Check out the entries for the Smooshers Autumn Colors/ Halloween Challenge!

The entries are in for the Polymer Clay Smooshers Autumn Colors/ Halloween challenge!
From Illusion Everything we have this totally awesome set of 3 Lady Skeleton cabochons available in your choice of colors. 

 The largest measures 1 1/2" tall by 1 1/4" wide. The smaller 2 measure 3/4" tall by 1/2" wide and they would be great to add to your own bezels or just add a jump ring, ear wires and a chain for a delightfully spooky jewelry set!
Just Jewelry by Joan made these wonderful little Pandora Style Pumpkin beads.


These would be wonderful for any Fall jewelry you wanted to create!

Artmakers Worlds really outdid herself with this Halloween Green Bat Pincushion Clay Covered Tin.

   It's unique and decorative on it's own, but is also functional. 25 long, green pearl head pins are included in the tin.  The hands and feet even glow in the dark!
Her second entry is this Spooky Night polymer Clay Covered Pen and Pencil Holder.

It features a big full moon, a bare tree with an owl on the branch and bats flying on the other side. The moon and even the owls eyes are made with glow in the dark clay.

This Wicked Witch art doll from Fantasy Clay would make a fabulous Halloween decoration.


 She has a soft poseable body with polymer clay head, hands and feet and stands on her own. She has a black dress with lace details and a soft shawl. Her hair is Tibetan mohair and she stands 9 inches tall.

Second Sister at MoArk Jewelry created this Falling Leaves Whimsical Polymer Clay necklace.


 The pendant is made with polymer clay and colored turquoise nuggets. The 3-dimensional tree and the gemstones add a sense of depth to this piece. The picture this creates is a tree that has lost most of its colorful fall leaves which are lying around the tree base.

CreativeCritters entered two pieces.  This Halloween Black Cat Keepsake Tin is the Halloween entry.


The cute black cat is wearing a  witch's hat and has the insignia from the TV show Charmed on his chest in glow in the dark polymer clay.  The stars also glow, and glow in the dark powder has been added to the blue liquid clay on the lid.
This whimsical Autumn Dragon sculpture is the Autumn Colors entry.


The red and orange dragon is holding his collection of fallen leaves which have been sprinkled with gold glitter to add a bit of Autumn magic ;-)   The dragon measures 3 1/2 inches tall and would be a whimsical addition to your Fall decor.

So there you have it!  Lots of wonderful entries for this challenge!  And each of these items are available for sale- just click on the picture to be taken directly to the listing.  I want to thank everyone who entered this challenge, as well as everyone who has stopped by to check out these awesome handmade Halloween and Autumn creations :-)

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We have a tie for the theme for the Smooshers next challenge!

This is a first, but we have a tie for the winning theme for our next Challenge! So you can choose between Halloween or Autumn Colors (or do an entry for each them, or mix the themes together).  The options are endless! 
For those of you who aren't familiar with the Smooshers Challenges let me tell you the rules.  In order to participate you need to have an active shop on ArtFire and be a member of the Polymer Clay Smooshers guild.  Participation is not mandatory, but it is a great way to bring in views and potential sales for your shop. 
You're allowed to enter 2 items, and they must incorporate polymer clay and be relevant to the theme.  You need to have them listed in your ArtFire shop by the deadline and then post the link to your entries in this thread:  http://www.artfire.com/guild_forums/view_thread/2061

There is no "winner" for these challenges, just the benefit of being promoted, the opportunity to show off your work, and the chance to try new things with polymer clay.  These Challenges are meant to be fun for everyone involved ;-)  I'll promote the Challenge and all the entries on the Smooshers blog, Facebook, the ArtFire forums, and YouYube.  It would be very beneficial if everyone else promoted the challenge as well, on whatever sites you use.  Even if you don't enter a piece or belong to the Smooshers guild, you can still support the guild by promoting the Challenge ;-)

The deadline for entries for the Halloween/ Autumn Colors Challenge is October 3rd, so that will give us a month to complete and list our entries.  If anyone has any questions,  just let me know. You can contact me through CreativeCritters by using the Contact Artisan link under my avatar.  Let's have fun with this! :-)

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Vote on the theme for our next Challenge!

The Smooshers haven't had a Challenge for a few months now, since I was dealing with a cross country move, but now that I'm settled in my new home it's Challenge time once again!  In order to participate in one of these Challenges you need to have an active shop on ArtFire, be a member of the Polymer Clay Smooshers guild, and create up to two entries based on the current theme.  The entries need to be handmade and must incorporate polymer clay and they need to be listed in your ArtFire shop.  Those guild members who participate in these Challenges will not only enjoy the fun and challenge of pushing their skills a little farther, but will also benefit from the additional promotion of their shops and entries.  Your entries will be promoted on the Smooshers blog, the Smooshers Facebook page, in the ArtFire forums, on Pinterest, Wanelo, and if I get enough entries (at least 16) I'll put together a Collection and a video.

The theme choices for this Challenge are Autumn Colors, Falling For You, Halloween, and Back To School.

Anyone can place a vote- you don't have to be a guild member to vote on the theme. You have until August 31st to place your vote.  For some reason I can't seem to add a poll to the blog, but you can leave a comment on this post with your choice for the theme.
Once a theme has been chosen you'll have a month to complete your entries and post a link in the Smooshers guild forums.  I'll send out a guild bulletin with the winning theme and the due date.  I encourage all guild members to vote and enter their creations in these Challenges.  Not only is it a lot of fun, but very often you end up learning new skills and improving your craftsmanship!  And everyone else gets to enjoy the amazing creations of the Polymer Clay Smooshers guild (all of which will be up for sale)!  Thanks for commenting and voting! :-)

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The entries for the Smooshers May Flowers Challenge

You challenged the Polymer Clay Smooshers guild to create items based on the theme May Flowers, and our members have answered that challenge beautifully!  Below are all the items that were created for this challenge.
These two adjustable flower rings were made by Siljewel.
 
 
Fyrestorm Creations made this beautiful charm bracelet which she titles I Never Promised You a Rose Garden.
  
This lovely heart flower and butterfly dish was created by Kimis-Jewelry-From-the-Heart.
 
Her second entry is this gorgeous floral plaque.
  
Leslie Marie by Design sculpted these pretty pink Tiger Lily hair pins as her first entry.
 
And this orange and red Tiger Lily bead as her second entry.
 
CreativeCritters entered this unique and whimsical purple dragon necklace with Iris flower beads and Swarovski crystals.  It's called Mai's Flowers.
 
And this floral trinket box with red glass butterflies and white ceramic bird beads is the second entry.
  
Wyvern Designs made these two beautiful necklaces for her entries.
  
 
And the final two entries come from TTE Designs.  She made this Fleur De Lis Pendant and this vibrant clay covered egg as her entries.
 
 
I want to thank all the members who took the time to create these wonderful entries for the May Flowers challenge!  All of these pictures are linked to the listing in each member's shop, so you can learn more about each item.   Be sure to use the poll at the top right of the Smooshers blog to vote on the theme for our next challenge ;-)

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The Textures from Nature Challenge from the Polymer Clay Smooshers guild

You challenged the Smooshers to create something based on the theme Textures from Nature and the entries are in!  Guild members created everything from sculptures, to home decor, to jewelry using polymer clay.

Check out the video to see all the wonderful entries!  And if you read the video description on YouTube I've included links to each shop that entered the Challenge.    Stop in and check out all the wonderful creations they have for sale!  And be sure to vote on the theme for our next challenge (use the form in the upper right corner of the Smooshers blog to place your vote).
Thanks for visiting, and I hope maybe some of these creations have inspired you to do a bit of smooshing yourself! ;-)

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The theme for the next Smooshers Challenge is Textures from Nature

Our fans have voted and the winning theme for our next Challenge was Textures From Nature!  Thank you all so much for taking the time to vote and give our guild members a wonderful theme to work from!  This particular theme gives us a lot of choices as to what we can create.  I'm envisioning textured leaf jewelry, vases resembling a hollow tree, silky textured flower petals, and even furry animals!  To enter these challenges you need to be a member of the Polymer Clay Smooshers Guild on ArtFire.  You're allowed to enter 2 items, which must be made from polymer clay and listed in your ArtFire shop.  Your entries need to be relevant to the theme and you need to post a link to them in this thread http://www.artfire.com/guild_forums/view_thread/1159 in our guild forums.  The deadline for entries is April 12th.  I'm really looking forward to seeing the entries for this one!  In the meantime, here are a few items that are already available in some of our member's shops.
Here's a delightfully whimsical fish pendant from Mortimer Inc complete with scales and textured skin.  You may not see a fish quite like this swimming around in the nearby river, but fantasy creatures count for this challenge ;-)
 
And this Froggy by the Pond ring from MysticalMeDesigns has textured soil and greenery, and even a tiny mushroom!  The amount of detail in such a small piece is just amazing!
 
And these rose pens from RosyWriters mimic the texture of beautiful roses you might find in your garden.

 This necklace from SharpArtbyDawna has a very natural and organic look  to it.
 
This vase from CreativeCritters not only has textured bark, but fur texture on the cute raccoon ;-)
 
These items aren't entries in the Textures From Nature Challenge, just some samples of things that would qualify.  If you'd like to learn more about any of these pieces, just click on the picture to be directed to their listings.
Thanks so much for stopping by, and be sure to check back to see what new creations our members come up with!

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