Page 66 - Autumn Brilliance - We Wish You A Scary Christmas! Winter 2020

Helen Terlalis Dorn’s Clay Babies
This “FrankieStein Santa” came about last year when I entered a swap event in a Facebook group. It was something completely ‘out of the box’ for me, because my work has ALWAYS been whimsical/cute, so I decided in keeping with my style to combine the classic Frankenstein monster with the very traditional Christmas Santa Claus – and this was the result.
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I use a few different polymer clays – Super Sculpey and Premo Sculpey. I put a small dot of white acrylic paint added as a cheek highlight and the occasional shine off a boot or shoe, I incorporate seed beads for eyes, and wire for the bucket handle.
I’ve always loved the whole aura of Halloween since childhood in Maine. It makes me think of jumping off the swing into a huge pile of dried leaves, shooting peas with our wonderful pea-shooters, and, of course, trick or treating! I also love the colors of Halloween: the lime/wasabi greens, the bright yellows and oranges, purple... and black is a given!
I have been making and selling my Clay Babies since 1990. I started doing local shows in the Charleston, South Carolina area, and then in 2002, I went ‘big- time’ doing huge convention shows up and down the east coast. I’ve now been published twelve times, and in 2014 was thrilled to make the cover of a national magazine (CraftIdeas). Plus, I’ve been published in two international magazines. Very exciting!
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