Flammability of Great Stuff: Since I received a number of private requests asking if Great Stuff was flammable in both it's wet and dry stage, I'll answer it through the digest. It's only flammable during it's wet stage. And, sorry, but for those of you who asked, no, I'd rather not recount as to how I found out it was flammable. Suffice it to say, I read every word on everything now. And it is marked on the can that it's flammable.

Joy Perkins

GREAT STUFF: According to a construction owner, GREAT STUFF, shouldn't be sprayed around ANY electrical outlets. He told me it was from his own experience!

He also said that the sun's rays can break it down very fast. Now I would hate to see my friends spend so much time creating their great masterpieces only to find it dust when they get up in the morning (after the sunrise). It may take awhile for this to happen, but wouldn't you rather be remembered for more than the dust around the dh?

Lisa Lynn

Spray Styrofoam: The product is called "FormIt"...Spray Foam.It is basically used by floral designers (that's me). Michaels Arts and Crafts used to carry it. You might check JoAnns, Hobby Lobby or MJDesigns. You will probably find it in the floral department. Also, I have seen it in local Ace Hardware.

Gloria

Spray Foam: One more on the subject of the spray foam. The first direction, should you actually read the can before you start, (I will next time) is to wear gloves. Important point...I realized about 4 hours later while sitting on the front porch with a bucket of warm water and my exacto knife, trying to cut off the excess from my hands. I really get into my work. Fortunately I sprayed with one hand and shaped with the other so I didn't have to ask for help from my DH who was laughing like a hyenna.

Charlotte Chaffin

Spray foam: I have used two types - one is a white foam and puffs some-what and the foam stays slightly soft and flexible. This is used for insulation (maybe around pipes?) The other is spray foam insulation which is a tan color, puffs 50-60% or more and is great for filling in gaps in houses. When dry, it can be carved and this is the one like styrofoam. My son is a sculptor when he is not working as a grapic artist, and he has made sculpting with spray foam a real art form! One hint - this very sticky stuff comes with a straw to insert in the nozzle and if you cut it in thirds or halfs you can use the can later with a fresh straw. BTW - another great use is when packing fragile things, wrap the item in plastic and spray some into the corners of the box. It will suspend the item and conform to its shape.

Jacqui Martin

Garden; When I made my "garage",I had a garden corner. I scanned ads from K-Mart and Home Depot for soil, seeds, fertilizer, etc. and using my greeting card programs, I shrunk them to 1" scale and printed them on card stock (and some onto glossy paper) leaving room for folding into bags and boxes. They came out pretty good. I also did the same for Pampers, etc for babies room.

Darlene/NJ

Water: Polyseamseal is the 'water' you want for a rough ocean scene. If it isn't too deep you won't notice the "dip" as it shrinks. If deeper - fill it in after a day or two. I would try to keep the ocean part rather small and make the rocks come out to it (not much beach where the seals go) and have inlets of water. This stuff does not completely self level. It will stay rippled and yes, you can pull up bits and make some cresting waves, but do it slowly. I found that it didn't want to stick to the bottom of my ponds at first and had to 'rest'. It says on the tube that depending on how deep you put it on - it can take up to a week to cure. Maybe the weather outside has something to do with that though. For the 1/4 inch ponds that I just did, it worked pretty well, but I'm really wondering if I want to try it on a 1" scale pond. ;-D It also stays tacky and rubbery. It is used to caulk windows, bath tubs, etc.

Mary Lou

Autumn leaves: Yes, I have made autumn (fall) leaves with the help of a punch. When you use "fresh" leaves, they will curl unless you put them between some absorbent paper in a press, phonebook or under the carpet to let them dry. If you cut them from dried leaves,you have more chance of brittle breaking.

I used paper too; scan the pretty leaves and reduce the pictures. Now make row upon row on a sheet of paper,paint the back with similar colours and punch your heart out (if you hold your punch upside down you can see where to cut).

Dorothee, Katikati

Autumn leaves: I bought preserved leaves at the craft store. They are of autumn colors and are real leaves. Sooo pretty. I punch them out sometimes, being very careful to get the natural veins in the right places. LOL

BJ Eller

Autumn leaves: You do not have to wait for Fall/Autumn leaves to punch out mini leaves. Just walk around the garden and pick a few of any interesting colour variegated leaves and punch away, along the vein. Some work better than others, but all end up looking like real mini leaves.

Barbara B in South Africa

Autumn leaves: Not sure who the original post was from, but here is an easy way to preserve real leaves for punching. Does anyone out there still do ironing, because that is what you need - an iron and wax paper. (Does anyone still use THAT?)

Place the leaves between 2 sheets of wax paper and run the iron across at a low setting. When cool, just peel the paper off. Used to do this with my kids to make leave collages that would last.

Mary Eccher

Autumn leaves: If you want to save yourself some work - this woman was at the Good Sam show in San Jose and sold little packets of fall leaves for about a dollar a bag and there are hundreds in there. I also bought some ivy leaves and they are great too!

Her card says:

Paper punches, flower kits, petals and leaves. Metal Miniatures, No hole beads, Gold plated findings, Noah's Ark kits and more. She also had oodles of Halloween things.

Hooked on Miniatures (CIMTA & NAME member)

Sharon Granicy
1519 Avenue K
Lancaster, Ca 93535

Phone: 661 948-2112
hkdonmini@hotmail.com

Sheena

Autumn Leaves: If you use paper punchout leaves, they will probably curl appropriately if you mist them lightly with water. It might take a couple of spritzes, because you don't want to saturate them.

Loretta Sniarowski

Autumn Leaves: Why is everyone punching out leaves from leaves? Seems like a lot of work and danger of "critters." Just go to Michaels and get the mini fall leaf garlands in maple and oak.

Parisa Javidi

Working with real leaves: To preserve live materials-cut the stems at an angle-place them in a metal container-cover the base of the stems with glycerin (most drugstores have this on the bottom shelf) - add equal parts of boiling water - allow stems to "drink" the glycerin for several days. Replace liquid as needed. Cut as much of the stem away as possible, the longer the stem, the longer it will take the glycerin to reach the blossom or leaf you wish to preserve. Hint-I cover the top of the recycled can with screen or chicken wire. This makes a holder to keep my materials upright as they absorb the glycerin. Properly done, materials have a life of over 15 years.

Becky

Sprinkler Watering Effect: To create the arcing effect of a lawn sprinkler, consider the use of clear fishing monofilament line. The fish line has a "memory" which means as you unspool a piece of say 6", it tends to curl itself into the same shape it had on the spool. Therefore if you cut a 6" piece off and glue it to the "sprinkler head" it will appear as an arcing stream of water. Using a few of these may create the sprinkle effect you want.

Bob in Hollywood, FL

Making Miniature Water Lettuce from Polymer Clay:

Water lettuce is a floating plant. It looks like an opened-up head of lettuce. They get to be about 6-8 inches in diameter, maximum, with roots as much as 12 inches long that hang in the water.

Materials:

Polymer clay: create a light green color using green, yellow, and transparent
Ceramic tile: to work on, and use to bake finished plants
Round toothpick
Wooley thread, separated, to make the roots.

1. Mix green, yellow, and transparent polymer clay until you get a pleasing light green color (see picture of actual water lettuce).

2. Start with a 1/16 to 1/8 inch ball of clay

3. Squish against tile with finger, letting it be thicker in the middle than at the edges

4. Using the last 1/8th of the toothpick, lightly press "dents," in parallel, into the clay

5. Push at the sides of the clay using your fingernail, shaping the leaf into a petal shape.

6. Lift the leaf. If the clay is quite soft, lifting it will distort it somewhat. That's ok, because all leaves in nature are not uniform.

7. Arrange each lettuce with the bigger leaves on the bottom, and the smallest on the top, with the smallest being just a folded piece of clay in the middle.

8. When you've made all the plants you can put up with making, bake the tile with the plants according to clay instructions.

9. Separate small lengths of needlepoint yarns to make the roots. You want to make it kind of like a tassle that's had a haircut--the outer strings are shorter than the innermost strings.

10. Glue to the bottom of the baked lettuce.

When I plan to "float" my water lettuce in a resin casting, I'll suspend the bunch of threads so that they can hang down below the surface. After the resin is hard, I'll glue the lettuce heads on top of my "roots."

Trish in San Jose, CA

Nap finish on Cat tails: To make the nap finish on the cat tails in my pond, I saved the wood dust from my sandings etc. and when I made the cat tail, I coated it with Elmers glue and rolled it in the wood dust. Voila! fuzzy cat tails.

Bob in Hollywood, FL

Birch Leaves - You can get a tiny birch leaf punch - its made by Family Treasures and I'm pretty sure it is available from www.punchpalace.com - try under the mini extension punch heading.

Its probably not more than $5 or so

Lesley in Johannesburg

African Violets: Barb Plevan has a website where you can see a picture of her african violets that does not do them justice (I have all 3) http://www.barbplevan.com

Anne Gerdes