This whole thing started back in 2005 when my sister taught me how to make necklaces. Actually, I wear earrings almost everyday, so when I discovered I could make my own... I went wild and started making way more than I could possibly wear or store. However, I soon became bored by the selection of beads available at local craft stores and bead shops. That is how I got started with polymer clay! The first beads I made were a product of simple mixing and marbling of different colored clays, then I moved on to adding inclusions (glitters, mica powders, foils, chalks, etc). Next I started playing with textures and creating custom molds from stamps, charms, cameos, and other found objects. I think it was in 2009 that I first discovered stone sugar skull beads and felt the need to give them eyes. I began by gluing metallic findings, gems, and spacer beads into the eye sockets of each bead before incorporating them into designs. I was always searching (and still am) for something more colorful and unique to add. Eventually, I found tiny polymer clay flower canes in a shop here on Etsy and started featuring them prominently in the eyes of many of my sugar skull creations. A search for "polymer clay flower beads" led me to the roses and flower beads that I use on top of the sugar skull beads in my Day of the Dead designs. The possibilities for combining colors are endless; however, my favorite colors to combine are turquoise and red. What I create each day depends on the type of mood I'm in. Sometimes I decide what colors I want to mix together after watching a particularly impressive sunset or a walk through the woods. Other times, I search through magazines and publications for floral-inspired color palettes. I recently got carried away with bright and brilliant colors after trip to Hawaii during which I was inspired by the tropical fish and coral. On the other hand, I can create endlessly with black and white polymer clay using marbling, mokume gane, and other cane techniques.