I am not really sure if the “clay creatures” I make from polymer clay are toys or statues or what, but here are a couple of sites that inspire me – or at least keep me informed of the latest collectable toys out there.
ToyCyte – This website features different toys and designers, and mentions the Beastlies which are high in demand and made of polymer clay!
Tomopop - This website features different toys and designers too, most seem to be Japanese.
I like these two sites because they aren’t just online stores selling items; they don’t even sell, though they link to sale sites. These sites focus on showing the toy designs and their designers.
There are other interesting sites out there like ToyQube and even TheBananaLab but those are more like stores and less like blogs.
I’m sure there are other toy sites out there – got any inspirational links for me?
I will do another blog on inspirational polymer clay sites, but this one is just focused on toys. I admit I’m not an authority, and I don’t even like most of the designs, but I find it interesting that so many custom vinyl/collectable toys are out there!
If you are looking to make your clay items zing with the trends, try checking these sites out for ideas.
If you are like trying to buy local/American/homemade crafts and arts as gifts this year you have probably heard of Etsy (plug plug, my shop is here). But Etsy is not the only place you can find crafty, one-of-a-kind (or one-of-a-few) items!Here are a few others for you to consider:
- Ebay – sure lots of commercial stuff like Mickey Mouse promo glasses from 1976 are on there, but there are also lots of homemade things, and craft supplies! Just dig a little deeper.
- Shanalogic – It’s trendy. It’s squeeably cute. It’s homemade!
- Cut+Paste – This site has 35 “partners in craft” whose work is always changing!
- Stylehive – It’s a little bit like StumbleUpon, but if you search, you can find a big handmade section. Some is crossposted links from Etsy, etc. A bit confusing, but an interesting place to browse.
- My Bonnie and Clyde – Another artist co-op offering interesting jewelry and interior design selections. This site is relatively small with only a few categories, which makes searching easier.
- Artsefest - This site has a more international flair than the other handmade gift sites. This site also boasts a live help feature.
- DeviantART – it’s not primarily a craft-selling site, but you can purchase prints of most anything. And if you look in the Artisan Crafts section you’ll often find people with items for sale, or find new artists whose art inspires your own!
- Artfire – A new Etsy competitor (seriously they talk about being cheaper than Etsy on the front page! Hmm). It has some cute artist-interaction features! It also has a “commission a piece” service much like Etsy. It seems to have some non-handmade vintage items as well.
- Silkfair – Another site that makes buying and selling homemade gifts (and non-homemade gifts) ”fun and easy”. It uses Google Checkout and some others in addition to PayPal, which I think is a nice plus. It also shows a seller’s existing ebay rating, if they have one!
- Flickr – Lots of people post homemade items on Flickr – and I know they would love to discover you are interested in buying them!
Well I’m sure I’ve only scratched the surface when it comes to hunting for hand crafted items online. This definitely proves Etsy is only the beginning! Sure, it would be nice to have everything in one place, but maybe you’ll find the perfect item in one of those tiny out-of-the-way corners of the internet that few people have discovered… keep on searching! And promote your own work in as many places as you can!
I have a bunch of clay critters for sale here.
I have a big pile of littler things for sale here, down a couple of paragraphs.
Most of them have holes for cord in the top, and can be used as necklace pendants, to decorate gift bags, or around jar candles – anything!
The “rock” looking things on the right side are, well, “rocks” made of glimmer and clay and sparkle and all such things, and are called “fairy stones” (well that’s what I call them). They look lovely by candles as candlescaping, or in potted plants. I have one in my car. They just make me smile!
I’m taking this stuff (along with lots more) to a show on Saturday, but I thought “Why not let other people get a shot at it too, then I won’t have to carry it all with me.” (See, I’m lazy like that.)
So if you see anything here you like – ANYTHING – any item is $3.50 + $1 shipping.
If you want several I will cut down on shipping and may even haggle on some of the little items.
But anyway these are SO fun to make that I have loads and piles of them accumulating in little boxes.
They are handily NUMBERED for your convenience.
Are they not nifty?
I take PayPal and please e-mail me first or I won’t know what you’re buying! ( glimmer @ glimmerville). You can use that e-mail for the paypal, too. If you have questions, if you like any, any little reason at all – e-mail glimmer @ glimmerville !
JB (jbscresties.com and catharsiscomic.com) said she likes seeing “crafts gone awry” so I am posting a couple of polymer clay things that didn’t go as planned.
Not sure what can be done with these
These little guys were made of layers of colored clay, and translucent clay – then covered with a thin layer of black clay, then stamped into, then the top layer was shaved off, revealing the stamped clay color only in the inset stamp pattern. Great, complicated idea, that is just not pretty.
I may do this again sometime – but these sure did not turn out very well.
Just not cute. At all.
These little guys… I thought maybe paint would repair them, but it didn’t. The lizard on the far right is mokume-gane, though, not paint. The cat on the far left is still waiting on more paint but it just looks so ugly to me I don’t think paint will repair it!
But you never know – maybe someone else thinks they’re cute.
And you can still learn through experimentation, even when the experiment fails.
What do you think?
I was featured on the Polymer Clay Productions website back in June and I never knew it, until I narcicisstically did an ego search just now! (The link to my feature is here.) They have a podcast too.
Wow, and I was just feeling a little bad about no one buying my stuff, too.
I feel much better now, even if no one does buy my stuff. 
But you can!
You can commission me – glimmer (at) glimmerville.com
Or you can check out anything on my etsy page to see what’s there and get a ballpark of how I price things. I have made a custom figure from someone’s sketch for about $60, though prices would vary. And the big Copper mech dragon was about $50 as well.
Also, my comments are set up to use Gravatars, globally recognized avatars. If you want a photo to appear by your name, set up an account at http://en.gravatar.com/ and then use the e-mail you’ve registered when you make a comment.
I refuse to sign any Glitter Non-Proliferation Agreement. It has been suggested by someone ( whose initials are catharsiscomic.com ) that glitter oozes from my pores. I plead the fifth on that, as on so many other accusations. But if you want to know more about unorthodox experimentation go to my other blog: http://docgestalt.blogspot.com
Do you love glitter?
Do you hate glitter?
Does finding glitter on your clothes make you want to squee in delight or scream in fury?
I, for one, love glitter. I think it’s beautiful and magical. (Then again, I think just about everything is beautiful and magical.) Therefore I shall share with you my favorite brand of glitter, some various uses for glitter, and any other glitter-related thing I think you’d enjoy.
There is one large reason glitter is on my mind. Yesterday, in Borders Books & Music, I grabbed a Glitter Crystal Ball on impulse – and I’ve hardly been able to put it down since then (YES I paid for it!). If you don’t have a Borders, you can pick one up on Amazon, if you don’t mind paying ridiculous shipping on a bouncy ball Here but I would much rather find one in person, if possible.
My favorite brand of glitter is Art Institute. http://www.artglitter.com/ They sell a lot of other products too, and every one I’ve tried is full of all the sparkle and whimsy you’d expect from a website endorsed by Glimmerville. Art institute glitter is very fine, and coats polymer clay extremely well.
But fine glitter isn’t the only kind out there. Big chunky cheap glitter from the $1 bin at JoAnn has uses too. I use any kind of glitter I can get my hands on when I’m making faux opals. A good faux opal tutorial (by Linda Geer) is here, but I like to depart from it and experiment. I know it says “be sure your glitter is oven safe” but I have never had any problems.
You can see some items I made using Art Institute Glitter on polymer clay here and here.
Go glitter your world!
