any help and tips would be great TIA

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ten tiny toes babies nursery
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any help and tips would be great TIA

Post by ten tiny toes babies nursery »

hi ladies I've ordered my clay, been looking on line at how these are made, my question is what do you use to smooth the clay do you sand once there baked, or s there a easier way, also is there a simple guide on how to do a full bodied baby, a newbie could follow, xxx and any other tips would be great TIA
NewbornNestLori
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Re: any help and tips would be great TIA

Post by NewbornNestLori »

How is your sculpting coming along, since this post?

I don't check this part of the forum, like I once did back in the day.....but if you have more questions, just let me know & we can chat :heart:
So your question is SMOOTHING....? Aaaaahhhh....the biggest question EVERY new Sculptor questions, is smoothing! So, heres a few tips:

1.) Smoothing will get easier & easier with time. I know. I know. That's a cheesy statement, but its soo true!! I was banging my head against the wall :banghead: trying to figure out how to freegan smooth my durn clay when I was a Noob. I was beyond frustrated too. But the more I sculpted, the easier smoothing became. I swear its true.

2.) I do a lot of my smoothing PRE-bake. I take a tiny tiny bit of smoothing oil & a paintbrush, and when I'm nearing the end, I will squirt some of the oil on a little plate or paint well & brush it in the areas that I need to smooth. Its super effective around nostrils, eye crevices, ears, neck rolls, etc. You can also use baby oil, but just go lightly with ANY oil. And if you do use oil for smoothing, be sure to let it sit for a few hours (covered lightly) because its a serious Dust Bunny Magnet at this point! :shock: And let your clay "rest". This will get that oil absorbed into your clay & it just sorta settles down. But DON'T use too much.

3.) After you bake & cool your sculpt, you can also do some sanding if necessary. You will find if your using the smoothing oil pre-bake, then you actually won't really need to sand. But if you do, be sure to start with a larger grit sandpaper, working your way down to the finest grit you can buy. When I do need to sand, I wet-sand. I find wet-sanding works best for polymer clay.

4.) Did I mention the "TIME" thing? :D Don't beat me up!! lol....But I promise you, if you follow the 3 P's....you'll be thanking me later. Practice. Practice. Practice. :dance:
Practice really does make perfect!!

Happy Sculpting
:heart: Lori

P.S.----> I think Jack Johnston sells Smoothing Oil? I haven't looked in years, as I still have a bottle, but thats where I used to buy it.
There has to be others selling it too...but honestly, if you cant find it...use baby oil. Sparingly.
NewbornNestLori
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Re: any help and tips would be great TIA

Post by NewbornNestLori »

I wanted to give you another idea on smoothing out your clay, PRE-BAKE.....
I use something called "Orange Goop" which is the orange gritty soap, that a lot of men use on their hands, to get off oil, grime & grease.
I find mine in the Automotive section of my Walmart. A bottle will last you approximately 19 years....or more, lolololol.....I simply squirt a little bit out, just a smidge will do ya & use a small paint brush to get into the itty-bitty-nooks & crannies of your Sculpt. It works wonders, as the teensy balls (the grit) which is similar to the feeling of sand, helps to really smooth your clay out. It also has a very mild oil in the cleanser as well. Try it & let me know how you love it! Just like with a smoothing oil, you want to let your clay rest a minute, before baking in your oven.

Hope this helps!
Smiles,
:heart: Lori
carlie67
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Re: any help and tips would be great TIA

Post by carlie67 »

Thank you Lori! I really needed to hear this tonight! I'm trying my hand at sculpting 8in babies. Ugh I just can't past the face, let alone the hands and feet. I've banged my head on the wall and thrown a clay or a few times lol! I'm going to start working on my 3rd head tomorrow. But after reading your comments I know it just takes practice, practice, practice!!! I'll hopefully get there someday. XX
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~Valerie~Anne~
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Re: any help and tips would be great TIA

Post by ~Valerie~Anne~ »

carlie67 wrote:Thank you Lori! I really needed to hear this tonight! I'm trying my hand at sculpting 8in babies. Ugh I just can't past the face, let alone the hands and feet. I've banged my head on the wall and thrown a clay or a few times lol! I'm going to start working on my 3rd head tomorrow. But after reading your comments I know it just takes practice, practice, practice!!! I'll hopefully get there someday. XX
It definitely takes practice. My first baby looked like an alien. But I told myself as long as I saw improvement with each one I'd keep going. I'm glad I did. The last head I did I actually think is cute! :D
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Emma Rose
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