just curious.....

[MissEsAccessories]

So I'm fairly new to polymer clay. I've been working with it for about 2 years. I live in a place where it's not very popular, and the place I do buy from and learn techniques threatens to get rid of the classes and products. My mentor is learning as I learn. I primarily use kato clay. So I'm curious as to what brands of clay everyone uses and why? Do you mix different brands of clay together when you create?

[Former_Member]

Hi, I use Sculpey, Fimo, Craftsmart, you name it! I've never had any problems with mixing different clays --- only in finding the colours I want, so having to blend them together to make the perfect colour can be a pain, especially when some are very soft, while others can break your fingers, just trying to make them pliable. Cathy

[Former_Member]

I agree with Cathy. I've used Sculpey & Fimo and have blended them or used one brand in one color and one brand in another within the same project. Works just fine and bakes the same. I find that the sculpley colors I use are extremely soft but then again, sometimes it just depends on the color. I think the darker the color the softer the clay. I use these 2 brands primarily because I learned with Fimo Soft and just stuck with it. I experimented a little with others but find that some are just so hard to knead. There is a clay softener you can buy (which I did) and it just feels like some type of oil. Not fond of it.

[FlowertownOriginals]

I use Fimo Soft not Fimo Classic. The classic is soooo hard. I like Premo by Sculpey. Sculpey III is too soft for cane work but it comes in so many colors. Sometimes I mix the softer clays with the harder clays to make my own colors and it works for me. I've been working with polymer for 16 years and never had a problem mixing different brands.

[MissEsAccessories]

I started with kato and it used to be very difficult to condition, but they came with a new formula and it's been awesome! Plus it doesn't burn when I bake it, which I found with the glow in the dark fimo. But kato lacks the colors sculpey and fimo and premo have! I just wanted to make sure it was okay to mix and match!

[Former_Member]

I started with Sculpey way back when so it feels the most "right" to me. Nice, rich & responsive. Working with Fimo Classic is a bear, Fimo Soft is ok, but I like Premo by Sculpey best.

[Former_Member]

I'm also a big fan of Premo! Premo colors are more richly pigmented than the other Sculpey clays, and I have found it's softer but I could be wrong. I get frustrated when the clays at the store are too dried out and no good, and still kept on the shelf. So maybe other Sculpey clays aren't as hard when they're not so old and stale! Lol! Never tried Kato but I'm curious, thought I've heard that it has an odd odor, but maybe I'm confusing it with something else altogether. *shrugs*

[playsculptlive]

I interchange between Sculpey and Primo. I usually mix my own colors within those so end up using mostly the primaries. I've recently started experimenting with Kato. I find that the liquid Kato gives a glass finish after it's baked whereas Sculpey liquid never gets there. Kato clay is cooked at a higher temp than the rest. Iwas wondering if you can interchange that one with the others. I figured you bake at the lower 275 but then will the Kato not be cooked enough. Anybody know about that?
As for classes and products, products you can get online and I learned through books on my own. It would have been faster to learn with classes but at least there are tons of books, new and old. I've started putting my book reviews on my blog. Haven't gotten very far but slowly I'll get them all. The first winter of learning I made 50 meters of beads through that process.

[Former_Member]

I have a question about glazes/ finishes. For wood sculpture you can use stains or shoe polish to give it a patina of age. What do you use for polymer clay? I'm afraid it would eat away at the clay or else not sink in.

[MissEsAccessories]

I use acrylic paints and alcohol ink for pantinas. Also a possible way around kato baking at higher temperature than the others possibly is baking at a lower temp for longer. I've done it with some pieces that carry a lot of heat like when I am covering glass with poly clay because if not the pieces will get bubbles, since I bake them in a toaster over=n and close to the heating element

[playsculptlive]

I thought the same thing about mixing Kato and the others for baking, I just wasn't sure. MinmWageFaeries, the glazes or finish for clay usually have to be water based for them to work. It takes some testing though because depending on whether you use liquid clay in your piece, some finishes can stay tacky. Just an aside though, yesterday I was at my first outdoors show and the sun was shining hot. My brooches got soft from being in the sun and a little sticky from the varnish on them. Once they cooled they were fine but it's a lesson for me.

[Former_Member]

Hi,

You can't mix Kato with other clay brands. Because the bakingtemp. is to different it will not work. But I haven't tried it, so maybe it will work in practice. I wouldn't try, especially if you are planning to sell your work.

I use Kato if I want to make things thinner than normal. And for the rest I love Premo! I like to mix my own colors and Premo is perfect for that.

[Former_Member]

Wonderful items you have! I use mainly Premo and Fimo Soft and Fimo Effects. I have only used Kato 1-2 times and remember it was a bugger to condintion.

I needed to mix 3 different colors together to make a large batch of custom flesh color and used a food processor that I picked up at Walmart for only $25. I found that it not only chopped everything up into tiny little clay bits it warmed the clay in the process as well. That cut the conditioning time down to nothing! That might work well for those that like Kato and Fimo Classic.

I also like Kato liquid for gluing, sealing, glazing, painting, you name it. I especially like the fact that as a glaze it is very glossy and seems to be the most economical.

My local Michaels carries a decent amount of supplies but they don't really have any support or knowledgeable people on staff. I have found YouTube to be an invaluable source for free tutorials. Also, just Googling polymer clay has net me a lot of web sites that offer free tips, tricks and tutorials that are helpful.

This website is Fantastic with all kinds of info. http://www.polymerclaycentral.com/index.html

And last, Munros Crafts in Michigan is a great source for supplies. I'm lucky enough to live only 30 minutes away but they do mail order as well. http://www.munrocrafts.com

[dmrhas2]

I use Sculpey, Fimo, Premo, and craftsmart...I use whichever is on sale. But since I don't sculpt it doesn't matter as much. I use vaseline to soften the clay when needed.

Having trouble finding Dark Green right now...any ideas???

[MissEsAccessories]

Kato used to be a bastard to condition. They changed the formula, and it is now amazing. This past weekend I made a pair of LSU themed drinking glasses. I used sculpey and premo. I like the sculpey but the premo was way way too soft. Then I made an LSU bangle bracelet with a tiger stripe cane, the premo morphs way too much when you go to reduce your cane!

I also have made some halloween charms that used fimo glow in the dark clay and kato. I have mixed them successfully. Lower temp, longer time, and checking frequently. I guess I am more worried about trying it on the wine glasses and pint glasses I decorate, and how it will hold up to being washed.

[playsculptlive]

Dmrhas2, your question about dark green, have you tried mixing other colors with your existing green like black, blue or brown depending on the hue and shade you want. There is a great book on color for polymer clay, Polymer Clay Color Inspirations by Lindly Haunani and Maggie Maggio. I got it from the library. I learned alot about color and clay from them. I've got a blog that I put the reviews of the books I've used to learn the craft. This book is next on my list to include in the blog. I already have a couple of reviews on there. the process of putting the reviews on there is slow, I'm very busy. Anyway, check it out playsculptlive.blogspot.com. within a week or so the color book should be there.

[dmrhas2]

Awesome PlaySculptive...I'm going to check that out. Wow, love your reviews...quilted beads, hmmm intriguing :)

thanks