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So I know that there are a bunch of people here who use sculpy clay to do stuff…
I’ve started palying around with it because I like the idea of being able to do stuff, walk away and come back later and not have to worry about it setting up or drying out but am getting frustrated.How do you make it soft? I’ve kneaded mine and it takes forever to warm up and get beyond a really tough state. Its never gotten to be more than tough clay which makes it hard to shape and sculpt.
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Once you bake it can you add more and rebake it with out the new bits falling off? Do you need anything special to make the new sculpy stick to tha already baked stuff?While I don’t use Sculpey, I have started working with polymer clay.
Just 2 words… PASTA MACHINE!! It makes kneading clay SOOO much easier. It is a definite must have for me.
Sculpey also makes something called Diluent if you feel your clay is short on plasticizer. As for rebaking, you can use a dab of liquid clay to help if you are adding clay to your piece.
I’m a bit new to clay, so someone else may have more info. 🙂
Are you using regular white sculpy or super sculpy? Both should be fairly soft. If its hard and crumbly, it would be easiest to just buy a fresh batch.
I would also recommend a pasta machine. 3-4 passes is all it takes to soften up fresh super sculpy, unless you are working in a very cold environment.
I don’t have any experience with adding fresh clay to a baked sculpture and then re-baking it, but Melody does. Sculpy also makes a special bake-able glue for bluing together soft clay and baked clay.
http://www.sculpey.com/products/accessories/bakeable-adhesivesHow confident are you that the sculpey you got is new and fresh? Old sculpey gets very hard and can be trouble to get back to a state that is easy to work with. Many stores will have sculpey sitting on the shelves for too long if they don’t sell it fast enough– not on purpose usually, but it just gets tough after a while.
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I will have to look into a pasta machine!
I’ve tried regular sculpy, super sculpy, fimo and a no name brand from the local Michaels and had the same issues with all of them. I know some of it can be air temp (winter v summer) but it is never rock hard or crumbly. I can always squish a corner (yes I am that person) before I buy, I just can’t get it to a really workable consistency like I can get with clay or apoxie sculpt. I’ve also gotten various bits from 2 local art supply stores and three different Michaels and always had the same issues.
I use sculpey pretty much daily. If you’re hands are cold or the clay is (lets be honest, it’s summer and some of us have the a/c down to 65), you can use a heating pad. Just put the clay in a plastic baggie and fold the heating pad over it. Put the heating pad on medium high and let it sit for 15-20 minutes. It gets very nice and soft by that point and makes it so much easier to condition by hand. It will not bake your clay or anything. I do this every day. Works wonders.
I don’t really have advice, I’m always trying ways to get sculpey harder because I find it so soft! I find original sculpey (the white 1lb bars) to be way softer than super sculpey. And I guess you can use oil to smooth it or mix it to make it softer. You can use a food processor or a pasta machine to mix it up.
Guess it’s a preference thing 😛 *snuggles kato and sculpey firm*
If you mix thoroughly…I’ve had success getting a specific working texture by blending super sculpey and sculpey firm. But..those are the two hardest grade sculpey clays.
I also find regular sculpey to be too mushy for my taste…so I’m not sure what to suggest for getting it even softer. Perhaps the large blocks of white sculpey are softer than the smaller purchasable blocks?
Once I purchased a standard sized black sculpey block and found it to be harder than the usual sculpey I knew from the past (before that point the only plain sculpey I had used was the large blocks of the white). Maybe it was older…maybe the smaller blocks stiffen up quicker (like going stale) quicker than the larger portions, I don’t know.
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