Fumes: I have to jump in on this one.  I know for a fact that polymer clay has harmful fumes for birds.   Birds cannot tolerate fumes of any kind.   I didn't know this until two months ago, when I lost my parrot over night.  I had stained some pieces and set them out to dry in my workroom....the same room I keep my birds in.   He died the next morning.   My vet told me that birds can't tolerate fumes and especially deadly are paint fumes, and the fumes that come off of Teflon pans that are allowed to get too hot.  That was a surprise!   He told me not to use house chemicals, paint, or moth balls in the same vicinity of my other bird.  I hope none of you ever has to go through the loss of a pet because you didn't know about this.

Carol Wagner

Fimo fumes, my youngest granddaughter is mildly asthmatic. I have learned I cannot bake my Fimo within 48 hours of her visits and always have to air my kitchen out by opening the windows for at least on hour. While the fumes are nontoxic to the healthy in a well-ventilated room, they seem to cause problems for anyone with breathing problems and are detectable by them for quite a while after baking.

Lee

FIMO cooking times: Polymer clay is a combination of chemicals, they are activated by heat and combine to form the clay in it's baked state. You MUST cook it for a minimum of 20 minutes or the chemical process will not complete, as polymer clay is 'live' until cooked not completing the cooking correctly is potentially dangerous. The temperature of your oven is important, never bake at higher than 130c it will not cook quicker!! this is not cake mixture here it's as near to rocket science that we mini makers get!!! If you're using a pale clay try lowering the temp. just a teeny weenie bit, no lower than 120c.If your stuff is scorching try using a shield of baking foil, cover the delicate pieces with loosely wrapped foil, the foil will diffuse the heat so baking times must be observed. Your average oven takes at least 10mins to reach the set temp. you need at least 15mins cooking time after that, 20mins is the barest limit. Not cooking your clay minis properly can result in them crumbling and falling apart later on, please remember the manufacturer has to conduct rigorous tests on the product before it goes on sale, he/she does know what they're talking about. As a final note, I use polymer clay every day and I have only had one scorching mishap, using my cooker oven and switching the temp just a bit too high. I now use a toaster oven with the temp set at 130c and I bake everything for 30 min.

Jacquie Hall

Future Floor Wax for Fimo: Yes, Future Wax works beautifully for getting a shiny coat on Fimo items. I learned this from Judy Kafka, renown for her Fimo Candy Castles and trains. No stickiness whatsoever. Future is made by Johnson Wax Co. of Racine, Wisconsin and is still available as far as I know. I've used it on my no-wax floors, too, to enhance them.

Jeanette in Wisconsin

Someone asked about cooking times and it seems that each type of clay has a different temperature and time recommended by the manufacturer. I checked out http://www.sculpey.com and each type of clay they make has different times and temps. So my suggestion is to read the package you are using (or find a website for that brand, if available) and follow those directions. Unfortunately, some of my packages are missing (I "inherited" my clay) so I don't know what brand of clay I am using. In that case, I just bake with the rest of the items and it seems to be ok.

Jo from the Poconos

Boiling fimo: The only problem that I had with boiling fimo is that the pieces that are put together don't stay together. Example. To make a smores, you layer the graham cracker, chocolate, marshmallow and bake and it comes out in one piece as intended. You layer the same and boil and you end up with a piece of graham cracker, a piece of chocolate and a piece of marshmallow and then you have to glue them together.

Mary Lou in Portage, IN

3/4 cup of white glue
1 cup cornstarch
1/2 cup of water
1 teaspoon of cold cream
1 teaspoon of glycerin
Mix wet ingredients until smooth over medium heat. Cook for a few minutes and add cornstarch. Stir continually until it forms a ball, remove from pan and mix thoroughly with hands do not refrigerate. Keep in an airtight bag. Use as you would any modeling paste, can be molded and used in many ways... use chalk powder to color, or paint with any paint when dry.   Use cold cream to moisten mold and/or when you are working with it, if it becomes sticky.. Or ..dust with cornstarch...adjust ingredients for more or less.

Another one:
1/4 cup of water
1/4 cup of cornstarch
1/4 cup of Bicarb soda
Mix all ingredients together and cook (stirring) until it forms a ball. This is used the same as above.

Cold porcelain paste:

3/4 cup of white glue

1 cup cornstarch

1/2 cup water

1 teaspoon of cold cream

1 teaspoon glycerin

Mix wet ingredients until smooth, over medium heat. cook for a few minutes, and add cornstarch. stir continually until it forms a ball. remove from pan and mix thoroughly with hands( I like to cover it with a damp cloth until its cool enough to handle) Do not refrigerate. keep in air tight bag.... use in many ways. Use caulk powder to color, or paint with any paint when dry. Use cold cream to moisten molds/or when you are working with it and it becomes sticky, or dust with cornstarch ...adjust ingredients more or less

Mastic

1/4 cup water

1/4 cup cornstarch

1/4 cup bicarb soda

Mix all together and cook (stirring)until it forms a ball. This is used same as above

Pat Thompson

Cold Porcelain Paste:

3/4 cup of white glue

1 cup cornstarch

1/2 cup of water

1 teaspoon of cold cream

1 teaspoon of glycerin

Mix wet ingredients until smooth over medium heat. Cook for a few minutes and add cornstarch. Stir continually until it forms a ball, remove from pan and mix thoroughly with hands. (I like to cover with a damp cloth until its cool enough to handle) do not refrigerate. Keep in an airtight bag. Use as you would any modeling paste, can be molded and used in many ways... use chalk powder to color, or paint with any paint when dry. Use cold cream to moisten mold and/or when you are working with it, if it becomes sticky.. Or ..dust with cornstarch...adjust ingredients for more or less.

Another one (for some reason called Mastic)

1/4 cup of water

1/4 cup of cornstarch

1/4 cup of Bicarb soda

Mix all ingredients together and cook (stirring) until it forms a ball. This is

used the same as above. Great for flowers and tiny things!!!! and so soft to work with!

Terry Hale

2 T. mineral oil

1 C. white glue

1 C. cornstarch

White gouache (opaque water color)

Mix oil and glue in a non-stick sauce pan.   Add cornstarch and cook over low to medium heat, stirring with a wooden spoon, until a dough forms and the pan is “clean”.   The outer crust of the dough ball will be solid, while the center appears sticky. style="mso-spacerun: yes">  Remove the ball from the pan and knead until the consistency is even.   Add about a teaspoon or so of white gouache   and knead in thoroughly.   ( CP without gouache is transparent when dry. )   Wrap ball in plastic and   put in plastic bag. It will keep a week or so at room temperature, but refrigerate for longer storage.

TO USE:

Working - Cold porcelain rolls, cuts, frills, etc., like gum paste. Unlike gum paste, however, it is extremely strong and the finished piece will last indefinitely.   If CP sticks to the working surface, cold cream or cornstarch can be used.   Cold cream on the cutter will also keep pieces from sticking.   Freshly cut petals can be worked more easily   than petals which have sat out for even a few minutes. yes">  If you like to cut several petals at a time, keep the resting pieces covered. Although uncovered pieces are not too dry to work, they will be tough.

Shrinkage - Use cold porcelain as you would gum paste, but be aware of shrinkage.   Make test pieces where finished size is critical, since CP tends to shrink by as much as 30 percent! Very thin pieces seem to shrink less than thicker ones. Plan for shrinkage when combining CP with non-shrinking media such as stamens by making the stamens stand a bit shorter than normal.

Wiring - If using wired petals or leaves, do not insert wire too close to the surface, as the paste shrinkage can leave the wire exposed.   Any water based “glue”   (gum Arabic, egg white, etc.) will work to adhere wires in CP.   Since the paste already contains glue, the “lick and stick method” works, too, but this is obviously not recommended for projects where hygiene is a factor.

Coloring - CP can also be   tinted with other gouache colors or with powdered food colors.   I recommend adding very small amounts of color to CP with white already added. Projects can be colored with petal dust and also steamed to set color.   The surface of CP seems smoother than gum paste, so more color may be needed. Projects may be painted with “petal paint” consisting of petal dust mixed with isopropyl   (rubbing) alcohol.   The color will be very vivid.   Isopropyl alcohol is poisonous if you drink it, but harmless when it dries. Projects may be dipped in coloring solution-Isopropyl alcohol with paste color dissolved in it. Projects can be spray painted or painted with acrylic craft paints.

Finishing - After the piece is assembled and colored, spray   with matte (satin) polyurethane.   A semi-gloss or gloss can be used for shiny leaves.

COLD PORCELAIN RECIPE

2 tblsp. of baby oil

1cup of Elmer’s glue

1/4 cup of cornstarch

Place in a saucepan and cook on the lowest heat for 16 to 20 minutes Turn out on to a cornstarch dusted board and knead in an additional 1/4 cup of cornstarch or enough to make a smooth non sticky paste to roll out, use cold cream instead of Crisco to grease the board with also, if you want your porcelain to be white and less translucent Use white titanium acrylic paint and add to paste till you reach the desired color. You can tint it any color by using acrylic paints also. Make sure you store it in an airtight container!

June

Polymer clay molds:. I just visited Sue Heaser's web site, and she now offers molds, too. Here is the link. http://www.heaser.demon.co.uk/products/Kits/dollmoulds.htm

Lauren from Abingdon

Making Mini Clothing: I have found that the only way to make very tiny clothes is to use a lot more fabric than you need. Meaning, as you outline a pattern on the material, do not cut the pattern out along the pattern lines. Outline the pattern piece with tracing paper, so that you not only have the darts, seams and matching up points of the pattern marked on the fabric, but the complete outline of the pattern piece is outlined. Then when you cut out the pattern, you will leave a large seam allowance beyond the normal pattern outline. At least several inches; enough so when you use the sewing machine on it, that the fabric doesn't jam up or get pushed into the sewing plate machinery. With the tiny seam allowance on these patterns and considering the size of the pieces that are being worked on, it is just not enough fabric for a sewing machine to sew on and they get totally messed up. Its the same when you try to hand sew it, use larger seam allowance. Once you have sewn the pattern together as much as you can with the oversize seams, you can then cut the seams back as much as you need and then if required you can put a defrayer on the seams. You may want to keep a larger than 1/4" seam, if the outfit can tolerate the extra fabric. But you might want to put the defrayer on with a toothpick, or something very tiny, so the defrayer doesn't get all over the fabric.

LadiThrills

1/4" Sculpting: I have been trying my hand at sculpting in 1/4" scale. I found a different sculpting medium for the smaller scales. The commercial name is Kneadatite. It's a blue and yellow ribbon epoxy. You take the two separate halves and mix them together until the mixture turns dark green. The texture is very similar to chewed chewing gum, yuk! The mix has about a three hour working time. It is easily added to and sticks well to itself. I have never had any adverse reaction from the epoxy, although I wash my hands after each use. I like it much better than Sculpey, etc. because I have hot hands. I'll try and post some pics of my leprechauns sometime soon. I've been sculpting a bunch of goblin heads from the movie, Labyrinth, for a doll maker. I'll post some pics of them as well.

Shaun

1/4 scale dolls: I have not attempted something this small, but here's my suggestions:
1) Try a different medium - I don't know which is which, but I know that Fimo, Sculpey, Sculpey III, paperclay, etc. each have a different consistency and pliability. Maybe one that is less pliable would work better.
2) Make the body out of wire, not sculpting medium. This way you're not continuing to handle the head once it's formed. Take a piece of wire and hold it vertically; from the top (neck) come down as far as the torso length will be and bend the wire slightly at that point - then go down as far as the leg will be (including foot length), and fold the wire back on itself. Bring the wire back up to the top of the leg and bend it back down again for the second leg, then back up on itself again. Twist it once around the hip area, then run it up to the shoulder area - leave enough at the top for the neck, including enough length to insert into the head. At the shoulder point, bend the wire out sideways and run it the length of an arm and hand, then back on itself to the shoulder, loop it once to anchor, and then across for the other arm. Back to the shoulder and loop it once to anchor and cut off remainder. Then crimp the leg and arm ends to form hands and feet. Form your head and stick it on top, then air-dry or bake upright. You can even add sculpting medium over the wire for hands and feet. I think this would be much easier and require minimum handling of the head.
3) Paint, don't sculpt, the head and facial features.
4) Make the head out of a bead or something rigid that can be painted.

Graceanne

Kim

Liz Taylor

viola

Fannye in TX

Harry Potter doll...why bother making one, there is a great resin cast one that is put out as an ornament, just unscrew the little deal at the top of his head...he's holding two chemistry class flasks...that's not the scientific name for them, they look kinda like wine decanters...you can tell I didn't pay attention in my science classes! It's not the ornament where he's attached to a book...have one of those, too, but can't figure out how to separate his body from the book without losing part of his feet.

Molly Cromwell

Crayola Model Magic: I use Crayola model magic all the time, here are my personal results with the stuff. Storing, use a airtight Tupperware container or Ziploc baggie, just make sure no air gets in.   It isn't reusable if dried, well we can always find a use but..........LOL.   Just a thought if you dry some and chopping the food processor or coffee grinder you might get amazing popcorn.....I am going right now to try it...LOL.

Paint.   Acrylics and watercolors...........I like the watercolors the best, as you don't need much paint at all to color a large piece.   Dab a little on and then start smooshing the clay until it is uniformly the color you want.   Or after it is dry you can paint it then with either acrylic or watercolors

Slicing when dry.....A clay tissue blade cutter works wonderful like butter.

Once dry I have added Hot Wonder Water to it and it has never melted so the temp isn't too hot for it, works great for ponds.

Kathy