{"id":13064,"date":"2011-04-21T03:33:15","date_gmt":"2011-04-21T10:33:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.beadsandbeading.com\/blog\/?p=13064"},"modified":"2013-08-15T07:16:53","modified_gmt":"2013-08-15T14:16:53","slug":"sculptural-birdhouse-beads-polymer-clay-tutorial-video","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beadsandbeading.com\/blog\/sculptural-birdhouse-beads-polymer-clay-tutorial-video\/13064\/","title":{"rendered":"Sculptural Birdhouse Beads | Polymer Clay Tutorial"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Birdhouse<\/a>Video #201:<\/span> <\/strong>“I’m amused by the idea of sculpted polymer clay birds with a little drinks menu, trying to decide between beer, tea or cocoa!” ~Silverleaf<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

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There is something about nature and beads that just goes perfectly together. And it seems that the huge trend towards nature inspired jewelry is getting stronger every year.<\/span><\/p>\n

Just type nature<\/em> into the search box under the jewelry category in Etsy, and you will see the 51,201 results that pop up. While you are there, do another Etsy search using birds<\/em> as the jewelry keyword. I got 47,968 results… seems to be a popular topic!<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

I first wrote about this Bird Pendant Jewelry Trend<\/a> over two and half years ago… and today, things have not died down one little bit. In fact, anything to do with birds and jewelry designs seems to be hot… birdhouses, nests, eggs, branches, feathers, bird cages… and many other topics as well.<\/span><\/p>\n

Now speaking of hot<\/strong> plus<\/em> bird topics<\/strong>, the following is a fun conversation amongst some of the members here last summer. It all started with a discussion about a heat wave that was happening in Arizona at the time. How hot was it you ask? Well…<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

It’s so hot here in Arizona right now, I went to Joann’s and bought some clay this morning, and when I got home it was already baked. LOL. We were in the pool at 7:30 a.m. it was already hot out … even our quail are looking for cold beer. <\/span><\/span>~Bonnie-K<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

LOL ! LOL ! It’s so wet and chilly here this AM, I had to turn my furnace on at 7:30 AM. <\/span><\/span>~Lawrence-S<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Brrr. Sounds cold Lawrence – where do you live? I imagine the birds there are asking for coffee or cocoa instead? ;D <\/span><\/span>~Phaedrakat<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I’m in BRITISH Columbia and we feed them tea ;-). Actually I am on the 49th parallel and can walk into Washington State if I so wish. Most of the Pacific Northwest has been having wet, chilly weather lately. The good side is that more time indoors for clay play. <\/span><\/span>~Lawrence-S<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Your cooler weather sounds wonderful; I prefer that to the heat. I need to get finished with my workspace now, before it gets over 100 and I have sticky, messy clay! <\/span><\/span>~Phaedrakat<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Lawrence, it’s only going to be 89 here tomorrow, we might have to turn the furnace on too. LOL <\/span><\/span>~Bonnie-K<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I’m amused by the idea of sculpted polymer clay birds with a little drinks menu, trying to decide between beer, tea or cocoa <\/span><\/span>~Silverleaf<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Wish I could sculpt, that would be cute. A little bird family holding drink menus. Guess I’ll have to get out my Christi Friesen<\/a> bird book and see what I can do. LOL. Or maybe I’ll just have a beer and forget about it. <\/span><\/span>~Bonnie-K<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Me too! I’ve been meaning to learn to sculpt birds because I want to make one for my friend from New Mexico. She’s been studying here in the UK this year and is going home very soon, and she shares my love of birdwatching so it would be fun to give her a little English birdy drinking a cup of tea! <\/span><\/span>~Silverleaf<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Christi Friesen has a new book called “Birds of feather”. It shows how to sculpt birds and it’s awesome. You can get it at Amazon<\/a>. She has a great sense of humor too. There’s a penguin in there that I just want to hug he’s adorable. She makes it easy… or at least look easy. <\/span><\/span>~Bonnie-K<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Isn’t it great how polymer clay can be tied in with just about every conversation… even when we talk about the weather!? :D<\/span><\/p>\n

Anyhoot<\/em> (as in making owl sounds… and<\/em> … as in having way too much fun here), tomorrow (Friday April 22nd, 2011) in the Vol-035-4 video at the Polymer Clay Library<\/a>, I’ll be demonstrating how to make adorable little Birdhouse Focal Beads. You’ll have a blast personalizing them with all kinds of polymer clay and metal embellishments.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Please Note:<\/strong><\/span> A general prerequisite for all of my weekly tutorials is that you have a good understanding of the polymer clay basics, including: conditioning clay, using a pasta machine, clay blade and other simple tools, making Skinner Blends or Teardrop Blends, baking clay, as well as sanding and finishing. If you need help in these areas, my Polymer Clay Beginners Course<\/a> will get you up to speed quickly. There is also plenty of free information on this blog. Use the search box at the top of the page to find articles on specific topics.<\/span><\/p>\n

Supplies & Tools: Video-035-4 Birdhouse Beads:
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