Synergy 2 and CFCF2010 are heating up

February may be cold and bleak here in New England, but down in Maryland, it's full of color!

Combine Cabin Fever Clay Festival (CFCF) with the IPCA's Synergy 2 and you have something for every polymer clay enthusiast.

As with 2008, Kathryn Ottman has pulled together a hands-on , pre-Synergy extravaganza in Laurel, MD, with CFCF2010 . Jana Roberts Benzon, Jeff Dever, Lindly Haunani, Maggie Maggio, Barbara McGuire, Nan Roche, and Cindy Silas are teaching full day pre-conference workshops (Jeff’s is a two day event). Then, beginning Sunday, February 21, Tony Aquino, Maureen Carlson, Louise Fisher Cozzi, Dayle Doroshow, Grant Diffendaffer, Laurie Mika, Kathryn Jo Ottman, Lisa Pavelka, Sarah Shriver, and Ronna Sarvas Weltman teach half-day workshops through Wednesday, February 24th. Check out Polyclayfests’ blog for more details on CFCF 2010’s offerings

Then you can slide on over to the Tremont Plaza Suites Hotel in Baltimore for Synergy2 , the ICPA’s biennial gathering. Start with an opening cocktail reception and presentation by Ford & Forlano Wednesday night. Then on Thursday, the development sessions begin- topics range from inspirations from scientific imagery to marketing strategies with stops along the way on design techniques and collaborations. This year there’s more time to meet with fellow artists, as the sessions are all at the Tremont –and more meals are included. Also this year, the ICPA is sponsoring some hands-on pre and post conference classes, with Seth Savarick, Leslie Blackford, Bettina Welker, Dan Cormier, Tracy Holmes and Robert Dancik.

What more could one ask for on a cold winter’s day?