Welcome to the first of many new “Letters to the Editor.” This month, it will be a Letter from the Editor.

My name is Alaina Ackley. and I'm the new Web Content Editor. I'm a business major at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. I've been a polymer clay artist for 5 years, now and have a business with my mother, Beth Ackley, called Destined 2 Clay. But enough about me. . . .

With new members elected to the IPCA board, we have many new and exciting ideas planned and I plan to share these ideas, and their progress, with you monthly.

The first idea is our new “Letters to the Editor” section. In this section, I ask that you share feedback, ideas, suggestions, anything that comes to mind. What would you like to see on the website? What kind of tutorials are you  most interested in? And they don’t have to be polymer clay-related.

Maybe you are a new artist and could really use some tips on marketing your product or website design. There is so much that goes into our art, from first working with the clay to selling it. Maybe you would just like to know other artists' opinions.  Do people prefer to sell their work online, at art shows, or at an art gallery? All these questions, and more, are yours to ask and mine to find out!

I may occasionally send out these questions via Facebook or e-mail. As a Board, we have many projects in the works that we would love to get your opinion on. I’ll be sending those questions out as well. In order to serve you best and to make the IPCA into the great international organization we know it can be, please help me by answering these questions. After all, your answers will shape the IPCA.

So, while this is the first Letter from the Editor, I doubt that it will be the last. I look forward to serving you and meeting new friends.

Alaina Ackley

IPCA Web Content Editor