mind.

Can wait until you can see what I’m working on now…always fun.

Polymer Clay Veneer

A reclaimed table finds new life in my house. It started out as a wobbly table made from solid oak but with a few years and coats of red paint under in it’s history. I brought it home and almost ave up on fixing the wobble, but fortunately my husband, who is not a wood guy, saved the day and came to the rescue for both me and the table.

I spray painted teal over the red and then sanded a bit here and there. Let her dry and then I was ready to start. I’ve been doing large pieces to frame and hang on the wall and thought why not give furniture a try.

This is the same technique I use for my smaller pieces of wall art too, I call it cane mapping. Laying out a map and filling it with clay.

I started with a smaller table and it worked pretty well so I decided to give this larger one a go. It’s 28″ H 29″ L 18″W.

I start out by making a paper pattern of the top and draw my design on the paper. Then I place the pattern under a large piece of glass and just start laying clay.

Once I have a good deal completed I bake it and then move on to the next part of the pattern. I end up with several large puzzle pieces that I then glue onto the table top. If I work on too large a piece I tend to rest my hand on on drop something on the part that was finished and have to redo parts of it, Baking in pieces helps to preserve the work I’ve already completed.

I use Liquid Fusion clear urethane adhesive. It dries fairly quickly, but takes 24 hours to completely dry. When I was finish with all the pieces for the top, I glued them together right on the wood.

Then I exuded a matching teal round snake from the edge. I baked it in four sections in roughly the same shape as the edge of the table. I use Premo because it’s flexible and it was easy to apply. However, to make sure it stayed in place, I taped it all around and left it until morning.

I don’t add a finish to the top, if I could stand to do it, I might sand and buff it. But until I get myself a do-boy…well…it will just get pretty with age and develop it’s own patina. I feel this way… it’s plastic…water won’t hurt it…you can wash it with a damp rag. The only thing I will do it make sure to use a coaster for hot beverages. I know the bracelets that I made years ago and wear often have this wonderful feel to them. So I say use it what’s the worse that can happen?

Thanks for all the wonderful words of encouragement, the likes, the shares, on Facebook and thank you in advance for any comments left here. On to the next project!!!

Follow me on Facebook if you want. https://www.facebook.com/alice.stroppel

Mystery Project

I’ve been having so much fun on Facebook with this project. I posted pictures of the first part of the project featuring six of my girls with the tag line, “Bet you can’t figure out what this is going to be”. So many of you had great guesses and wonderful compliments, I thank you so much for playing along because it made it that much easier for me to continue working on it until it was finished.

As I continued to work and post pictures you continued to guess.

It kept getting taller and taller. ……..

……until I finally finished it and here is the big reveal…TADA…It’s a table.

I found two base metal lamps at my local thrift store and combined pieces from each to create this crazy table. It’s very sturdy and well weighted. You might even classify this project a found object project.

I have a couple more lamps that I bought but they don’t come apart so I’ll see how they work out in the oven.

By the way, I bake in a full size oven that I have in my studio and it was easy to bake this table because is was in pieces. The next ones will be a challenge I think.

I cover a bit of each piece with clay and then bake it so I won’t mess up what I’ve just done. when it’s cool, I add more clay and bake again. I can do this as many times as I want and bake for as long as I want because I have calibrated my oven and I know that it is always on the correct temperature.

So what’s your next big project?

Butterflies

Once again, having fun with my cane stash and cane mapping.

Polymer Clay Canes for Beginners

Online Workshops with Alice Stroppel

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Recent Posts

Meta

Workshops for 2015 at 215

Alice Stroppel’s Studio 215

Black and White

Alice and the Caterpillar

Sandy Camp and a New Scrap Technique

Update – Polymer and Silver Upcycling at it’s Shiniest

Polymer and Silver Upcycling at it’s Shiniest

Polymer Clay Veneer

Mystery Project

Butterflies

Archives

The Stroppel Cane

What is a Cane?

Polymer Clay Etc.

Polymer Clay Canes for Beginners

Online Workshops with Alice Stroppel

Catagories

Comments

Recent Posts

Meta

Related articles across the web

Related articles across the web

Related articles across the web

Related articles across the web

Related articles across the web

Related articles across the web

Archives

The Stroppel Cane

What is a Cane?