Sunday, January 4, 2009
Freehand Cane
I forgot to take pictures between the one above and the final product - kind of got lost in the project - but this is how it turned out:
It's a strange looking flower but I love it anyway! Before reducing this was a block an inch deep and 6" in diameter. The best part is slicing open that cane and seeing the final design in the middle.
I'm not sure what I will decorate with this cane but now I have one to play with!
Christmas
How to Make Polymer Clay Ornaments
Polymer Clay Superstore - Resources-Instructions and Project Ideas
I had forgotten how long it took to condition clay, even with a pasta machine, so I didn't get too far that day. I used a project sheet I got from Joanne.com or one of those craft stores to make a Santa:
He's a cute little guy. Not bad for my first try! I also made some glow-in-the-dark stars that got a little "crispy" in my new convection oven. I've since purchased a Sculpey thermometer so I can set the temp more accurately. But they really do glow! Not all that brightly but still a good effect.
It's all Carol Duvall's fault
Playing with clay is great fun and better therapy. I made some jewelry and beads. No where near "art" but I just enjoyed the creativity.
Then the family issues took over my life. I decided to put the clay away until things "got better". Three plus years later, here I am, starting fresh with old clay.
Can't wait to see what comes next!
WELCOME TO CONDITIONED STIMULUS
A blog about my journey with
Polymer Clay.
First, a little science to start us off:
Definitions of Conditioned Stimulus and Psychic Secretions
According to Wikipedia, Classical Conditioning (also Pavlovian or Respondent Conditioning) is a form of associative learning that was first demonstrated by Ivan Pavlov . The typical procedure for inducing classical conditioning involves presentations of a neutral stimulus along with a stimulus of some significance. The neutral stimulus could be any event that does not result in an overt behavioral response from the organism under investigation. Pavlov referred to this as a Conditioned Stimulus (CS). Conversely, presentation of the significant stimulus necessarily evokes an innate, often reflexive, response. Pavlov called these the Unconditioned Stimulus (US) and Unconditioned Response (UR), respectively. If the CS and the US are repeatedly paired, eventually the two stimuli become associated and the organism begins to produce a behavioral response to the CS. Pavlov called this the Conditioned Response (CR).
Pavlov's experiment
The original and most famous example of classical conditioning involved the salivary conditioning of Pavlov's dogs. During his research on the physiology of digestion in dogs, Pavlov noticed that, rather than simply salivating in the presence of meat powder (an innate response to food that he called the unconditioned response), the dogs began to salivate in the presence of the lab technician who normally fed them. Pavlov called these psychic secretions. From this observation he predicted that, if a particular stimulus in the dog’s surroundings were present when the dog was presented with meat powder, then this stimulus would become associated with food and cause salivation on its own. In his initial experiment, Pavlov used bells to call the dogs to their food and, after a few repetitions, the dogs started to salivate in response to the bell. Thus, a neutral stimulus (bell) became a conditioned stimulus (CS) as a result of consistent pairing with the unconditioned stimulus (US - meat powder in this example). Pavlov referred to this learned relationship as a conditional reflex (now called Conditioned Response).