International Polymer Clay Association

New members' only benefit

IPCA News

Thursday, 18 September 2014 16:14

Recently announced at The IPCA Retreat in August the newest member benefit is a special discussion group on Facebook titled IPCA Members Only.

This will be a group where members can meet, chat, share and learn together. You will be able to post your art work, works in progress, questions, tips and anything related to Polymer Clay. We will also be offering special weekly topics as well as swaps and contests; you don't want to miss this by-invitation-only FB group.

Please watch for an email invitation from Lee Ann Armstrong and Leila Bidler in your email box during the next few weeks. IPCA will be introducing more Member Only benefits in the coming months so stay tuned!

ARCHES: Building Connections through Philanthropy

IPCA Retreat

Friday, 29 August 2014 18:30

One of the many special events taking place during the week of the Retreat were the Silent and Live Auctions. The proceeds from these auctions benefit the IPCA and help fund scholarships, outreach, and educational programs. In past years the IPCA supported a number of charitable organizations that serve the arts community such as the Craft Emergency Relief Fund and the Racine Art Museum. 

At this year's Retreat, the IPCA Board voted to support the Samunnat Project in Nepal and donated a portion of the live auction proceeds to Samunnat's Raise the Roof Project. Due to the success of the auction and generosity of attendees wanting to make a direct donation, the IPCA was able to send $700 US to Samunnat. This is what the ladies of Samunnat had to say:

Ah! To all you fabulous retreaters in Ohio.

Huge thank you to you all. We hope you had a wonderful time together and we are so happy that you thought of us in this incredibly generous and practical way. Now that our street presence (thanks in no small part to you all!) is increasing, more and more ladies to us are coming to our office for legal assistance and training and this will really help us to help them to get to where they need to be to become independent and not vulnerable to abuse and violence. We know that Cynthia would have showed you her photos of our new place and shared her experiences (the cool, non itchy ones we hope) with you. We were so happy that she came to see us and are very grateful!

Please convey our deep and humble gratitude to everyone there. Those of us who have met us would know that we would be hugging you all right now!

With much love and thank you for being a part of our journey and of making difference in a world that is sorely in need of love,

Kopila and Wendy and all the ladies and the board of Samunnat

Beads of Courage

On Day 1, Katie Baum of Art Clay World USA made the announcement that ACW has been named an official polymer clay studio for the Beads of Courage Bead Challenge taking place across the US on September 20. On that day, bead artists from around the country will be making beads en masse for the Beads of Courage program. Polymer clay beads are featured in three specific Beads of Courage Programs:

Creative Courage Journal Program
Beads of Courage Sibling Program
Arts-in-Medicine Workshops

To get a head start on the challenge, Katie encouraged attendees to make and donate beads during the Retreat. These beads will be combined with others made during the challenge day and donated to Beads of Courage. Retreat attendees made and donated 481 beads during the event.

If you are in the Chicago area and want to participate in the challenge event, or if your guild is interested in donating beads, please contact Art Clay World USA.

Building More Connections

Other organizations benefitted from Retreat attendees' generosity through direct purchase of items for sale at the Retreat:

• Ron Lehocky was selling (out!) Heart Pins for the Louisville Kids Center for Pediatric Therapies
• KindWay - an outreach project working with inmates in the Ohio prison system. Jackie Burns and Lee Ann Armstrong sold stretch bracelets and Ron Lehocky was the winning bidder on a Polyform Projects Product Assortment, which he donated to KindWay.
• Maude McCarthy was offering refillable polymer pens to in exchange for a donation to the Wounded Warrior Project.