Christmas in July on Etsy

It is finally that time of the year: Christmas in July! I always love shopping on etsy during this time, and for the first time ever my shop is also participating in the event. From now until July 21st simply use the code "CIJ10" at checkout to receive 10% off your order from my shop.

Now, just be careful because if you are anything like me you will probably go on an all out shopping spree, but it is so worth it! Just don't go into debt over all of the awesome sales.

I wish you all the very best Christmas in July and hope you all find some great deals!

Thanks for reading my blog!

Check out my shop here: https://www.etsy.com/shop/CreationsbyColette?ref=si_shop and use coupon code "CIJ10"

to get 10% off your order.

New Products being posted!

Lately I feel like I have been a polymer clay jewelry chugging machine. In the past few weeks I have made close to 20 new products that I am so excited to start posting in my shop. I have made things from jars of gumballs and floo powder to fortune cookies and twizzlers. I am so happy for you all to see them!

Check out my shop here to see some new products: https://www.etsy.com/shop/CreationsbyColette?ref=si_shop

What do you guys want to see me make next? Leave a comment down below or scroll 
down the sidebar to vote in my poll.

Thanks for reading my blog and have a great Wednesday!

Friday Fun #7

So if any of you have read my blog in the past, you might know that I used to do a Friday post full of jokes/games/cartoons etc. and seeing that it is both Friday and the return of my blog I figured this would be a great way to get things going!

Optical Illusion

Can you make him turn directions?

Short Riddles

What bird can lift the most?

A crane.

What bone will a dog never eat?

A trombone.

What can you hold without ever touching it?

A conversation.

Funny Signs
 
 
  Brain Teaser
Name four days of the week that start with the letter "t"?

Think you know the answer? Leave a comment below and the first person to answer correctly will be featured in the next Friday Fun! (Blog, etsy shop, whatever!)

Happy Fourth of July!

HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY!

It is that time of year again: fireworks and cookouts! I hope you are all enjoying our fourth of July and are able to be with people you care about. Let's celebrate America and all that makes America great and have a great day! I hope you guys have a fantastic night of celebration :)

New Show: Whodunnit?

www.en.wikipedia.comhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whodunnit%3F_(U.S._TV_series)

Hey guys! So I know this is a polymer clay blog and talking about a new show probably seems pretty off-topic...yeah, it does, but I am going to write about it anyway :)

I started watching this show last night (you can watch all the episodes so far in www.abc.com, but do it quickly because they do expire at some point!) and my family and I talked about it for a good 30 minutes afterwards.

It is a very unique show and I think that is what drew me to wanting to watch it. Now, before I even start I just wanted to say that it is not a perfect show by any means and my family and I spent a good time trying to figure out exactly how some things worked, like examining the victim that is still alive but is supposed to be dead....yeah it's kind of weird.

But, I still thoroughly enjoyed trying to solve the murder right alongside the contestants. The basis of the show is that 13 guests arrived at the manor and are in competition for half a million dollars. Each day one of them is murdered. After the murder the contestants can choose to go to one of the following places: the crime scenes, the last known whereabouts or the morgue. The contestants all split off to go to their desired location where they have 30 minutes to investigate. Afterwards, they are allowed to talk to the other contestants and share what they found, or maybe even some things they didn't find...Next, the murderer leaves a clue to the contestants that they have to try and figure out for another clue. Finally, the contestants state their cases, what they believed happened, and who the murderer was.

In the end, whoever was the farthest away from what happened is the next victim and then everything repeats again. Oh, and did I mention the murderer is among them?

I have high hopes for this show and hopefully it will continue to entertain. I am confused about a couple of things but hopefully they will be answered soon. I think this show is a great summer show because it is easy to watch and entertaining. I recommend at least giving it a try! 

Do you have any recommendations for a great summer show? Leave it in a comment below!

Thanks for reading my blog :)

Polymer Clay 101: Baking your Clay Projects

 

best-toaster-oven-guide.com  

Well if you are reading this I might guess you were like me and have burned a couple of your masterpieces. I know how frustrating it is to take your hardwork out of the oven and discovering that what you sculpted was not a beautiful cupcake but instead a blackened lump of clay. It sucks and I have been in the same exact situation. At one point I burned so many projects that I gave up for a good 2 or 3 months. But, I am here to tell you: Don't give up!

Temperature

First of all, the very first thing I want to warn you about is your temperature. I always cook on the low end (around 250 degrees for Sculpey and Michaels brand clay). I found that whenever I cooked the clay at the mid to high range of the packages temperature I got the most blackened lumps. So, check your packages temperatures and dial your oven to the low end. Investing in a oven thermometer is also another smart move. Most ovens will waver a little bit below or above the actual temperture so investing in an oven thermometer will help you to pinpoint a certain temperature.

Timer

Next, set a timer! I know this one seems kind of ridiculous but I am horrible about setting timers and burned a lot of clay by leaving it to bake for too long. I usually cook my pieces for about 10 minutes. With bigger pieces than miniature food I would recommend cooking the clay for a bit longer. Also, if you are cooking a masterpiece I would suggest just checking on it every couple of minutes just to make sure you don't see the starlings of a burn.

Tile Bake Tray

I recommend using a tile (you can get them for less than $5 at The Home Depot or Lowes) to place your clay projects on to bake them. I have had great success with the tile I currently have and believe that it accounts a lot for my ability to now cook my clay without burning it. I don't know the science behind using metal vs. tile or how the tile cooks better, I just know that the tile has been a huge help!

Toaster Oven

I have also found that cooking in a small toaster oven and greatly decreased the amount of clay I burned. Now, having one of these to cook clay is not necessary and unless you plan to invest a lot of time or start a business you probably do not need to spend the money to own one.

Other Tips

If you are cooking a piece that is more fragile, whether it be long, skinny pieces or an overall thin piece I would recommend dousing the clay in an ice water bath immediately after taking it out of the oven to give it more strength.

I know how frustrating cooking clay can be. And if you still don't have success after implementing my tips you could try making simple patties of clay and playing around with settings like temperature and time until you find what works for you.

If you still are having issues with cooking you clay shoot me an email or leave a comment down below and I would love to help you out! Thanks for reading my blog!

E-mail: cocoscreations123@yahoo.com

Polymer Clay 101: Finishing Your Clay

So you have finished sculpting your clay and baked it to perfection, what next? Well now its time to put the finishing touches on your clay.

IF YOU ARE MAKING JEWELRY....(let's say an earring)

1) Finish off your headpin or superglue your eyepin into place.

2) Take an earring finding and use your pliers to open the wire at the bottom of the earring

3) Place it onto you finished off headpin/eyepin, use the pliers to push it back together.

This is just for dangle earrings in particlaur. For stud earrings I apply strong glue to the base to attach it. For necklaces attach or complete the headpin/eyepin and just put a necklace chain through.

GLAZING...

I prefer to glaze my earrings after I place the earring finding or jewelry finding on it, so I can coat the whole charm and hang it up to allow it to dry.

Coat your whole charm in a layer of glaze, being sure to apply it evenly so you don't leave bumps  because once it dries you can't fix those things. Also, try and get the whole charm coated but you can always let it dry and do touch up later on places you missed the first time around. I have been glazing for awhile now and always seem to have to do at least two coats to cover the charm entirely.

After you have finished all of the above, I ensure the headpin is secure and won't come out and that the glaze is even on the charm and then it is ready to be worn or sent as a gift!

Have fun!!!!

Have any questions? Just leave a comment down below and I would be more than happy to do my best to answer them :)

I am back!

Whew! It has been a crazy past year...yeah, a whole year since my last post, but I am happy to announce that I am entering back into the blogging world and back into the etsy/small business world!

For any of you that have stayed with me I send you my most grateful hugs and kisses :) This week I am going to try and follow up on all the comments I have gotten and post  a quick tutorial (maybe?)  or  something clay related.

Also, I am going to try to renovate my little haven on etsy and maybe even start up a website off of etsy to sell my jewelry. You never know what could happen!

Again, I am so happy to be back and thanks for hanging on to me and hopefully I can get back to posting more often.

Have an awesome Friday and weekend! :D