Snake Stuff(art,items)

[tress29]

Mother of many snakes, and a baby girl on the way! (due 12/24/11).

And how is THIS project going? Are you gonna make it til the 24th?

[aSnakeLovinBabe]

I am still hanging in there! we shall see what the doctor says in the morning! So far, no signs of labor in sight!

[EasternGirl]

It would be a very nice Christmas present!

[tress29]

It would be a very nice Christmas present!

My nephew shares a birthday with Jesus. Apparently, it's not so much fun when you're a teenager! His mom tries to have a party about two weeks later for him, no Christmas wrapping paper, etc!

[snakehill]

They are all AMAZING! Shannon are you trying to torture us??

[tress29]

Shannon are you trying to torture us??

How is it torture when they are available for purchase? That's called Temptation!

[ConcinusMan]

Well shoot. Now I'm looking at these and thinking I should have opted for the glossy finish on my concinnus sculpture. Gives them a more "real" look. I was afraid it would make them look too "glassy" but it actually makes them look more real.

[aSnakeLovinBabe]

well you could always send it back and I will be happy to clear coat it for you! But IMO garter snakes are not glossy... they are rough snakes. I thought it looked sharp as bare naked clay. You could also run to your nearest home depot or whatever store and buy the tiny can of water base varathane diamond. It's small, it's cheap and that's exactly what I use on my work! I always clear coat my small works like the necklace pendants and what not for two reasons- they are pendants so a bit of gloss adds to that jewelry effect, and it also adds strength and durability to the extremely tiny parts like the tails and the eyelashes on my eyelash viper. on a large piece it won't really add any strength as the clay is already so thick. If you notice I always tuck their tails down or wrap them on something. Polymer clay is very tough, especially the grade that I use, it is tough because it's not brittle and won't shatter like porcelain or ceramic would.... it always stays ever so slightly flexible even if you can't really detect it. In fact the glass and stone pieces i put some of them on are way more delicate if dropped than the actual clay itself. I also make sure to condition my clay thouroughly... I fold it over many times on itself before working with it... this triples the strength of the final piece.... If you use the clay straight out of the package you are much more likely to have a failed piece, especially during positioning, when the snake is done being made i have to carefully bend it into shape WITHOUT it fracturing apart... if the clay is not conditioned properly it will actually crack apart if you bend it too fast. And let me tell you nothing would kill me more than having spent hours on that boa or that king cobra and then having it break in half when I was bending it into shape!!!!

[aSnakeLovinBabe]

How is it torture when they are available for purchase? That's called Temptation!

haha! Well at least the majority of them are. Some of those have already sold and the king snake set was a custom order. The white snake on the black geode actually sold before it was even fired! For some reason those plain white ball pythons are super popular... I think it's because they have that elegant look that will go with just about any outfit.

[ConcinusMan]

I did notice my sculpture is a bit flexible. Would that coating stop the flexing or would it cause the coating to fracture? I just think a little shine would make it look more real. Real snakes do look a little glossy especially after a shed.

Don't get me wrong, I love it just like it is, and I get lots of compliments on it regarding the workmanship. People keep saying "wow, she should start a business" that's when I just give them the web address/facebook page.