Translucent clay is my new love. And so is my new clay extruder.

Until recently I never thought of trying out translucent polymer clay. I didn't know how to work with it and I figured what difference could it make in my projects? Man, was I ever wrong. That stuff is genius! It wasn't until I got the book The Art of Polymer Clay by Donna Kato (Kato clay anyone?) that I realised what rad stuff you could do with it. I put together three simple canes using the skinner blend technique between a layer of translucent clay mixed with a lil' bit of white clay and presto chango, I got some pretty snazzy beads out of it. Originally I made one braclet for myself out of it, but after my cousin Kaitlyn saw mine, she asked me to make her one as well. I actually liked how hers turned out a little bit better since I had a better idea of how thinly I had to slice the cane to get the desired affect. I'll definitely be using this stuff more in the future!

My second new love? That's totally my new clay gun. For the longest time I've been using the standard silver metal clay extruder that you can find at most craft stores. I dreaded using it but at times I just had no other option to get the shape and/or consistency that I was needing for my project. It was painful and slow to use and the cleanup was annoying. I used the old silver one for the Nintendo mushroom cane that I had done and by the time I was done, my hands were red and raw and it was painful to touch anything. Anytime I used it after that, I had flashbacks of its evilness. There had to be a better way. Then one day I came across the Makin's Clay Extruder online but it was a little more pricey than what I wanted to pay. But then I read reviews. A bunch of them. Every single one I read said that although it was a little pricey, it was worth every penny. So one day I decided to take the plunge and went ahead and ordered it online. I don't know how I lived without it. It's bloody fantastic. Easy to use, easy clean up and best of all, it doesn't hurt my poor hands! I almost wanted to call in sick the day after it arrived just so I could play and create with it all day (I didn't though, only because I have bills that have to get paid somehow). The first cane I made after getting it also used translucent clay and was made with just the scraps of the cane mentioned at the beginning of this post! It literally took about five minutes to throw together! Best $25 I've spent in a long time!