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  • #448991
    WoodsonBrazos
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        I recently started doing clay sculpting, and since I’m still in the learning process, I’ve used a friends sculptures as a template to copy to help me learn. This is my first big piece, didnt turn out nearly as good as his original, but close enough for me, and I learned quite a bit from it. But now is the scary part, coloring it. He told me he used an oil based paint and paint thinner to achieve the look he got, but was wondering if anyone else has used this technique and might have more info. Or, similar a technique at least.

        Thanks,
        Nick

        #540003
        WoodsonBrazos
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            Well I made two small test pieces, tried an oil based stain and an oil based paint. The stain never seemed to even dry, and both the paint and stain came out glossy. Now I have no idea what to try next…

            #540004
            WoodsonBrazos
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                Ended up going with basic acrylic paint, turned out ok, but not quite like I was hoping.

                #539992
                Pine Cone
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                    Nick, That’s an amazing sculpture you’ve created!

                    ——————

                    I’ve never done a figurine. However, several years ago, I tried a couple of polymer clay experiments, just for fun.

                    Everything I’ve read about painting polymer clay says to AVOID OIL-BASED PAINT LIKE THE PLAGUE.

                    Acrylics are WATER based.

                    ——————

                    I painted my experiments with artist-quality acrylics, and used some alcohol ink as well.

                    I have a book about acrylics. There’s a pic in there of a car that has been entirely painted with acrylics by an artist – it’s awesome. Acrylics are incredibly durable. And from everything I’ve read, high-quality acrylics don’t react with polymer clay. And when high-quality acrylics are dry, they’re DRY.

                    ————-

                    I would add that several respected teachers paint polymer clay with alcohol ink, and I used some Piñata alcohol ink as well. It was fun, and vibrant.

                    ————-

                    Back to acrylics: Here are the acrylic brands I use, both in my regular painting, and also on the polymer clay experiments several years ago:

                    ….. M. Graham Acrylic Artists’ Color

                    ….. Winsor & Newton Artists’ Acrylic

                    ….. Golden Artist Colors

                    (I would never under any circumstances use student grade acrylics. In my opinion, that can be an exercise in frustration and money wasted.)

                    —————–

                    Back to alcohol inks: There are lots of tutorials on Etsy. This artist uses alcohol ink and teaches how in this tutorial:

                    ….. This teaches how to create a polymer clay veneer and how to paint it using alcohol ink (among other things) – does not show how to make entire piece, just the polymer clay veneer:

                    https://www.etsy.com/listing/256725612/polymer-clay-tutorial-a-batik-technique?ref=shop_home_active_2
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                    name — gravity and grace along the path

                    nickname — intuitive balance of forces[/color]
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                    #539998
                    honey hatter
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                        WoodsonBrazos i have been thinking about something close to this idea for a few years now. I do wholeheartedly agree with Pine Cone about not using oil based paint on polymer clay. Because i dont like not being able to do something when it comes to my art, i have been thinking about a solution to being able to use oil based paint with polymer clay pieces. One idea i have done and it worked tho not to as great effect as i wanted, i used varathane gloss polyurethane water base on a hammer, then i painted over that with testors silver paint, it took a long while for it to cure but it worked, then i painted another layer of varathan over the testors to seal it. It wasnt as smooth as i would have liked but it did look very metallic. The piece i’m working on now is a racoon in knights armor still have to add fur between the plates, still a ways off.
                        IMG_20180404_150853 by honey hatter[/url], on Flickr
                        IMG_20180404_151127 by honey hatter[/url], on Flickr
                        The trick for this to work is creating a protective layer between the clay and whatever medium you want to use, while still keeping the detail and texture of the piece you are working on. I like simple solutions so in many of my pieces they are simply wire twisted together, covered in aluminum foil. I use aluminum foil for many smaller sections such as the armor plates on the racoon are aluminum with polymer clay over top.
                        IMG_20180404_151802 by honey hatter[/url], on Flickr
                        i took a minute and cut out a small piece of aluminum and wrapped it over the plate here. I would usually use bake sculpey bake and bond glue to help the aluminum become permanently adhered to the piece, i should be able to use any paint i wish, on that armor plate, as long as it works well curing to the aluminum. I’m also going to try a wood pulp one polymer clay, i have to check the ingrediants at the hardware store to see if they mesh well with polymer clay or are not compatible. In theory i was thinking i could use a thin layer of wood pulp on a section of armor, let it cure, sand it down, and paint it with testors paint. Hopefully it works.

                        "Oh look a white rabbit!"

                        #539993
                        Pine Cone
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                            That’s a cool sculpture honey hatter!

                            I stand by my recommendation to paint polymer clay with:

                            ….. #1 – acrylics

                            ….. #2 – alcohol ink

                            Although, I have extensive experience with high-quality acrylics, that isn’t the only reason I’m recommending them.

                            ….. The polymer clay literature supporting painting with acylics is extensive.

                            ….. The teachers recommending acrylics for use with polymer clay are numerous.

                            ….. Polymer clay and acrylics are well matched. They go together. They work with each other in harmony. They are non-destructive to one another.

                            Just as I would not recommend using a shovel to mow the lawn, I would not recommend forcing the use of inappropriate materials to resurface polymer clay. And especially when such an incredible (though often misunderstood) medium as acylic paint is readily available, and absolutely perfect for the job. See post #4 for more details, about the high-quality acrylics that will produce the results I’m supporting.
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                            name — gravity and grace along the path

                            nickname — intuitive balance of forces[/color]
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                            #539999
                            honey hatter
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                                Pine cone my knowledge on acrylic paint is limited, I’ve used some acrylic paint before, though I believe all I’ve ever gotten is low grade acrylic paint, I have also used alcohol ink to great effect on a birds feather made from polymer. Now you’ve got me thinking if my ideas using a protective layer between polymer clay and an oil based paint is not needed, especially because with high grade acrylic you can get the effect you want without having to take extra steps and thus save time. I’m color blind so I try to stay away from paints. Now I think I’ll look into high grade acrylic and see if in the future I can apply it to any of my techniques & pieces. Thanks Pine Cone.

                                "Oh look a white rabbit!"

                                #539994
                                Pine Cone
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                                    Thanks honey hatter – may I ask how extensive is your color blindness?

                                    For what it’s worth, in the extensive “Golden Artist Colors” line, they have several colors that include mica. Thus they appear to be metallic. (I thought of them when I saw the aluminum foil in your pic :) ) They make one called “Iridescent Silver (Fine)” – might be useful even if you see the world completely in grayscale. In fact, some of my fav artwork and photography is in grayscale.

                                    Golden also makes a graduated palette of grayscale colors:

                                    ….. N2 Neutral Gray
                                    ….. N3…

                                    through

                                    ….. N8

                                    I have them all, and use them often. They’re perfectly modulated.

                                    They even have a “Graphite Gray.” It’s a fairly dark gray with a slight sheen to it. Lovely!

                                    Oh, I almost forgot: they have an Iridescent Stainless Steel (Coarse). It has a slight texture, and a metallic look, and is quite transparent. (They also make a “(Fine)” version of that which is more opaque, and very smooth.)

                                    ————————–

                                    If you do go with acrylics, remember how versatile they are. And don’t be afraid to use water with them. I’ve found that many people who get disillusioned with acrylics forget that they’re water based and can be used for pale, subtle washes just as easily as pie.

                                    ———————

                                    Also, check out the acrylic mediums such as Fiber Paste (and tons of others). I LOVE Golden’s Mediums. They’re the most fun things to experiment with. I like to create subtle textures with various Golden Mediums – anything from a slight sandy texture, to a more fibrous feel, etc., etc., etc…..[/color]

                                    Having said that, I tried similar mediums awhile back by Liquitex and they did NOT work out well. Never even dried. But Golden Mediums are amazing.

                                    NOTE: Liquitex has come out with a new “Professional” line, so their mediums may have improved. I haven’t tried the newer incarnations though. I’ll leave that to others.

                                    ———————–

                                    Think about using certain Golden Mediums as adhesives. Acrylic is incredibly tough stuff. And there’s a lot of info on their website (including videos) that explains about various ways to use them as adhesives.

                                    Personally, I’ve only done that once, but WOW, did it work out well!!! I hate fumes and glue, etc., but the whole Golden Mediums thing for adhesives opened up all kinds of choices for me that I’ll be turning to in the future!!!

                                    ———————–

                                    I hope this helps :)

                                    P.S. – The only national chain craft store that carries artist grade acrylics that I know of is Michaels. Last time I was there, they not only had a partial line of Golden heavy body acrylics, but they also had several of the Golden Mediums mentioned above.

                                    I LOVE Hobby Lobby, but would NEVER purchase any of the acrylic brands I’ve seen there in the past. They’re a fav store of mine for other things (including actual polymer clay) – but not for the high-quality acrylics that I always use.

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                                    name — gravity and grace along the path

                                    nickname — intuitive balance of forces[/color]
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                                    #540000
                                    honey hatter
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                                        I am red-green colorblind, I do use acrylic paint mostly small detail, like eyes or noses. You have piqued my interest I will check out the golden line, I’ve never worked with high grade acrylic paint before, now I see that all acrylics are not the same. I love mica products too. If I can get the knight in shining armor effect from acrylic that will both surprise and delight me.

                                        "Oh look a white rabbit!"

                                        #539995
                                        Pine Cone
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                                            honey hatter – I’m sorry it took me so long to get back here. I researched your situation a little. I think you’re an amazing person and artist. I never would have known from your statue that you are color blind. Your work is imaginative and beautifully crafted.

                                            Have you ever tried the “phthalo” blues and greens?

                                            They’re all really lovely. Hard to describe why. The Phthalo Turquoise by Winsor & Newton Artists’ Acrylic might my favorite.

                                            Phthalos can work well against a light background. But against a dark background, or shining armor, some phthalo blues might be useful in shadows or highlights somehow. I’ve never tried anything like armor, but your description of what you hope to do is intriguing!!!

                                            And your diorama is SENSATIONAL!!! Absolutely fantastic!!!

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                                            name — gravity and grace along the path

                                            nickname — intuitive balance of forces[/color]
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                                            #540001
                                            honey hatter
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                                                Thanks Pine Cone!!! I havent heard the term phthalo before but i’m going to check it out. I recently saw a person on youtube use a technique they painted acrylic paint on thinly pressed translucent clay layered it with more translucent and pressed the clay some more and stretched it, also including some gold foil. Lovely technique. The end product came out looking like watercolor clay pieces. I’d like to try phthalo effect with this perhaps. sounds very interesting. Thanks for the advice, i’m adding phthalo to my crafting lexicon pine cone.:)
                                                I finished the racoon knight i blended brown with beige and gold for a light leather look.
                                                IMG_20180416_132435 by honey hatter[/url], on Flickr
                                                IMG_20180416_132521 by honey hatter[/url], on Flickr

                                                "Oh look a white rabbit!"

                                                #539996
                                                Pine Cone
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                                                    OMG – This is so COOL – you probably get told this a lot, but you’re insanely talented!!!!! I can’t stop smiling and looking at these!!!!!

                                                    ————

                                                    Is that YouTube very long? I’d like to watch it but my data plan is tiny. But it sounds like a wonderful technique, and I’d love to see.

                                                    Let me know how it goes if you try it.

                                                    Yeah, the phthalos kind of remind me of watercolors with their transparency.

                                                    The “quinacridone” colors are lovely too. They also have decent transparency and a slight sheen without really being metallic. They come in a lot of colors… quinacridone golds, roses, reds, violets, oranges… you seem to be able to use all colors, even the reds, etc., with perfection!

                                                    ————

                                                    About the phthalos, the whole name is Phthalocyanine, but only one of my three fav paint companies uses the full word in their color names. I had to look it up on my dictionary app to hear how it was pronounced :lol:

                                                    FWIW, here are the phthalo colors I have at the moment:

                                                    ….. M. Graham Acrylic Artists’ Color
                                                    ………. Phthalocyanine Blue
                                                    ………. Phthalocyanine Green

                                                    ….. Winsor & Newton Artists’ Acrylic
                                                    ………. Phthalo Turquoise
                                                    ………. Phthalo Green Yellow Shade

                                                    ….. Golden Artist Colors
                                                    ………. Phthalo Blue (Green Shade)
                                                    ………. Phthalo Blue (Red Shade)
                                                    ………. Phthalo Green (Blue Shade)
                                                    ………. Phthalo Green (Yellow Shade)

                                                    There’s also one that doesn’t even have it in the name, but it has both Phthalo Blue Green Shade and Phthalo Green Blue Shade pigments in the pigment list on the back :lol:

                                                    ….. Golden Artist Colors ….. Manganese Blue Hue

                                                    ———————

                                                    Since we’re talking about pigments, FWIW, I use gloves when I paint. But since acrylic is truly DRY when it is dry, and since the pigments are bound into the acrylic, I never have to worry about touching my artwork when it is done. Just a thought.

                                                    I actually held a dried experiment under running water back when I first discovered acrylics, and it didn’t even notice :lol:

                                                    Hey, do you have a thread for your Raccoon Knight? Soooo amazing!!! :)
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                                                    name — gravity and grace along the path

                                                    nickname — intuitive balance of forces[/color]
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                                                    #540002
                                                    honey hatter
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                                                        Hello again! The YouTube video is 20 minutes long, I was coming back to post credit to Ludmilla Bakuling and Igor Golinsky, in the info of the video they are co-creators, Igor Golinsky came up with the idea for the polymer clay acrylic watercolor technique and ludmilla made a tutorial about it on YouTube. Since I don’t know about posting links on forum, anyone can do a YouTube search for “how to make polymer clay watercolor technique with acrylic paints” should show results. I am good at faking an understanding of colors, perhaps it just shows because I am used to certain colors in my art. lol I’m not sure if I should start another thread to show my raccoon knight since I posted the finished here, my lack of knowledge on internet etiquette could fill libraries with what I don’t know. I promise to start a new thread for my next project, got so many… have to make a rafeeki holding up pumba for family, after that… I have an idea for a diorama a girl walks through a mirror in one scene and comes out of another mirror in a fantasy theme castle room… so many projects so little time🙂

                                                        "Oh look a white rabbit!"

                                                        #539997
                                                        Pine Cone
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                                                            HH, nobody could be more clueless than me about internet etiquette :lol: I don’t even do Facebook or Twitter, so I’ve got no experience. And with my little data plan, I can’t do much. That video would probably be too long for me, but I’m going to try and listen next time I go to the library. They seem to have computers for the public, so I should be able to catch it in May or June sometime. Thank you.

                                                            —————–

                                                            I know this forum is kind of slow, but I hope you’ll post a thread for your Knight here. If you do, hopefully there will be lots of lurkers and even a few comments as time goes by.

                                                            I’m trying to think where else you could cross-post it. Maybe you could put “X-post” in the title and also put it in the Sculpture forum. I just now went there for the first time. Oddly, they didn’t have a sticky with forum guidelines BUT they had a sticky where someone asked a question that involved polymer clay. So you might be golden. I don’t know :angel: I just want everyone to see it!

                                                            —————–

                                                            I can’t wait to see those projects you described – amazing ideas – I’ll keep checking for you and looking forward to seeing more of your work!!! All those plans and all your talent – you’ve got a lot of fun and adventure in your future :)
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                                                            name — gravity and grace along the path

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                                                            #540005
                                                            WoodsonBrazos
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                                                                Sorry for the very late reply…lost my password for this site lol Thank you for the kind words and tips, I’ve since been sticking primarily with basic acrylic paints, will look over the info you folks have provided here, again much appreciated. Honey Hatter, that is a very cool sculpture!

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