"I've been an artist all my life," says Lindly Haunani. "But I was particularly frustrated by the 200 hours that it took to make my first silver necklace." Like any artist, Lindly searched for ways to hone her craft quickly and easily. "When I discovered polymer clay about 10 years ago," she says, "I was absolutely delighted!"

And now Lindly will delight you in "Tantalizing Translucents," Volume Nine of The Master Artisans Of Polymer Clay Video Series from Mindstorm Productions. She's a teacher, author, founding member of the National Polymer Clay Guild, and former Editor of their newsletter, The POLYinforMER.

In this video she'll tantalize you with the various techniques and projects she's perfected throughout the years... techniques you'll easily master by following her instructions.

One of the wonderful things about working with polymer clay is that you won't need a lot of tools and materials. But those you will need are carefully outlined in the opening section of this video.

Once your materials are gathered, your first technique will be Mokume Gane, an adaptation of a Japanese metal working technique. What makes this technique so compelling is that it combines translucent clay with metallic foil to give your finished pieces a beautiful translucent look.

"There's not a lot of precision involved in this technique," says Lindly. "So you can relax and have fun." And fun is precisely what you'll have as you let her guide you through each of the projects on this video. Her approach is direct and lighthearted.

For example, while explaining the process of combining silver leaf with the polymer clay, she says: "This is when you want to turn off the fan and lock the cats out of the room, because this stuff is very thin, and it's hard to keep it from blowing away."

After learning how to adorn a light switch plate with Mokume Gane, you can use this technique to make decorative beads, picture frames, or whatever else you can think of. It's all up to you!

Once you've mastered this technique, your next project will be to combine chopped crayon and translucent clay to make a napkin ring. The end result will be a truly dazzling display of color.

"Unlike other techniques with polymer clay where what you see is what you get," says Lindly, "what you see is not what you get with chopped crayon." She then demonstrates a process for knowing exactly what colors your clay will assume once you mix it with chopped crayon.

You can use the "chopped crayon" technique to make pendants and other types of jewelry. In fact, the attractive necklace that Lindly wears during this video was created using this very same method.

For your third project, you'll use scenic sand and polymer clay to convert a simple metal letter opener into a beautiful jade masterpiece fit to be displayed on the desk of any top executive in the country.

As with crayon, when it comes to sand, what you see is not what you get. So, Lindly begins by showing you how to mix the sand and clay to obtain the exact colors you want. Once the sand and clay are mixed, the rest of the process is relatively simple. To further add to the beauty of the piece, Lindly shows you how to make a series of small decorative clay leaves to attach to the handle of your letter opener.

Ready for more? Well, how about covering an inexpensive photo frame using a Chameleon Cane? It's easy since the basic techniques for this method are the same as the ones you've learned in the previous sections of the video. The end result will be a picture frame that you'll be proud to display along with your favorite photos. And don't be surprised if the frame gets more attention than the photo it holds!

The final technique that Lindly outlines is called Illuminated Millefiori. This is a hybrid of Mokume Gane and the Chameleon Cane method. You'll begin by creating two very simple canes... a leaf cane and a morning glory flower cane. From there the process is somewhat complex. In fact, you may find yourself pausing your VCR often during this section as you go through each step. But the finished product will be well worth your effort!

"Tantalizing Translucents" ends with a series of resources for obtaining the tools and materials demonstrated in the video, including instructions on how to purchase "Artists At Work: Polymer Clay Comes Of Age," a book co-authored by Lindly Haunani. This book features an in depth look at the work of 58 polymer clay artists around the world.

Lindly's closing statements capture the theme of her video, and the rest of the videos in this series. "Just remember to always have fun," she says. "Keep experimenting and playing with your clay. Because you never know where the clay will take you."