Can I use nail polish on POLYMER clay?
Some nail polishes (clear or colored or sparkly) are safe used directly on polymer clay, some aren't. The ones that are safe are water-based. The ones that aren't safe directly on polymer clay are petroleum-solvent based. It can be hard to know which polishes are which though. The clear ones "for acrylic nails" will be acrylic and fine. Many of the ones called "enamels" won't be, and will begin dissolving the polymer clay immediately or over time, making it sticky or worse (those can be used *on top of* a coat of water-based finish or paint though--just not directly on polymer clay.) You can find a list of some of the okay and not-okay ones on the Finishes page of my site though if you're interested: http://glassattic.com/polymer/finishes.h... (click on "Fingernail Polishes," under Other Acrylic-Water-Based Finishes) Neither of those kinds of nail polish will affect the color of the clay itself, but some may affect any *non-permanent colorants* you use under or in the clear finish. It's a lot cheaper though to use one of the two clear finishes preferred by most experienced clayers... a specific brand of polyurethane, or one of the cyanoacrylate floor polishes. Either of those (or other clear liquids) can have microfine glitters, metallic powders, etc, mixed into them, then used as "paint" too. See my answers for more on those too: http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?... http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?... P.S. Not sure what you mean by "base coat." . .
Can I use nail polish to glaze my polymer clay?
You can use it but it will yellow over time. Look in your craft store for glossy Mod Podge (red bottle) but this stuff can be finiky. If not cured all the way it gets sticky so the best way to cure it is to hang your peices to dry, and leave them hanging for 48hrs or if it really humid it can take up to a week and it won't survive prolonged contact with water. Another option is to look into your local hardware store for pledge with future floor polish, coat your items then put them back in the oven at 275 farenheit for 10 minutes then dunk them into ice water. The last option I can think of is a spray acrylic finish.(also found at hardware stores) Just spray it over your creations and hang to dry or just spray one side, let dry then spray the other. I hope all this info helps. Any of these options will work (I use Mod Podge) I also apologize for any typos or misspelled words.. I hate phone keyboards Good Luck!!!
Is it okay to glaze polymer clay with clear nail polish?
I can't tell you if the polish you bought has UV protection or not (that's what keeps clear plastics from "ambering" or yellowing over time with enough exposure to UV/sun light or even heat). Most polishes don't say one way or the other. Otoh, if you never expose your items to a large amount of sunlight/etc over the years, even ones without UV protection should be fine. The other issue is whether the polish you bought was water-based acrylic/plastic or a petroleum-solvent-based polish (sometimes called "enamels"). Fingernail polish comes in both versions though not usually indicated on the bottles. Not sure if one has become more dominant than the other nowadays except that perhaps the acrylic ones are more widespread since fake fingernails have become so much more popular which are acrylic and need acrylic polishes. If the finish you used was not tacky after a few days of drying, you probably have a water-based polish. If not, you can try just putting a water-based clear finish on top which often works. Or you could try "reheating" which would mean you'd put your baked clay with finish into the oven for 5-15 min at around 225 F which can sometimes work too. There are much cheaper and often better clear finishes to use on polymer clay than fingernail polishes though. You can check them out in some of my previous answers: http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?... http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?... "rebaking" -- http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?... Since you're new to polymer clay, you may want to check out at least this one of my previous answers, plus my whole website listed below under Sources: http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20120520172540AAFxJIc .
Can you use nail polish to paint over polymer clay?
You can, but only if it's a water-based polish... not an "enamel". It can be hard to tell which is which though, but if it says it's okay for acrylic fingernails it's okay. (Some paints and clear finishes contain petroleum-based solvents instead of being water-based and will immediately or eventually begin dissolving the baked clay making it sticky or gummy.) You could put a coat of something safe-for-polymer-clay on the clay first though, then put your fingernail polish on that, which should work. Some possibilities for clay-safe materials would be acrylic paints or gesso, clear acrylic sealers/finishes for bare wood, various art "glazes" and acrylic mediums, and other things...check these pages for lots more detail on which clear finishes and also paints are safe directly on polymer clay: http://glassattic.com/polymer/paints.htm http://glassattic.com/polymer/finishes.h... HTH, Diane B.
Why does my polymer clay keep breaking?
What exactly type of clay are you using? You mentioned recommended brands. Well, a brand such as 'Sculpey' (and 'Sculpey is just a 'brand' name) has various strengths of clays within their line of clays. SculpeyIII is brittle after baking. However, Sculpey Premo isn't. In fact you can roll it out for bookmarks and bend it in half without breaking. I'm curious as to why you are baking your canes before slicing them. The majority of clayers slice their canes prior to baking them. The only other exception that I heard of is for nail art where they slice tiny tiny canes extremely thin after baking. Is your oven accurate? If the clay does not reach 275F it will not cure, no matter how long you leave it in. You never want to raise the temperature over 295F. It will create toxic fumes. Never shorten the time of baking.
Can you use clear nail polish instead of glaze on polymer clay?
Yes you can. It works ok, but the best glazes to use are floor glazes such as the ones used in this video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lk1yIYSXJNo if you want to get serious about protecting your charms and giving an awesome shine. Hope this helps :) <3
What is the difference between polymer clay and air dry clay?
First, these days “clay” is any smooth or fairly smooth material that’s supple enough to shape. In the old days (and often still to those who’ve used only this kind), “clay” is still restricted to the type that’s dug from the ground, then dried, then often made stronger (or has had a special glaze added) along with a trip or two to a kiln.Polymer clay is oil-based and basically a plastic; it’s permanent whether raw or hardened (so needs no sealing), can take much more detail than almost any other “clay,” and comes in many colors or can be colored and those colors can be quite saturated and also comes in special colors like translucent (no pigments added) or with inclusions creating “mica clays” or with more particulate inclusions; it can be made to look convincingly like many other materials (ivory/bone, wood, metal, rock, jade, pearl, and many more); it won’t shrink while hardening; etc.Polymer clays can do many things that other clays can’t do. It can be used for “sculpting” as they can but can also do many other things as well (caning would be just one example).Since it’s oil-based it won’t technically “dry”to harden like air-dry clays since there’s no water in it to evaporate out, but will “cure” (polymerize) to harden with exposure to enough heat or UV light. The usual temperature for curing polymer clay is 275 F, and for 15–20 minutes per quarter-inch of thickness though can often be baked for less time and can also be baked much longer if the temp is kept reasonably the same; it’s most often cured in a home oven or toaster oven.All polymer clays will be very strong if thick and rounded, but a few of the lines will be brittle after curing if thin or projecting. It will never be as “rock hard” on the surface as earthen clays, but most people won’t notice.If interested, there’s more on the differences between air-dry clays and polymer clay in the 2nd half of my previous “Best Answer” at YA:Polymer Clay or Paper Clay?And my website has loads more detail about all those things, and more:Contents Table (to browse and see all that’s covered at the site, scroll all the way down that page)
Where can you find polymer clay in India (offline/online)?
It seems to be available in India now, even online: http://www.thecraftshop.in/5065-...
Can you paint sculpey with nail polish?
Almost always, when polymer clay is painted it's done after baking/hardening. You can get lots of tips on painting polymer clay on this page at my site: http://glassattic.com/polymer/paints.htm (click esp. on "Painting On Top of Polymer Clay") And you can get loads of info on creating color in or on polymer clay in various other ways in my answer here: http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?... As for using nail polish, that would depend on whether the polish is water-based or not. Any polishes that will work on fake plastic nails should be fine on another plastic, polymer clay. You wouldn't want to use any polish that calls itself an "enamel" probably though since it could be petroleum-solvent based and begin to eat into the polymer clay over time. Another technique would be to first coat the (baked) polymer clay with a water-based polish, or a clear water-based finish like decoupage medium (Mod Podge, etc) or just thinned down permanent white glue like Elmer's Glue All, tacky glue, etc, or water-based polyurethane or Mop N Glo, etc. THEN you can use any paint/polish you want. You can read more about paint and clear finishes that can and can't be used directly on polymer clay on the page above and on this page: http://glassattic.com/polymer/finishes.h... (click on "Fingernail Polishes", or on any of the other clear-finish options) And btw, you might want to think about using other polymer clays than Sculpey III (or a few other Sculpeys) since they have some disadvantages: http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=Ah3TmxMH1b9StHBwtkaivEIW53NG;_ylv=3?qid=20091225104704AAIDebT .