Lianne & Paul met while at New England School of Art & Design in Boston, MA. They both graduated in 1992, with Lianne entering the graphic design field, while Paul pursued Illustration. They married in 2000 and soon began a joint venture designing in polymer clay. Since art school, Lianne has dabbled in polymer clay as a hobby, making jewelry and gifts for friends and family. She was first attracted to polymer clay because of its chameleon-type finish, easily crafted to have the look of the other types of mediums.

After making ornaments for a few seasons as an addition to their Christmas cards, Lianne and Paul decided they wanted to share their designs with a broader audience and began Swirly Designs. Working on computers throughout their careers, they were eager to get back to creating with their hands. As a freelance illustrator, Paul (see his illustration site here) enjoys seeing some of his drawings come to life as ornaments. Each piece combines Paul’s illustration skills with Lianne’s design sensibilities, and have both artistic integrity and a vibrant playfulness. Their goal is to create designs that delight the eye. Recently, they have added a new addition to the family...their son Gryffin Quinn was born June 12, 2005.

Polymer clay is a synthetic modeling material and not clay found in the earth. A  versatile medium developed in Germany in the 1930's, it contains a mixture of PVC (polyvinyl chloride) particles and plasticizer. Unlike earth clay, which needs extremely high temperatures to cure, polymer clay can be cured in your home oven.

During firing, the temperature causes chemical changes in the clay, making it hard and strong but the clay also keeps its shape and color. It can be finished in various ways to obtain textures from glassy to stone like. It can be painted, sculpted, carved, stamped, textured and even sanded and buffed to a high shine.