My other life as a mermaid... and metal clay artist
I've been playing with various kinds of clay for a long time, and in recent years I found something called Metal clay. It comes in Silver, Gold, Bronze, Copper (multiple color options) and Steel, and is molded like clay, then fired in a kiln to burn off the binders so that you are left with nothing but the metal! I also love all things "Mermaid", so they tend to be the primary focus of my sculpture work. (photo of me to the left is from my experience at the Weeki Wachee Sirens of the Deep camp in Florida. Amazing natural spring.)
Although I have made some press molds to assist with speed of production, all of my sculptures are one of a kind. Press molds give the general shape, however they don't produce a clean image at the scale I work, so each is hand tooled and carved in both wet and dry states as well as hand sanded and polished post firing.
