March 2016 Challenge - Rings

For March we are featuring Rings. Vote for your top 3 favorites. One lucky voter will be chosen in a drawing to win a gift certificate from one of our sponsor shops.

To see larger images visit:

http://www.flickr.com/groups/1089891@N25/

1. Blue Millefiori Napkin Rings by Angela of PolymerClayCreations 

My entry into the March PCAGOE monthly challenge. The theme for this month is "rings".

2. Three Rings by Lisa of HiGirls 

PCAGOE March Challenge - Rings
Three chunky rings made with my own special mix of clay to achieve the stoney look. The secret ingredient? Dryer lint! The colorful ring is treated with alcohol inks and all of them have been sanded and buffed for a nice shine.

3. Purple Spiral Ring No. 102 by Susan of 11BOLDstreet

Using 14 ga silver-plated wire as a base, smoky purple polymer was sandwiched onto resulting wire prongs. Tiny shavings from a purple/silver/bronze mokume gane snake-skin sheet were applied, and the entire front was textured. The edges were sanded smooth and buffed to a shine. A silver-plated spiral adds a bright accent.

4. Royal Blue Sunflower Napkin Rings by Arlene of HarrisonHollow.

Our challenge this month was Rings. Now this could be any type ring - jewelry ring, candle ring, or even a set of napkin rings. I still had a fair amount of this sunflower petal cane on my worktable so with the help of some 1.5 inch pvc pipe, a rich marbled mix of dark and light blue clays, a nice leaf cane and a LOT of sunflower petal cane slices, this set of four napkin rings came into being.

5. Mod Statement Ring by Line of PlaySculptLive

 http://playsculptlive.blogspot.ca/2016/02/a-woman-can-never-have-too-many-rings.html

6. Spinner Ring  by Freda of FredaK

My adaption from a Lisa Pavelka tutorial.

7. Blooming Ring by Betsy of StrebeDesigns
My Blooming Ring consists of layers of opal and translucent polymer clay dyed with alcohol inks.  A fun accessory for spring and summer! See the components and more views on my blog http://strebedesigns.blogspot.com/2016/02/fun-for-summer-blooming-ring.html

8. Bold Orange Ring by Jackie of ThePleasantPheasant

This beautiful bold colorful ring is my entry into the PCAGOE Ring Challenge for March 2016.

9. Spun Gold Ring Bling by Beth of CreateMyWorldDesigns

Handmade polymer ring shank and handcut/sanded polymer faceted gem with some decorative wire accents and securing. I created 5 different ring styles for the PCAGOE March challenge because they are oh, so addictive to make! It was a tough choice for which to enter in the challenge. To see all the different styles and to read more about this project, please visit my blog post: createmyworlddesigns.blogspot.com/2016/02/ring-bling.html

Read the expanded rules here.

Full Name (required for voter prize notification):
Email Address (Required for voter prize notification, you will not be sent other e-mails unless you sign up for our e-mail list):
For current Dues-Paying PCAGOE Members: What is Your Etsy Shop Name?
Please select your 1st choice: (2nd & 3rd choice must be different from your 1st.)	1. Blue Millefiori Napkin Rings by Angela of PolymerClayCreations 2. Three Rings by Lisa of HiGirls 3. Purple Spiral Ring No. 102 by Susan of 11BOLDstreet 4. Royal Blue Sunflower Napkin Rings by Arlene of HarrisonHollow 5. Mod Statement Ring by Line of PlaySculptLive 6. Spinner Ring by Freda of FredaK 7. Blooming Ring by Betsy of StrebeDesigns 8. Bold Orange Ring by Jackie of ThePleasantPheasant 9. Spun Gold Ring Bling by Beth of CreateMyWorldDesigns
Please select your 2nd choice: (2nd choice must be different from your 1st and 3rd.)	1. Blue Millefiori Napkin Rings by Angela of PolymerClayCreations 2. Three Rings by Lisa of HiGirls 3. Purple Spiral Ring No. 102 by Susan of 11BOLDstreet 4. Royal Blue Sunflower Napkin Rings by Arlene of HarrisonHollow 5. Mod Statement Ring by Line of PlaySculptLive 6. Spinner Ring by Freda of FredaK 7. Blooming Ring by Betsy of StrebeDesigns 8. Bold Orange Ring by Jackie of ThePleasantPheasant 9. Spun Gold Ring Bling by Beth of CreateMyWorldDesigns
Please select your 3rd choice: (3rd choice must be different from your 1st and 2nd.)	1. Blue Millefiori Napkin Rings by Angela of PolymerClayCreations 2. Three Rings by Lisa of HiGirls 3. Purple Spiral Ring No. 102 by Susan of 11BOLDstreet 4. Royal Blue Sunflower Napkin Rings by Arlene of HarrisonHollow 5. Mod Statement Ring by Line of PlaySculptLive 6. Spinner Ring by Freda of FredaK 7. Blooming Ring by Betsy of StrebeDesigns 8. Bold Orange Ring by Jackie of ThePleasantPheasant 9. Spun Gold Ring Bling by Beth of CreateMyWorldDesigns
How did you hear about the PCAGOE challenge?	Please choose one - thanks! I am a PCAGOE member PCAGOE newsletter Etsy A Blog (Please tell us whose blog in the comments) PCAGOE.com website Polymer Clay Central CraftGossip Facebook (Please tell us whose in the comments) Flickr Word of mouth from a PCAGOE member Other (Please tell us where in the comments)
Would you like to join our email list? (former Newsletter subscribers already included!) monthly reminder to VOTE in our Challenges, along with important Guild announcements. Please add pcagoe@gmail.com and pcagoe.news@gmail.com to your approved senders.	I already signed up yes no
Our members love comments! Please comment here on the entries and/or the challenge in general.

This online form was provided by Freedback.

February 2016 Challenge Winners "Four Seasons"

Top entries selected by the public

1. "Seasons of Change" by Beth of CreateMyWorldDesigns

2. TIE
"Four Seasons Frames" by Arlene of HarrisonHollow
"The Four Seasons" by Line of PlaySculptLive
"Four Seasons Napkin Ring Set" by Lisa of HiGirls   

3. "Ivory Seasons Brooch No. 141" by Susan of 11BOLDstreet 

Top entries selected by members

1. "Seasons of Change" by Beth of CreateMyWorldDesigns

2. "Ivory Seasons Brooch No. 141" by Susan of 11BOLDstreet

3. "Four Seasons Frames" by Arlene of HarrisonHollow

View all of the entries:

http://polymerclayartists.blogspot.com/2016/01/february-2016-challenge-four-seasons.html

Congratulations to the drawing winner:  Jane Troup

You get to pick a prize from one of our lovely participating sponsor shop owners.

Comments from the voters:

Great job again.

Nice work! Very creative.

Once again it was difficult to choose.

Good thing you limit voting to 3 or I'd vote for each one! Looks like you all had fun with your entries. I enjoyed viewing them.

All of the items are wonderful!

Great interpretations. This might be my favorite challenge theme to date.

Love the theme and the clever and diverse interpretations.

Beautiful work this month as always!

They are all lovely! Very talented artists!

Cool theme--I love four seasons!

The Owls are adorable! I also love the frames.

February 2016 challenge - Four Seasons (Spring, Summer, Winter, Fall)

(click on image to enlarge)

For February we are featuring "Four Seasons (Spring, Summer, Winter, Fall)". Vote for your top 3 favorites. One lucky voter will be chosen in a drawing to win a gift certificate from one of our sponsor shops.

To see larger images visit:

http://www.flickr.com/groups/1089891@N25/

1. Four Seasons Napkin Ring Set by Lisa of HiGirls 
PCAGOE's February 2016 Challenge

Set of napkin rings created with clay, silver, gold and copper leaf, and acrylic paints over ceramic napkin rings

2. Owls for Every Season by Marie of MarieYoungCreative

“Owls for Every Season” is a set of four seasons brown owl miniatures representing: winter, spring, summer, fall. I sculpted all of these critters by hand in my rural Pennsylvania studio in January which explains why Mr. Winter Owl looks a little grumpy! Read more here: marieyoungcreative.com/four-seasons-brown-owl-miniatures/

3. Four Seasons Frames by Arlene of HarrisonHollow.

This month's PCAGOE challenge is the seasons. These 2x3" mini frames were very nice to start with but with the addition of custom mixed polymer clay they take on an added elegance. For more about how these frames were created, check out my blog entry at http://harrisonhollowdesigns.blogspot.com/2016/01/seasons-spring-summer-fall-winter.html

4. Ivory Seasons Brooch No. 141 by Susan of 11BOLDstreet

For the PCAGOE Monthly Challenge of 4 Seasons, I cured a disc of faux ivory and carved representative symbols, then antiqued. The disc was embedded in layered polymer base of magenta, orange and green, with polished edges. 3"x3"

5. Four Seasons Journal Cover by Angela of PolymerClayCreations 
"Be the CHANGE you want to see in the WORLD" Mahatma Ghandi. This is a journal cover depicting all four seasons. It was made for the PCAGOE Monthly Challenge.

6.  The Four Seasons by Line of PlaySculptLive

http://playsculptlive.blogspot.ca/2016/01/the-4-seasons.html

7. Seasons of Change by Beth of CreateMyWorldDesigns

Polymer wall art series, based on the theme of 4 seasons (spring, summer, autumn, winter). The panels depict the growth of a plant from spring through winter, with backgrounds corresponding to the weather of the seasons. For more information on this project, please visit my blog post:  http://createmyworlddesigns.blogspot.com/2016/01/seasons-of-change.html

8. Japanese Seasons Tool Holder by Betsy of StrebeDesigns
Made for the PCAGOE February 2016 challenge - The Four Seasons.  My idea came from two sources, my continuing quest to make fun tool holders for my work area, and my immersion in Japanese culture for an upcoming family trip to Japan this summer. A little more background on my blog http://strebedesigns.blogspot.com/2016/01/japanese-seasons-tool-holder.html

Read the expanded rules here.

Full Name (required for voter prize notification):
Email Address (Required for voter prize notification, you will not be sent other e-mails unless you sign up for our e-mail list):
For current Dues-Paying PCAGOE Members: What is Your Etsy Shop Name?
Please select your 1st choice: (2nd & 3rd choice must be different from your 1st.)	1. Four Seasons Napkin Ring Set by Lisa of HiGirls 2. Owls for Every Season by Marie of MarieYoungCreative 3. Four Seasons Frames by Arlene of HarrisonHollow. 4. Ivory Seasons Brooch No. 141 by Susan of 11BOLDstreet 5. Four Seasons Journal Cover by Angela of PolymerClayCreations 6. The Four Seasons by Line of PlaySculptLive 7. Seasons of Change by Beth of CreateMyWorldDesigns 8. Japanese Seasons Tool Holder by Betsy of StrebeDesigns
Please select your 2nd choice: (2nd choice must be different from your 1st and 3rd.)	1. Four Seasons Napkin Ring Set by Lisa of HiGirls 2. Owls for Every Season by Marie of MarieYoungCreative 3. Four Seasons Frames by Arlene of HarrisonHollow. 4. Ivory Seasons Brooch No. 141 by Susan of 11BOLDstreet 5. Four Seasons Journal Cover by Angela of PolymerClayCreations 6. The Four Seasons by Line of PlaySculptLive 7. Seasons of Change by Beth of CreateMyWorldDesigns 8. Japanese Seasons Tool Holder by Betsy of StrebeDesigns
Please select your 3rd choice: (3rd choice must be different from your 1st and 2nd.)	1. Four Seasons Napkin Ring Set by Lisa of HiGirls 2. Owls for Every Season by Marie of MarieYoungCreative 3. Four Seasons Frames by Arlene of HarrisonHollow. 4. Ivory Seasons Brooch No. 141 by Susan of 11BOLDstreet 5. Four Seasons Journal Cover by Angela of PolymerClayCreations 6. The Four Seasons by Line of PlaySculptLive 7. Seasons of Change by Beth of CreateMyWorldDesigns 8. Japanese Seasons Tool Holder by Betsy of StrebeDesigns
How did you hear about the PCAGOE challenge?	Please choose one - thanks! I am a PCAGOE member PCAGOE newsletter Etsy A Blog (Please tell us whose blog in the comments) PCAGOE.com website Polymer Clay Central CraftGossip Facebook (Please tell us whose in the comments) Flickr Word of mouth from a PCAGOE member Other (Please tell us where in the comments)
Would you like to join our email list? (former Newsletter subscribers already included!) monthly reminder to VOTE in our Challenges, along with important Guild announcements. Please add pcagoe@gmail.com and pcagoe.news@gmail.com to your approved senders.	I already signed up yes no
Our members love comments! Please comment here on the entries and/or the challenge in general.

Form provided by Freedback.

January 2016 Challenge winners "Shades of Grey - A Study in Value"

Top entries selected by the public

1. Seascape in Clay by Lisa of HiGirls 

2. Still Waters by Arlene of HarrisonHollow.

3. Two-way tie

Shades of Gray Bottle by Jackie of ThePleasantPheasant

Yin Yang Polymer Pillow Necklace by Beth of CreateMyWorldDesigns

Top entries selected by members

1. Shades of Gray Bottle by Jackie of ThePleasantPheasant 

2.  Granite Gauze Cuff No. 167 by Susan of 11BOLDstreet

3. 50 Shades of Gray Statement Necklace by Betsy of StrebeDesigns

View all of the entries:

http://polymerclayartists.blogspot.com/2016/01/january-2016-challenge-50-shades-of.html

Congratulations to the drawing winner: Susan Worcester

You get to pick a prize from one of our lovely participating sponsor shop owners.

Comments from the voters:

• Thank you all for sharing your beautiful works! Everything is so well done it makes it hard to pick three.
• Thank you - pieces are beautiful ... I love the soft and quiet of the white and gray!
• Love this theme! So beautiful.
• Very nice work! A challenge but you guys carried it off for sure.
• All very lovely. I enjoy seeing the submissions for this very much.
• Nice use of topic colors!
• All the entries as usual are gorgeous, it gets harder and harder to pick a favorite!
• I love B&W color combination, it's my favorite. It's been so difficult to choose only 3 pieces.... I love 8!!
• All of the entries were great. The clay landscape on canvas especially caught my attention because it was like a painting on canvas. I love to paint. Good job everyone!
• This vote was very hard for me as I felt they all deserved it. This is one that I think they all thought was challenging, so I feel each one is a winner in my book. Awesome work Ladies!
• Had to include Jackie's bottle, since I love it, it's on my mantle and I can see all the subtle value variations up-close ;)
• Dragon is adorable!
• Tough choice! Beautiful items.
• I love the variety! Great work everyone!
• Great work from all of you.
• Wonderful monochromes. This challenge is an intriguing one!
• The entries are all fun!

January 2016 Challenge - 50 shades of grey-A study in value

(click on image to enlarge)

For our first challenge of 2016 we are featuring 50 shades of grey - A study in value. Vote for your favorites. One lucky voter will be chosen in a drawing to win a gift certificate from one of our sponsor shops.

To see larger individual images visit:

http://www.flickr.com/groups/1089891@N25/

1. Still Waters by Arlene of HarrisonHollow.

I used varying shades from white to black plus a bit of silver leaf for sparkle to create the focal bead, used some of the "scrap" clay from the stack to make the marbled beads then paired them with silver beads to make this necklace.

2. Seascape in Clay by Lisa of HiGirls 

PCAGOE January Challenge Shades of Gray
Created completely with black and white with gray polymer clay over a small canvas. Various techniques including some liquid clay tinted with white alcohol inks, translucent clay and textures are included.

3. Shades of Gray Bottle by Jackie of ThePleasantPheasant

This 4-sided bottle is my entry for the January 2016 Monthly Challenge - Shades of Gray - for PCAGOE. I had a wonderful time creating this graffiti-look bottle for the challenge, as well as for a gift for one of my exchange gift partners at PCAGOE, Susan O'Neil.

4.  Shades of Gray - A Lesson in Value by Line of PlaySculptLive

PCAGOE value challenge http://playsculptlive.blogspot.ca/2015/12/blog-post.html

5. 50 Shades of Gray Statement Necklace by Betsy of StrebeDesigns
The beads for this necklace are made from Sculpey Ultra Light.  The fish beads were formed by a handmade mold, the others were textured with texture sheets. The necklace is 25" long and the polymer clay beads are reversible so there is no wrong way to wear it.  For more information and a another view visit my blog http://strebedesigns.blogspot.com/2015/09/statement-necklaces-fun-fun-fun.html

6. Granite Gauze Cuff No. 167 by Susan of 11BOLDstreet

Shades of grey in this cuff were achieved through tinting of the liquid polymer for the gauze base. A faux granite cabochon was mixed from various chopped solid polymers. 2 5/8" wide.

7. Shades of Grey Dragon by Marie of MarieYoungCreative

Dragon in shades of grey photographed in black and white for the PCAGOE challenge. The original work has a big splash of red. See the finished project and process shots here: http://marieyoungcreative.com/50-shades-of-grey-with-a-splash-of-red/http://marieyoungcreative.com/50-shades-of-grey-with-a-splash-of-red/

8. Yin Yang Polymer Pillow Necklace by Beth of CreateMyWorldDesigns

Shades of black and gray were transferred onto a white polymer pillow bead using the silk dye transfer, a technique for which I wrote a tutorial in an article for The Polymer Arts Magazine (Recycle & Reuse issue Summer 2012).

Read the expanded rules here.

Full Name (required for voter prize notification):
Email Address (Required for voter prize notification, you will not be sent other e-mails unless you sign up for our e-mail list):
For current Dues-Paying PCAGOE Members: What is Your Etsy Shop Name?
Please select your 1st choice: (2nd & 3rd choice must be different from your 1st.)	1. Still Waters by Arlene of HarrisonHollow 2. Seascape in Clay by Lisa of HiGirls 3. Shades of Gray Bottle by Jackie of ThePleasantPheasant 4. Shades of Gray - A Lesson in Value by Line of PlaySculptLive 5. 50 Shades of Gray Statement Necklace by Betsy of StrebeDesigns 6. Granite Gauze Cuff No. 167 by Susan of 11BOLDstreet 7. Shades of Grey Dragon by Marie of MarieYoungCreative 8. Yin Yang Polymer Pillow Necklace by Beth of CreateMyWorldDesigns
Please select your 2nd choice: (2nd choice must be different from your 1st and 3rd.)	1. Still Waters by Arlene of HarrisonHollow 2. Seascape in Clay by Lisa of HiGirls 3. Shades of Gray Bottle by Jackie of ThePleasantPheasant 4. Shades of Gray - A Lesson in Value by Line of PlaySculptLive 5. 50 Shades of Gray Statement Necklace by Betsy of StrebeDesigns 6. Granite Gauze Cuff No. 167 by Susan of 11BOLDstreet 7. Shades of Grey Dragon by Marie of MarieYoungCreative 8. Yin Yang Polymer Pillow Necklace by Beth of CreateMyWorldDesigns
Please select your 3rd choice: (3rd choice must be different from your 1st and 2nd.)	1. Still Waters by Arlene of HarrisonHollow 2. Seascape in Clay by Lisa of HiGirls 3. Shades of Gray Bottle by Jackie of ThePleasantPheasant 4. Shades of Gray - A Lesson in Value by Line of PlaySculptLive 5. 50 Shades of Gray Statement Necklace by Betsy of StrebeDesigns 6. Granite Gauze Cuff No. 167 by Susan of 11BOLDstreet 7. Shades of Grey Dragon by Marie of MarieYoungCreative 8. Yin Yang Polymer Pillow Necklace by Beth of CreateMyWorldDesigns
How did you hear about the PCAGOE challenge?	Please choose one - thanks! I am a PCAGOE member PCAGOE newsletter Etsy A Blog (Please tell us whose blog in the comments) PCAGOE.com website Polymer Clay Central CraftGossip Facebook (Please tell us whose in the comments) Flickr Word of mouth from a PCAGOE member Other (Please tell us where in the comments)
Would you like to join our email list? (former Newsletter subscribers already included!) monthly reminder to VOTE in our Challenges, along with important Guild announcements. Please add pcagoe@gmail.com and pcagoe.news@gmail.com to your approved senders.	I already signed up yes no
Our members love comments! Please comment here on the entries and/or the challenge in general.

This online form was provided by Freedback.

December Challenge "Re-Do" Winners

Top entries selected by the public

1. TIE
Black and Red Drop Crystal Earrings No. 175 by Susan of 11BOLDstreet 
Emily by Marie Young of MarieYoungCreative

2. Steampunk Fish by Freda of  FredaK 

3. Fancy Soap Dispenser by Lisa of HiGirls 

Top entries selected by the members

1. TIE

Fancy Soap Dispenser by Lisa of HiGirls 
Black and Red Drop Crystal Earrings No. 175 by Susan of 11BOLDstreet 

2. Steampunk Fish by Freda of  FredaK 

3. Emily by Marie Young of MarieYoungCreative

View all of the entries:

http://polymerclayartists.blogspot.com/2015/11/december-challenge-re-do.html

Congratulations to the Drawing Winner: Karen E Leeman

You get to pick a prize from one of our lovely participating sponsor shop owners.

Comments from the voters:

Beautiful as always!

Very nice re-dos!

Brilliant! You can tell that a lot of thought and work has gone into redoing them all. It was hard to choose.

1, 3, and 4 are all lovely. Earrings are sleek and sophisticated; fish shows a real growth in skill and taste; would have loved to see a photo of the gorgeous Emily that showed more of her.

So fun to see the makeovers!

These artists are so talented! I love seeing their work.