Matte Clay & Satin Wood

Here it is folks - my favourite Sculpey project I've made over the last month! It took way longer than I expected (which seems to be a trend with all my crafts), let me use my favourite custom mixed paint colours, and let me stretch those creative juices by making interesting combinations of wood, clay, and colour. Check them out - lovingly handmade polymer clay bead (with a touch of wood) necklaces:

Aren't they just dreamy? I am super thrilled with how they turned out and am impressed with how they came together despite my complete lack of planning on what size and colour beads to make. I went with a matte finish on the clay and a satin finish on the wood beads for a bit of interest and contrast. I think it helps show the texture and imperfection of the clay to give it that one of a kind handmade and lovingly crafted look. Once again I turned to good old organic waxed cotton cord to string them and tied adjustable slide knots so you can easily adjust the length of the necklace. Here is a shot of the necklace I've been wearing non stop: 

I really like how you can dress it up or down and how it reminds me of the neat statement necklaces Lisa Congdon is always wearing (she's my internet artist hero - so obviously I want to be just like her).  Once again I went slightly overboard on the making and ended up with a whole collection of clay and wood necklaces that are all a little bit different:

I alternating the number of beads, the colours, and the proportion of clay to wood with each necklace I made and kept falling in love with each one when it was finished! I'm planning on shipping these beauties off to Funktional in Kelowna (minus the one I showed you that I've been wearing) but totally want to make more soon! I figure if I can make them thinner than 2 cm in an envelope they would be great to sell online too! (FYI: parcels over 2 cm in thickness cost an arm and a leg to ship from Canada and usually deter people from online buying from me). Yay!

So what are your thoughts? Do you have a favourite? Are you going out to buy a giant block of Sculpey clay so you can get making too?