I am coming down to the wire on items for the Bead Bazaar this weekend. Today I finished riveting 3 pendants I had made a couple of weeks ago. What sets these three apart is that they are shiny, really shiny.
I used Colores resin from Rio Grande to coat them with a thick coating of pure shine. I don’t usually use a finish. I’ve had bad luck with the classic finishes for polymer clay: Future floor wax and Varathane. I’ve had Future yellow and crack over time and the Varathane eventually gets dirty looking. These days, if I want something smooth and shiny I will sand and buff. I love the silky feeling of sanded and buffed polymer clay. And to be honest I have become a bit of a snob about finishes because I don’t care for the experiences I’ve had with them.
Well, the resin has changed my mind. I promise, I am not going to suddenly start coating everything in sight with resin (although I did have a fume induced moment when that seemed like a good idea LOL). But there are times when a thick, clear and durable coating of resin brings a magical quality to a sheet of clay. It wakes up anything that has a slight bit of sparkle. It really looks like glass.
My other rave for the day are my new favorite rivets, tiny brass nails. I love them! Just the right size and the nice uniform rounded head is a great look. They’re so easy to use, it’s almost criminal. Now if I could just find a manufactured silver rivet. While I know it’s not terribly difficult to ball up a piece of 20 gauge silver wire, it’s hard to get a uniform size to the ball end, and it shows if a piece has more than one rivet. I’d kill for 20 gauge sterling or fine silver mushroom head rivets (or nails). Sadly, I don’t think they exist.
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*Shiny
Any fans of the short-lived TV series Firefly out there? “Shiny” was used as slang meaning “cool” or “great” in the series. I loved that, and now every time I use or think the word, it makes me think of the show and smile. I’m tempted to start using it, but my kids already think I am embarrassingly weird at times.
{ 7 comments… read them below or add one }
Christy 09.14.07 at 7:54 am
Very cool Libby
Can’t wait to see them in person.
And I did watch Firefly - it was great. And I miss Farscape too.
Kathi 09.14.07 at 11:09 am
Heh…we watched Firefly on DVD. Shiny…yep shiny. I totally love that black pendant. the resin really makes the bling pop in it.
Karen 09.14.07 at 11:23 am
Hi Libby, Your new pendants are fabulous and the shiny surface really makes the colors pop! Forgive my ignorance about resin but is it challenging to use? I’ve never used it before. -Karen
Libby 09.14.07 at 12:21 pm
Thanks for all the nice comments. Karen, I don’t find the resin hard to use at all. You have to watch for bubbles. The other great tip I learned was to save the extra resin and cup you mixed the resin in. Then when you want to check if the resin is dry, you can safely poke the extra resin instead of risking ruining your lovely piece. It’s fun stuff!
christine 09.15.07 at 7:19 am
Libby,
What about using sterling headpins with the ball on the end?
Christine
Libby 09.15.07 at 10:20 am
Not a bad idea Christine, but too pricey. I’d have to buy 1 inch head pins and I’d only be using a tiny bit of the length.
I basically make my own ball end headpins when I use silver rivets. It’s just challenging to get the ball ends reasonably uniform. I think it’s a matter of practice. I need to sit down one day and make a big pile of them. I’m lazy and I have been enjoying the cheap pre-made copper and brass rivets.
Lisa Clarke 09.21.07 at 11:59 pm
Oh, I love that last one. And I have the Firefly boxed set, so don’t talk to me about being weird - I’ve got that one covered