New Santa from polymer clay, a plug for Polyform Products

Finally got my first polymer clay Santa done, and I am so thrilled with polymer clay! Super sculpey is so easy to work with, and takes paint nicely. I love, love, love it! So, if you have ever wondered if you should try polymer clay I say yes!

Blue Or Brown, What color are Santa's eyes? A Victorian Santa...

When I sit down to create a Santa I run into what color to paint his eyes sometimes. So I ask, what color are Santa's eyes? Does it really matter?
I painted Santa's eyes blue this time, but who knows, the next one may have brown....

Winter Sky Santa from a re-purposed vanilla bottle

At six inches tall with loads of charm, Winter Sky Santa would be a delightful addition to your Santa collection. Hand sculpted with air dry clay, this jolly little fella is a one of a kind original. Stop by and see him here: Winter Sky Santa

Happy Monday! Okay, it is for me at least.....

 Oh the joy of listing an item on ebay and having it sell right away! Printed on very high quality heavy duty gloss finish paper, with very high quality ink, this is the last of the series I had printed from the original painting I did. I only have one of the prints left of the above painting so head on over fast to snag this! Prim Pumpkin Pear Print

 A sweet and woodsy gourd Santa, hand sculpted and painted with layers of paints, this little fella is also available here: Northwoods Dreaming Santa
So I'm having a good Monday, mailed off a few pieces that sold last week and today, and this little guy will go to some lucky home so we are starting off the week right. How's your week going?

A gourdeous Santa

How's this for a jolly Santa with a round tummy? He is about 12 inches tall, all signed and dated and waiting to be adopted. I have a surprise waiting, but will reveal that later. I'm off to see if the surprise is ready yet!

Just a little Santa....

Wow! I'm back from my 4000 mile trip and have loads to share, but work before play so I'm back at it, listing some new pieces on ebay. This is short and sweet, just like the Santa I'm offering because I still need to find my way through the mess of one trip after another, and lots of creating in between. I'm so glad hubby is patient. :-) To see the auction for this little fella stop by My Ebay Here!

A Ho Ho Ho and a 25 days til Christmas idea....

 We've finally got all but two things out of our old apartment and are hiring someone to do a light cleaning as my poor ole body is giving out and time is precious these days. So now I can get back to creating with a passion, and get some things done. It's interesting how distracting moving can be, even though I work during the day, just thinking about all that needed to be done was enough to stifle my creativity to a certain extent.

 Of course being too pooped to move hasn't helped. My hubby had games and meetings and more games to attend so most of the packing, cleaning and moving has been left up to me to do after I got off of work. One more evening over there and we are done, yay! So today I was able to sit down and get a couple of pieces finished as far as the sculpting is concerned. The top Santa is a shelf sitter made from a foam ball and tinfoil covered with air dry clay. I didn't plan this one at all, I wanted something whimsical and let him come out on his own. The second Santa is a re-purposed light bulb turned into an ornament. Again, no plan, just let him show me what he was supposed to look like. It's so much fun to create ornaments this way. Sometimes I start with a basic idea, but more often than not I just let the shape and the clay work their magic with me as the guide.

I am thinking that many of you already do this or have done this for children or grandchildren but I had never thought of the idea of taking Halloween candy and making a 25 days til Christmas garland. It's a great way to use some of those treats your little darlings collected on Halloween, and make them last a bit longer, even though my sister and I were known to still be eating our Halloween candy come Springtime. ;-) It's amazing how much a pillow case will hold! LoL All you need is 25 pieces of candy or gum, plastic wrap, and ribbon. Lay out your wrap and space out your candy, roll the wrap over the candy, tie the spaces with ribbon and Whaalaa! Instant garland that would be cute on the tree, or hanging from a mantle, buffet, you name it. Uh oh, it looks like Wesley is losing his britches do I'd better get back to work. Hope you're having a creative day!

Bountiful Santa and a Victorian inspired Santa or Two

I won't tell what this tall fellow started out to be, because the Santa in him was screaming to get out. He was so traumatized, he wouldn't talk to me for the longest time, but all is forgiven since I've finished him. He stands at 21" tall, and holds a bounty of vintage and antique fruits, some of which I gleaned at sales, others from Blumchens.

He has been dusted with vintage mica "snow" which adds a touch of sparkle to his appearance. Bountiful Santa is also willing to share the limelight with his friend Victorian Santa.

 

 I love Victorian ephemera images of Santa Claus! There is one in particular that inspired the colors I used for this fella. I wasn't trying to copy him, even though the original is quite handsome.  Some day I want to  

create a Santa doll just like what I see here. I love this face and the colors. 
This fella isn't too bad either though. He has twinkly eyes,a warm color, plus the texture on his coat was fun to create. 

So there I was one morning taking a shower and I spotted this cool little bottle my husband had brought home from a business trip to Vegas. I saw a Santa staring back at me, waiting to be brought to life. Caesar's Palace has the neatest shape for their shampoo and conditioner bottles! So he is done, and there's another one waiting to come to life. This is my Twinkle Star Santa. 

Well I'm off to finish laundry, find my kitchen table again, and work on more "stuff"! Have a great weekend all.

A Santa A Day #4

One of my latest Santa creations for Reasons to Believe. This is a very tall gourd Santa, 18" tall, with antique fruit and cinnamon sticks in his bag of goodies. The bells on the "strap" are all hand crafted by me. He is dusted with vintage mica "snow" and is ready to go!

It's Ho Ho Christmas Time!

We have a new term around our home, "Ho Ho Christmas". My oldest grandson ( I actually have 2 now) calls everything related to Christmas "Ho Ho Christmas". When we play with play dough he asks me to make a Ho Ho Christmas tree for him and so it goes. Aaaah, the joy of having him
close! I wish the other grandchildren were closer as well, but I will take what I can get for now.
Do you think perhaps the reason Emmett came up with "Ho Ho Christmas" has to do with all
the Santa figures that keep popping up around my home? No..... it couldn't be that.........

How am I doing so far? WIP

This is getting exciting! I've never quite made a Santa this way before, and so far I'm really having fun! The beard is done, and now on to the mustache and eyebrows. Then the hat...

To antique or not to antique, that is the question...

I often wonder as I get to the finish of projects whether I should antique or not. What are your feelings about this? Do you feel it adds or can it detract from a piece. The head with no hair is destined to be a make do Santa on a vintage milk glass lamp base. I've been waiting to use the base for a long time, and have wanted to create a Santa doll as well. This is a start. So what do you think, should I or shouldn't I antique? I would love your opinion!