Miniature Musical Instruments: I have 2 addresses for miniature musical instruments. One is for patterns and the other one is the actual hand-crafted instruments. The Ken Manning Collection SUDLERS Even if these are not what you want, they may be able to put you on the right track to find it. Dianne, Tasmania Australia |
Parrot project: When reading your question I remembered a project by Sue Heaser I once stumbled upon at Polymer Clay Central. It's a Victorian birdcage with a parrot, and has some good explanations on how to sculpt the bird from - guess what? - polymer clay :) It doesn't use real feathers, but maybe you could make the body out of an air-drying clay and stick the feathers into it before it dries? Or glue the feathers onto the polymer clay body. Åsa in Fairfax VA |
Commissions: To the person asking about commissions, I can think of several points which might help. Firstly, this is probably pretty obvious but make sure you have seen samples of their work first. Choose someone whose work you already know and are happy with. Any commission is likely to be of a similar quality, don't expect it to be any better. Be very specific about what you want. If it's an item of furniture for example agree the size, finish, type of wood etc. and provide photos and measurements of the full size item if possible. I don't usually accept commissions unless I have sufficient information to make something reasonably accurately and if I don't have sufficient information I make it clear that a lot of it will be guess work. Ask for samples of finishes. If I'm not sure what color someone wants something I always offer to provide samples of different finishes, and I would think most makers would do the same. I don't ask for a deposit, although some people insist on giving me one. I take the view that if someone changes their mind then someone else will buy it anyway, and no one has ever changed their mind. That's just me though and I suppose a deposit of around 20% would be reasonable, with the rest payable on completion. Most makers will probably require payment in full before sending the item. One way round this is to pick it up at a fair if that's convenient so you can see it before paying. If you're really not happy with something then don't be afraid to say. I will always give a refund if someone really isn't happy with something, and most people like to keep their customers happy. Be prepared to wait and don't try to pressure someone into giving you an earlier date. Most makers work from home, on their own, sometimes in their spare time and are very busy, so bear in mind dates are likely to be approximate, but do ask to be kept informed if it's likely to take much longer. You shouldn't be kept waiting for ages without a reason. Colin Bird |
KLAY GUNS - Oh yes, you need to be Superman to get the polymer clays through it. But sometimes they can be really useful and here are some hints to make using them easier. 1. Knead your polymer clay (mixed with Mix-Quick to soften it all the more) until it is super soft. 2. You can coat the barrel of the tool with baby oil (I have never tried this but it is mentioned in a few instruction books. 3. Mix your color, fill the barrel and hand the Klay Gun to someone you know with strong hands (perhaps your DH), and have them extrude your clay. 4. If all else fails, you can try to stand on the two handles, plunger side down and your weight will extrude the clay. If anyone thinks I am joking here, then you have never tried to use a Kemper Klay Gun - desperation inspires ingenuity. There was also a question as to how to clean the gun. Bake the gun in the oven on low temperature for about 10 minutes. Let cool....the baked clay is easy to pick off the metal tool. Mary Eccher |
Extruding clay with a Klay Gun: I'm not sure if someone mentioned this already, but my sister Alix in San Francisco |
Play Dough: I couldn't keep from thinking about the beautiful pattern on antique silverware as my mother has collected it for years. I got out my hot glue gun and some craft sticks. I covered the pattern on the silverware that I wanted with hot glue and pushed the craft stick down onto it. I let it cool and pulled it off. Then I got out my play dough, rolled a rope and pushed the mold I had made with the hot glue into the dough. It came out perfect, I got so carried away I now have about a dozen little push molds to use on clay. This trim can be glued onto things and painted and varnished. By the way play dough dried and sealed with a water base varnish makes some adorable small objects. It has to be solid I made some old boots out of it and they were to thin, after a time they split where I had joined pieces. I made some tiny children's toys and after 4 years they are fine. Wiggins |
Easy tool for Klay Guns: You can modify a caulking gun (found in any hardware store) so that the Kemper Klay Gun fits inside. Then, you can use the caulking gun's pressure (many, many times stronger than just using your fingers) to push the polymer clay through. I've done this for several years and it works great. Nan Roche wrote an article in the December 1999 issue of Bead & Button that explains how to modify the caulking gun. (Her version is slightly different from mine, and I think hers is probably better.) The article is clearly written and has pictures, so it would be a lot easier to refer to Nan's article than to decipher anything that I'd try to explain in an email. If you can't find Bead & Button magazine in your local library, you might go to their website and inquire about getting back issues. It's at http://www.beadandbutton.com/ Leina Johansson |
Free Web Space: I'm with Tripod--they're free, they give you a choice of pop-up or banner ads, you get 50MB of space, and they have a lot of 'helpers' and free web tools. Net colony is also becoming popular; I don't know the details, but they offer 100MB of free space. Most free spaces have, in their terms of service, a disturbing little paragraph that says they own the copyright to anything you put on your web page. I think this is some legal CYA thingie; but all you have to do is put "This web page, including all photos and text, is copyright 2001 by (your name)." Molly |
Raggedy Ann & Andy: Regarding making mini Raggedy Ann's: perhaps someone else has more information on the subject, but at a show several years ago, I was told the company who held copyright on Raggedy Ann was actively protecting their copyright with lawsuits. I do know about that time I saw a lot of stuffed dolls that LOOKED like them but were labeled with other names. Other companies such as Coke, Disney and professional sports teams have brought legal action against persons using their logos, figures, etc. It is a shame that nasty legalities have to invade the miniature hobby, but unfortunately it is a fact of life, like it or not. A few years ago, in this area a lawyer representing Disney found some mom-and-pop minimarts selling caps with Disney characters and some had to pay hefty fines. I used to sell quarter inch scale Coke machines, but before I displayed them I asked for a letter from the manufacturer saying that they were authorized by Coke. I do not believe a person making these items for themselves or friends have any worry, but selling them presents a possible, though not likely, problem. I suppose you could decide the possibility of being caught is so small not to be a cause of worry. Dean Jenson |
Raggedy Ann and Andy dolls: Carol Spence Sellner makes these and they're good sellers. You can see a picture of them on my web site at http://www.spminiatures.com/sellner.htm Carol |
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