Maybe by now you are familiar with the non-metal wedding ring, and maybe you’re asking yourself what that has (if anything) to do with polymer clay. Back at the beginning of 2017 I did a WIP Wednesday post about some very necessary supplies, one of which was my Qalo Silicone Wedding Ring [not an affiliate link]. You might think that this isn’t an important supply, but it is a lifesaver and I’m going to tell you why you might like to opt for one too.
One day back in 2017 my brother returned from overseas (he was a soldier) with a wedding band made of silicone. Hmmm … I could use that in the studio! Groove Life is a company that markets itself toward those with an active lifestyle who need silicone rings for outdoor activities, weight lifting, construction (like my husband) and similar active activities. But there’s more because unlike other companies, they give back! Three cheers for that! They give back to heroes and kids and what isn’t to love about that?! If you don’t know about silicone wedding rings they are super flexible and you barely even notice them. But for sculptors they have added benefits which you can read below.
Maybe artists aren’t super active, but whoa do we get messy! Artists who also get super dirty, grimy, and don’t want our gorgeous diamond band getting gooped up with the wide variety of supplies we work with every day. No sir, not me for one. Since then I have 2 silicone rings (get your own here). Having a Silicone Wedding Ring for Polymer Clay is a great choice for artists of all mediums, but especially sculptors. Not only will the clay not erode the rhodium on a white gold band (like mine) over time, but you’ll also find yourself with less indents on the surface of your sculptures because “oops” you accidentally smashed your ring on that delicate place while you weren’t paying attention. [And let me tell you, this has happened to me far more times than I even care to admit.] And then of course there’s the additional benefits of no more gesso, oil paint, liquid clay, tiny clay bits, chalk powders, or other extraneous materials getting caught around your diamond stones. These rings work for all kinds of artists, not just polymer clay artists.
These silicone rings are the first thing I put on when I’m working in my studio. I value my wedding rings and I don’t want them ruined just because I’m an artist. So I’ll oft for something that works with me and won’t dent, or hurt my sculpts if I bump against them either. If you’ve purchased one of my tutorials or are part of the Club, you know and have often seen these rings bumping around in photos or in the Member’s Videos.
I was so excited last month when Groove reached out to me. And even more excited when they offered one of you a free Groove silicone wedding ring!
Cool contest although I do not really need it, I shared to my CleverClay facebook page, so maybe you will get some extra sign ups. – Leslie Yowell FYI – you also might want to edit your page to take off the polymer café blurb since they went out of business.
Thanks for sharing Leslie!
As for the Polymer Cafe reference, that’s an older article on my blog and why it’s under the heading: you might also like. I’m well aware they went out of business a long time ago. I’ve been writing about polymer clay since 2013, so there’s a LOT of older article’s on the site. At the time it WAS my favorite magazine and I still DO wish they’d come back; as with some of the other clay magazine’s since out of print.