April 5, 2008
Polymer Clay Instructions - Why Free Is Not Always Best
"With all the free info available on the web, why should I pay for polymer clay instructions?"
This is a question that I am asked often. There are several reasons why free is not always best.
Here are 3 of them:
- The best kind of polymer clay instruction is by demonstration where you can SEE exactly how something is done… step by step. Web video is very helpful for this. But there really are not a lot of good polymer clay videos that have been gathered all in one place on the web. The free instructional videos that are any good, are scattered far and wide and it takes forever to find them. Plus if you do find them, they often don't provide everything you need to know.
- Much of the free polymer clay instructional videos on the web are pretty crappy quality. Have you ever watched a YouTube clip that was so blurry there was not much point in even watching it? This is because most people don't know how to upload their videos in a way that maintains a half-decent viewing quality.
- And finally, most of the free polymer clay videos you'll come across on the web, are filmed by the person who is also starring in them. This means that no one is working the zoom lens in a way that allows the camera to capture detail shots of the projects and techniques being shown.
I am lucky enough to have a husband that's willing to work with me on the filming and production stuff. We built a mini 'set' in the corner of the studio that's properly lit, properly mic'd, and is ready to go at a moment's notice.
Plus, my husband does all the editing and uploading of the multimedia content to our web site so that I can focus on creating more and more instructional tutorial videos. In fact, we are now very close to launching a polymer clay membership club with over 80 videos to start with! Trust me, you won't find a video collection of this size anywhere else in one place on the web!
The main purpose of my polymer clay membership club is to save you from the hassle of learning through your mistakes, by learning through mine instead.
Making mistakes while you are learning something new is not fun. I have made tons of mistakes. That is how I learned all about polymer clay. Broken, burnt and ugly polymer clay beads are a waste of time, supplies and money… not to mention hard on the pride.
The monthly cost for this polymer clay video subscription will be way cheaper than what most beginners spend on taking classes or on buying books. Think about it. How much do you spend on polymer clay or on crafting books in a month?
How about classes? $40-$50 is pretty typical, plus the cost of your project supplies. And once the class is over, is there any ongoing support? Can you learn from home at times that are convenient for you? Probably not.
I'm so excited to be able to offer these polymer clay instruction videos and resources (it'll be very soon now). I hope you'll like them as much as I enjoy making them. But most of all, I hope that you won't have to make the same mistakes I did.
BTW: As part of my upcoming membership club launch, I'm going to be releasing some free polymer clay instruction videos… full length ones rather than just teaser clips. However, rather than picking the topics myself, I'd rather hear from you. What areas are you having the most difficulty with? Tell me below what videos you'd like to see, and I'll do my absolute best to make your wish come true.
Spread the Word!
Filed under 13: Musings-News by Cindy Lietz
Comments on Polymer Clay Instructions - Why Free Is Not Always Best »
Thanks Cindy. I'm looking forward to hearing more about your launch. I'd really like to find out more about the skinner blend technique and how to use it. You can put that topic on my wish list for your launch videos. :-)
Good to hear from you Kathy. I think I can arrange something for you about the Skinner Blend technique. Stay tuned.
Who else is out there? The more suggestions I get, the more free videos I'll release. Let me know which topics you most want to hear about.
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Hi Cindy,
Wow! I can't believe you haven't had more responses to your question!
I'm brand new to polymer clay and am really looking at it as a stepping stone to PMC, although the more I see, the more respect I've acquired for it as a medium in its own right. E.g., the beads that Barb McGuire does are unbelievable. The beads she did for the necklace on the cover of Bead&Button in February were riveting. I couldn't figure out what they were at first, and then I couldn't believe they were canes! They made me want to drop everything and work until I learned how to make them, though I know it takes years to get to Barb's level of expertise. So I guess that's the subject that interests me: where do you start to produce canes that have the look of intricate, almost inlaid, marble and marquetry? How do you acquire the precision necessary, and what kind of tools do you use? There is no question that this is Art. I guess I sort of missed the past decade when polymer clay became so much more than a craft material, as I was immersed in textiles. Now, I'm looking forward to making up for what I've missed :-)
Sue, Hearing the excitement in your voice as a new person to polymer clay, is one of the reasons I became The Polymer Clay Tutor!
I agree with you that Barb McGuire's work is absolutely beautiful. For an artist like her to reach the level of expertise that she has, does take time and effort. However, with proper instruction, beginners can have great success making polymer clay beads too.
As your tutor I can teach you how to significantly reduce the amount of time it takes to get great at making polymer clay beads. I can do that by helping you avoid some of the pitfalls all beginners run into.
I'm glad to see that you are excited about making polymer clay canes! Caning is one of the most rewarding (and addictive) techniques you can learn. With a few simple steps you build the image in large form and then reduce it to a much tinier size. This is how the pictures become very intricate and detailed. It is super fun and I can't wait to show you how to do it!
So guys… Kathy and Sue stepped up to let me know what they want to see in my launch video releases. How about the rest of you? What would you like to see?
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Hiya, Cindy…sorry to be so late in posting here! Really, really looking forward to your "upcoming Membership Club"…will be waiting for the big announcement! :) :)
Hiya back Garnie! I'm excited too!! The first Online Video Course, Polymer Clay Bead Making for Beginners, will be launching in the next couple of weeks! If you are not already, be sure to get on the Polymer Clay Tutor Guest List to receive notification of the launch… not to mention some cool free videos too.
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Looking forward to hearing more here too. I've got some real specific questions like: Is it me or is FIMO translucent impossible to condition?! It seems like it never gets pliable. Also, I want to make a large ball (tennis ball sized), but I don't want to use that much clay. What can I use to dummy out the inside & not add much weight to it?
The video coming up this week in my video newsletter shows you how to condition the harder clays like Fimo using a food processor, so make sure you watch that. This video will be going out later this week to everyone on the Guest List.
As far as your other question Cynister, it is possible to make a dummy core to conserve clay. I'll put that on my list of things to address in future posts, so stay tuned!
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