Comments on: Creating Your Own Beads for Jewelry Making, Using Polymer Clay http://www.beadsandbeading.com/blog/polymer-clay-beads-for-jewelry-making/4417/ "I learned by making mistakes... Now you don't have to." Sun, 01 Aug 2010 01:03:14 -0700 hourly 1 By: Cindy Lietz@Polymer Clay Bead Making Course for Beginners http://www.beadsandbeading.com/blog/polymer-clay-beads-for-jewelry-making/4417/#comment-19726 Cindy Lietz@Polymer Clay Bead Making Course for Beginners Sun, 21 Jun 2009 01:21:59 +0000 http://www.beadsandbeading.com/blog/?p=4417#comment-19726 @Werna: Love your story! It is exciting to hear about people like you who start out because they can't find what they need and end up pursuing bead making as a business. Good luck to you. Make sure to stay around and keep us informed on how its going! @Arlene: Wonderful! I do the same thing... create a pendant and use the clay to make beads to go with them. You're right about adding in other types as beads as well. Gives the piece added interest. Thanks for your comment! @aims: Making your own beads with polymer clay is a wonderful way to make a statement! You choose the colors, the sizes, the style and the way you put them all together. Way more personal than just picking beads from the store and stringing them. Enjoy the journey. It's great to have you here! @Emily: You are so welcome! You're right, as you begin to create your art beads with polymer clay, you begin to take it way beyond just baked blobs of clay! I can so relate to the 12 hour non-stop thing. Polymer clay pretty much consumes my life and I love it too! @Doug: I am so pleased you guys are loving your new clay adventure! I like to hold things in my hands too as much as possible, so I understand why you drove so far to buy your first supplies. Once you get a feel for what you need and want, you'll be able to order online a lot easier. You're right about combining handmade with store bought to come up with a professional looking combination. I like to mix up materials as well, like adding glass, stone and metal beads in with the polymer beads to add interest and texture. Stay involved around the site and lots of great ideas, information and comradery will help you in your venture. Good luck to you as well and keep having fun! @Werna: Love your story! It is exciting to hear about people like you who start out because they can't find what they need and end up pursuing bead making as a business. Good luck to you. Make sure to stay around and keep us informed on how its going!

@Arlene: Wonderful! I do the same thing… create a pendant and use the clay to make beads to go with them. You're right about adding in other types as beads as well. Gives the piece added interest. Thanks for your comment!

@aims: Making your own beads with polymer clay is a wonderful way to make a statement! You choose the colors, the sizes, the style and the way you put them all together. Way more personal than just picking beads from the store and stringing them. Enjoy the journey. It's great to have you here!

@Emily: You are so welcome! You're right, as you begin to create your art beads with polymer clay, you begin to take it way beyond just baked blobs of clay! I can so relate to the 12 hour non-stop thing. Polymer clay pretty much consumes my life and I love it too!

@Doug: I am so pleased you guys are loving your new clay adventure! I like to hold things in my hands too as much as possible, so I understand why you drove so far to buy your first supplies. Once you get a feel for what you need and want, you'll be able to order online a lot easier. You're right about combining handmade with store bought to come up with a professional looking combination. I like to mix up materials as well, like adding glass, stone and metal beads in with the polymer beads to add interest and texture. Stay involved around the site and lots of great ideas, information and comradery will help you in your venture. Good luck to you as well and keep having fun!

]]> By: Doug Kelly http://www.beadsandbeading.com/blog/polymer-clay-beads-for-jewelry-making/4417/#comment-19320 Doug Kelly Mon, 15 Jun 2009 16:30:12 +0000 http://www.beadsandbeading.com/blog/?p=4417#comment-19320 We drove about an hour and 15 minutes Sunday to go to Michael's in Canton, GA. We were looking for our first bit of Findings and thought it would be much easier to see them first hand rather than ordering from the Internet the first time out. Ha! What we did find out, relevant to this article, is that good looking jewelry can be made form a mix of store-bought and home made items. Mostly, using our creative instincts to make the main piece and put together the finished piece using a combination. That doesn't mean, for us, every piece, but maybe a lot of them. Pictures soon to come on Etsy.com website. We're loving it. . We drove about an hour and 15 minutes Sunday to go to Michael's in Canton, GA. We were looking for our first bit of Findings and thought it would be much easier to see them first hand rather than ordering from the Internet the first time out. Ha!

What we did find out, relevant to this article, is that good looking jewelry can be made form a mix of store-bought and home made items. Mostly, using our creative instincts to make the main piece and put together the finished piece using a combination.

That doesn't mean, for us, every piece, but maybe a lot of them. Pictures soon to come on Etsy.com website.

We're loving it.
.

]]> By: Emily http://www.beadsandbeading.com/blog/polymer-clay-beads-for-jewelry-making/4417/#comment-19274 Emily Mon, 15 Jun 2009 02:57:55 +0000 http://www.beadsandbeading.com/blog/?p=4417#comment-19274 LOVE YOUR SITE - I'm just starting my jewelry business and decided after much processing in different directions that I needed more creativity than just stringing pretty beads on wire. I needed creation, ART! It's so relaxing to do clay and there's an immediate (12 hours non-stop) gratification about it. Gotta love that. Thanks for making all those mistakes so that I can get to making finished pieces that don't look like blobs of cooked clay. LOVE YOUR SITE – I'm just starting my jewelry business and decided after much processing in different directions that I needed more creativity than just stringing pretty beads on wire. I needed creation, ART! It's so relaxing to do clay and there's an immediate (12 hours non-stop) gratification about it. Gotta love that. Thanks for making all those mistakes so that I can get to making finished pieces that don't look like blobs of cooked clay.

]]> By: aims http://www.beadsandbeading.com/blog/polymer-clay-beads-for-jewelry-making/4417/#comment-19116 aims Fri, 12 Jun 2009 17:01:16 +0000 http://www.beadsandbeading.com/blog/?p=4417#comment-19116 I just started beading a couple of months ago - but I knew immediately that I wasn't happy with what I was making and it was because it just wasn't me. I wanted beads that 'said something' and it was obvious that they weren't available. Flipping through a beading magazine one day I came across a bracelet that a mother and daughter team had made out of mokume gane. It impressed me enough to make me stop and take a closer look. I knew right then and there that I needed to be making my own beads so that I could make my own statement. I just started beading a couple of months ago – but I knew immediately that I wasn't happy with what I was making and it was because it just wasn't me. I wanted beads that 'said something' and it was obvious that they weren't available.

Flipping through a beading magazine one day I came across a bracelet that a mother and daughter team had made out of mokume gane. It impressed me enough to make me stop and take a closer look. I knew right then and there that I needed to be making my own beads so that I could make my own statement.

]]> By: Arlene Harrison http://www.beadsandbeading.com/blog/polymer-clay-beads-for-jewelry-making/4417/#comment-19106 Arlene Harrison Fri, 12 Jun 2009 15:11:16 +0000 http://www.beadsandbeading.com/blog/?p=4417#comment-19106 I got into beading about the same time that I got into polymer clay - they do tend to go hand-in-hand! I started by making polymer clay pendants then hunting beads to go with them. It didn't take me too long or very many internet searches to figure out that I could make the beads at the same time that I make the pendant and everything would match. Throw in some contrasting glass beads and the results are amazing. Plus you can have different sizes in the same color... earrings to match... the possibilities are endless! and clicking on to your site (and signing up immediately, I might add) has greatly improved my workmanship! I got into beading about the same time that I got into polymer clay – they do tend to go hand-in-hand! I started by making polymer clay pendants then hunting beads to go with them. It didn't take me too long or very many internet searches to figure out that I could make the beads at the same time that I make the pendant and everything would match. Throw in some contrasting glass beads and the results are amazing. Plus you can have different sizes in the same color… earrings to match… the possibilities are endless! and clicking on to your site (and signing up immediately, I might add) has greatly improved my workmanship!

]]> By: Werna Gail Massey http://www.beadsandbeading.com/blog/polymer-clay-beads-for-jewelry-making/4417/#comment-19087 Werna Gail Massey Fri, 12 Jun 2009 12:31:01 +0000 http://www.beadsandbeading.com/blog/?p=4417#comment-19087 I, like Ashlyn was making jewelry with beads that I would buy, new and old, sometimes I could not find the size or color that I needed. While checking around on the internet I found your site and some others that helped me get started with polymer clay. I found making my own beads very relaxing and satisfying.I bought some polymer clay how to books,always looking for a new technique to try. My favorite thing is to find some antique beads for inspiration and make my polymer beads to accentuate the others. After giving away several necklaces I decided to try and find avenues for sales. I, like Ashlyn was making jewelry with beads that I would buy, new and old, sometimes I could not find the size or color that I needed. While checking around on the internet I found your site and some others that helped me get started with polymer clay. I found making my own beads very relaxing and satisfying.I bought some polymer clay how to books,always looking for a new technique to try. My favorite thing is to find some antique beads for inspiration and make my polymer beads to accentuate the others. After giving away several necklaces I decided to try and find avenues for sales.

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