Preparing for Etsy shop

Today I have registered with Etsy.com and plan to launch my Etsy shop some time in August. It will be called Claire Fairweather's shop and initially I will sell my HANGAs and some Art-Brooches. Gradually I will add other pieces of polymer clay artwork.

First polymer clay mosaic artwork completed

Living in Browns Bay
16¹/₂" x 11³/₄" (42cm x 30cm)

Here is the first of the two artworks I am creating for an exhibition at the end of July. This style of mosaic uses free-form shapes, carefully cut from different coloured sheets of baked polymer clay, to fit the design - similar to cutting the glass shapes for stained glass (lead light) work. I have done much of this before in the past with glass but this is the first time I have tried it with polymer clay, on a larger scale.

I am really pleased with the finished piece but it was a 'labour of love', cutting all the pieces to fit. This photo does not show the pearl effect in some of the colours - I will have to try photographing it again, when it is not raining, to get better lighting on it.

Now I am starting work on designing my second piece for this exhibition, which will be in a totally different style.

Nearly finished

All the pieces have been stuck in place and had an intitial sanding - just waiting to be grouted

All the pieces have now been cut and stuck to the board. I need to decide how I am going to sign this artwork - with initials or a signature? Really looking forward to seeing it when it has been grouted, as this should really pull it all together. I will do the finer grades of sanding, after it has been grouted, to help remove any residue from the grout that has not wiped off.

Progress photos of my mosaic artwork

I have been busy over the last week or so, creating different coloured pieces of polymer clay to cut into shapes for my first piece for the NZ Art Guild exhibition. I have posted some 'in progress' photos below, as I am going away for a long weekend, so it will be a while before I can do any more work on it.

Design sketched on to MDF board, backed with a wooden frame. (The first polymer clay pieces have been laid on the design)

Balsa wood has been cut for the top and bottom pieces, as they would have been too large to fit in my oven, if I had made them out of polymer clay

The balsa wood has been sealed with diluted PVA glue and then painted with several layers of acrylic paint

Here are some of the different coloured pieces of baked polymer clay I have made for this artwork. They are 2mm (3/32") thick and will be cut into shapes to fit the design

The first cut pieces have been glued on to the board

I will post the finished piece when it is complete.

Sketch for Browns Bay mosaic artwork

This is the sketch I did yesterday, for one of the artworks I intend to create for the NZAG Annual Members Exhibition. In line with the theme of the exhibition ("Our Future"), it will be called "Living in Browns Bay", as this is the future that my husband and I are looking forward to.

Exhibition opportunity means rescheduling priorities

The NZ Art Guild's Annual Members Exhibition is at the end of July, at the Mairangi Arts Centre - the theme of the exhibition is "Our Future". This is a fantastic opportunity to show case my polymer clay mosaic work, at the venue where I am hoping (in the future) to be able to teach some polymer clay workshops.

However, I will have to create some new mosaic artworks, as so far I have only done the six trial pieces experimenting with different mosaic styles. My problem is the limited amount of time. I have applied to have half a panel (rather than a whole one) and intend to do two artworks, in quite different styles for variety. I am going to have to work every spare minute I have to be able to complete these two pieces in time. (It is always better to submit pieces for an exhibition that you have already done - but it never seems to be that way with me!).

In order to make as much creative time available as I can, to meet the exhibition deadline, I will need to re-prioritise my work plan for the next two months. This basically means delaying the opening of my Etsy shop, which I am rescheduling to be sometime in August. The goals I set myself at the beginning of the year, to achieve during 2011, included setting up an online shop - but even if this is not done until August, it will still be done this year. 

Back in New Zealand...and feeling inspired



I have so missed this view, which I see at the end of the passageway when walking from the main shopping street to our apartment. I think it will be the inspiration for my first polymer clay mosaic artwork. Having just returned from a 16 day trip to the UK, I am now eager to get back to my polymer clay – it is nearly half way through the year and I have so much to do, if I am going to achieve all the goals I set myself at the beginning of the year.

This is me reminiscing, eating Yorkshire puddings in Yorkshire. While back in the UK for my step-daughter’s wedding, I had a great time catching up with family and friends. The weather was fantastic for the whole trip, which was a bonus as all the driving about was a little tiring, but it did feel homely coming back to Browns Bay, here in New Zealand.

POLL: Pohutukawa mosaic - different styles

I have finally completed and photographed the exercise that I started last month. Before designing a larger polymer clay mosaic artwork, I have been experimenting with different styles. Based on a representation of the New Zealand Potohutukawa flower, I have created six small mosaics, on 4" (10cm) square block canvases. Please take part in the poll (to the right) and let me know which style you like best. The results of the Poll have been added at the end of this post.

1 - Simple squares

2 - Micro mosaic

3 - Micro and larger shapes

4 - Design cut into squares

5 - Cut out design and squares

6 - Various shaped pieces

This will be my last post for a while, as I am going back to the UK on Friday (for a couple of weeks) to attend a family wedding and to catch up with family and friends. On my return, I will consider the results from this poll, when I start my first larger scale polymer clay mosaic artwork.

Postscript: Results of the Poll - which mosaic style do you like best?

1. 0%
2. 35%
3. 17%
4. 3%
5. 37%
6. 8%

Thank you to everyone who voted.


Completed piece for NZ Art Guild Collaborative Project 2011

Selected portion of my contribution

to the 2011 colaborative project

- Light of my Life

I have completed my part of this collaborative project and posted it off today. Made of large polymer clay 'mosaic' tiles, this is a small portion of it, when it was in progress. I cannot reveal the whole piece until it has been unveiled at the Annual Members Exhibition - Our Future, in July.

Last time at Coatesville Market



Last set-up at Coatesville Market



Close-up of my 'thank you' sign

It is sad that this was my last time at Coatesville Market but I know that it is not the right venue for selling the larger pieces of artwork that I am going to be creating next. Everyone has been really friendly here and made me welcome, so I will have to come back now and then as a visitor.

For anyone reading this who still wants to by my HANGAs, I am intending to open an on-line shop on Esty.com to sell these and other smaller items. I will start work on this when I get back from my trip to the UK, in May, and hope it will be up and running some time in June.