Scrimshaw and Polymer Clay

By Sandy Prenzi

I find the art of Scrimshaw amazing!

Scrimshaw is the name given to handiwork created by whalers made from the byproducts of harvesting marine mammals. It is most commonly made out of the bones and teeth of sperm whales, the baleen of other whales, and the tusks of walruses. It takes the form of elaborate engravings in the form of pictures and lettering on the surface of the bone or tooth, with the engraving highlighted using a pigment, or, less often, small sculptures made from the same material. However the latter really fall into the categories of ivory carving, for all carved teeth and tusks, or bone carving. The making of scrimshaw began on whaling ships between 1745 to 1759 on the Pacific Ocean, and survived until the ban on commercial whaling. The practice survives as a hobby and as a trade for commercial artisans

Jacinta A. Meyers

has learned the art of scrimshaw and applied it to polymer clay. She is a

Nature and hobby enthusiast and multi-media artist.

Here is one of her finished medallions that is absolutely fabulous.

Please visit her at Jacinta A. Meyers

and see the wonderful tutorials she has created.





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I really like this tusk, because you could definitely
scrimshaw the piece and it would look very authentic

How to create an Ivory tusk
By: Desiree McCrorey

She was introduced to a faux ivory technique in a Tory Hughes workshop a long time ago. She modified the technique somewhat. This technique takes advantage of the properties of translucent polymer clay, mimicking the striations seen in bone or ivory. If you do this right, people will have an extremely hard time telling this from the real thing. You can read the tutorial for this creation at:: http://www.desiredcreations.com/howTo_CAivoryHorn.htm

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This was a fantastic buy I made at Michaels

Sandy's Creations in Clay: A Wonderful Addition: "While shopping at Michaels this past week, I came across a wonderful addition to my clay room and the fantastic part is, it was 50%..."!