Sanding: I want to spread the word about Permagrit. I'm not affiliated to the company in any way, I just love the products. I had 12 internal doors to sand, and someone lent me a Permagrit block and said "Try this." I got them done in 15 minutes and the block was as good as new. No more scraps of sandpaper, no more stopping to change the paper on the block. I love it, and I'm a convert. I've got to give this one back so I've ordered their catalogue. The plastic had better watch out!

Lynne Connolly

Kemper Tools: The address for whomever wanted the info:

Kemper Tools
13595 12th Street
Chino, CA 91710-520
Phone - 909 627 6191

Lexie Johnson

Paint and Glue: I use the poly egg cartons when I'm working with paint and/or glue. When I'm finished with one section I just cut it off and throw it out.

Maureen in St. Albert, Canada

Glue Syringe Holder: I discovered something in Michael's craft store that I have found really useful. In the children's paint and craft aisle, they sell a neat plastic container with a snap on lid (around 31/2" high). The nice thing is that it has a plastic funnel type thing inside. I believe it's used in schools as a glue or paint container, and the funnel thingie is to scrape the excess paint or glue off of the paint brush or glue applicator. However.....I use it to keep my glue syringe in an inverted position. I put a wet paper towel in the bottom, put the funnel gadget in, and then insert my glue syringe upside down. The funnel keeps it from wobbling about, and the wet towel prevents the tip from drying out. Of course for this use I don't need the snap on lid, but....... I'm going to buy another one for my water container for painting. That way, I can cover it so my craft kitties don't drink the water as they are prone to do. The jars sell for $1.99 Canadian.

Cheryl L.

Gesso: In my experience I have never seen old gesso that became "watery".  I began to think that maybe the gesso thing was a big misunderstanding of terms and use.  There is/was a type of thick plaster-like substance made with linseed oil and something else? and was used extensively on picture frames to build up the fancy molding detail and which was called Gesso. This is not what we are talking about. That stuff was thick.

What is in the art shops now as Gesso is a painting medium used primarily to seal canvas so that the paints do not sink into the fabric.  If you will look at an artists canvas you can still see the weave of the fabric; and if you use it to seal the wood of your dollhouse the wood also will still be seen..in essence it is very thin stuff.  Now if you want something to cover up irregularities in the wood (voids, gouges, etc.) then gesso is not what you want - try wood putty or modeling paste (which is a very gloppy thick mixture).

By the way, if gesso gets old it just dries up just like old craft paint...after all - isn't that what you want it to do after painting it on your house? I hope none of you threw away your gesso because you thought it was "bad".

Ana

Polishing with "rouge": A handy rouge to polish with if you are doing it by hand or by machine (Dremel) is to use plain old tooth paste. After all, it is a very mild abrasive (rouge).

Dr. Bob

Polish: If I want a really good mirror polish on jewelry or a mini, I use Mother's Mag Wheel Polish designed for chrome or aluminum. My DD needed a mirror that was a cylinder for a project and I made one out of stainless steel, hand polishing with that stuff. It worked very well. The grit is finer than jewelry polish, and it is suspended in a white grease that can be washed off afterward. Buy it in a hardware or automotive shop. I use a lot of it, but it comes in a small jar too, which would be a lifetime supply for a miniac, at quite reasonable prices.

Rroweblue

Polishing Compounds: When I mentioned polishing wheels for the Dremel, I used rouge as an example because often accessory kits come with a small container of this polish and often people don't know what it is used for. I actually prefer other compounds - I do a lot of jewelry work and use Tripoli, Zam and other compounds. "DrBob" is correct that toothpaste makes a handy and cheap polish. I have used that to polish the edge of Plexiglass and other things with much success. Someone also wrote about the mag wheel polish which is also great stuff. My favorite for hand polishing of metal is "Wenol" that comes in a large orangey colored can or in a tube. That and a bit of elbow grease really gives things a mirror shine.

Bonnie Gibson

Cutting a hole in the porcelain tea pot with the Dremel: Get a tungsten carbide cutter. It is a "thing" made by Dremel for the Dremel. It is used to cut into fired ceramics or use a Silicon Carbide Grinding Stone. It is green/gray in color and conical in shape. It is also used for work on ceramic and glass. I would suggest keeping the cutting head of whichever you choose wet while doing the cutting to keep it cool. These things get hot. Try to rely on speed rather then force to get the tool to do the cutting.

Mitering; If you have to go beyond a butt joint and have to measure mini angles (corners in a room or door and window openings,) a few things came to mind. Take a small pinch of kiddy clay and press it into the corner to be filled and you now have the angle of the corner. Take it from there. Or, yhis may be difficult to explain (describe)but..... think of the letter "H". Use pointed flat or square toothpicks for this. For the 2 vertical parts of the "H", leave the points on. For the cross piece of the "H", cut off the points. Make an "H" using the three pieces of tooth picks and attach the cross piece to the vertical pieces with a small straight pin. This permits the vertical elements to move (rotate around the ends of the cross piece. In this way you can place your device into the corner to be measured and adjust the vertical elements to measure the corner. Of course the limit to this device is an angle no bigger than 90 degrees.

Dr. Bob, Delray Beach, FL

Removing Adhesives: Here for once us kiwis have a product that you overseas folk won't have! A door-to-door salesman comes around our homes (yes, even today in the year 2000!) and sells medicines and creams, essences, and all sorts of wonderful products. He is called a Rawleighs man. They sell a product called 'Ready Relief'. You put RR on your pillow or your hanky when you have a cold or you put it in hot water and inhale it to clear your nasal passages. It is fantastic for removing sticky labels (or the remains of) from jars and bottles etc.

Now you are probably saying what is the point of telling me that when I can't get it here? The basis of this product, is Eucalyptus oil so, try get some Eucalyptus oil and get the stuff off with that. I would test it on a similar jar first just to be sure it doesn't cloud the plastic - the oil being stronger than the Ready Relief. I actually wrote the rest of the details for the benefit of SS Kiwis who can buy this product!

Diana in New Zealand

Removing Adhesives: The best thing to use to remove labels is De-Solv-it. I purchased mine at the local Wal-mart. It will take off labels and just about any kind of sticky residue. I've used it on glass, wood plastic, etc. I even used on an old kids desk where the labels had been on there for many years and they all came off easily with now scratching of the wood. If you can't find it in your area it is made by orange-sol household products. Their web address is http://www.orange-sol.com phone number 800-877-7771.

Terry

Removing Adhesives: Avon Skin-so-soft works well, and doesn't dull plastic.

Kay Gale

Removing Adhesives: For label stickiness I try Mineral Spirits first. I used to use furniture polish (I think Heloise recommended it) but then you have to wash THAT off too. My resident Chemical Engineer says to use Mineral OIL. His company sells flooring adhesives and he says the installers use only Mineral Oil to clean off the glue.

Jhliddington

Removing Adhesives: about getting glue off a plastic bottle: Use Orange Oil. It won't cloud the plastic. You can get it in the grocery store or home store- it's also great for getting pine sap from the Christmas tree off your hands and dissolving most kinds of sticky, gunky stuff, it won't harm your skin, AND it smells good!

Linda

Removing Adhesives: I've yet to read the easiest and cheapest way that I use (but may take a little more time)- pure dishwashing liquid soap (DAWN). After I soak off the label while the water is hot and soapy, I scratch off an abundance of the collected glue with my fingernail. It doesn't scratch the plastic since the glue is softened from the hot soapy water. Now pure dishwashing liquid soap (I use DAWN) is readily on hand and useable. After the bulk of the glue has been removed, I apply a coating of my undiluted Dawn dishwashing soap. I smear it around over the glue residue with the tips of my fingers and leave it soak a short while. I keep running my finger around over the sticky gooey area to keep the liquid soap ON THE SPOT that I want to clean. A light application of my fingernail over the glue area takes off more (almost all) of the glue. I usually take a paper towel and rub off as much of the glue that will come off after being further softened by the full strength dish soap right from the bottle. Usually there is just a little cloudy smearing of glue substance evident at this stage of the removing/cleaning process. "IF" it's important to have the container completely clear of glue (smears) at this stage of cleaning, I would use a little GOO GONE. Applying this moist Goo Gone to just a corner of the towel is enough to remove the smear of glue left on the container. A little washing with hot soapy suds and a clear rinse will leave the container (plastic or glass) sparkling clean with no residue left. It takes a little more time this way but much less of the expensive cleaner, Goo Gone. It does not evaporate in its tightly sealed container with its specially sealed top which has small hole that emits its liquid only when the bottle is squeezed.

Barbara Smith

Removing glue: DON'T use nail polish remover on plastic! It will permanently cloud it. I haven't tried the new remover without acetone on any though. Maybe it would work. I haven't had anything I wanted to risk trying it on.

Debi in Quesnel

Removing glue: They have been using straight acetone on plastic for years. I've worked in an optical lab since 1980 and that's the only thing we clean the plastic with. It depends on the grade of plastic you are trying to clean off. I've cleaned all my old medicine bottles off with it. No problems. (Lots of other stuff too) Just remember to use it sparingly.

Donna

Removing glue: I've had very good luck with rubbing alcohol. Be patient. Pour it and keep the area moist with it. It will take a while. It's also good for removing acrylic paint from windows too.

Shannon Moore

Cutting Plexiglass: I have cut many miles of plexiglass over the years, and the best thing is a power saw of some sort. I have used both a jig saw and a band saw. You will end up with a bit of 'fuzz' on the underside of your piece, but it can be brushed off by hand. I have heard you can score thin plastic with a sharp knife and then snap it on a table edge or something similar, but have never tried that method.

Dani Rice