I began to notice the existence of beads and their long history in every world culture, and became interested in the strange propensity of polymer clay to be made to impersonate or suggest various mediums historically used to make beads. I began to explore making my own beads and related objects.

As my interest progressed I found out about ways of transferring images onto polymer clay. This opened up a new avenue for me as I had also had a long interest in digital imagery and fractal based software. The images I had been making seemed to work really nicely when featured on polymer clay pieces.

I also explored textures on polymer clay, using various found objects, both natural and man made, often in combination. I discovered that it was possible to make your own texture sheets from black and white images, so I made a series of images just for that purpose and used the resulting texture sheets in my work.

I started to incorporate copper wire into my pieces, as loops and bails etc. Then I started experimenting with upcycled steel/aluminium/whatever wire cut from wire panels to make frames and bails, the possibilities of which I am still exploring.

I use various inks and paints to colour and treat the surfaces of my beads. I like to make them look seemingly ancient, so I distress the surface in various ways to give that effect. I like how the process can make something as modern as a digital pattern or image look like something that had been buried for hundreds of years. . .

My work at present is a mixture of painted ‘turned look’ beads (they look turned but aren’t) and spikes, image transfer squares or rectangles with wire additions and textured shapes, either flat or rounded, also with various wire additions, and larger assemblage pieces with electronic components, bones and other oddities.

I also have an Etsy shop which I have run for a few years now – https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/JBDRusticOrganic

Though with the changes there I might have to knock it on the head soon. Hence this site, soon to have a shop of it’s own too 😉

I sell my work on Facebook on Tuesday and Thursday eves at 7.30 UK time – in this group – https://www.facebook.com/groups/LBADesignerGalleria

I have an occasional blog at – https://followingthefascination.blogspot.com/