Types
& summary
...single
colors
......special clays
..."mud"
Uses
...many
...dyeing, inclusions
...more
pages here with scrap ideas
Hard (or baked)
scraps
...grating, grinding
Buying scraps?
(more
websites)
SCRAPS
There are always scraps of clay left over from a project or experiment! . . . but don't throw them away because there are many uses these scraps can be put to!
First,
you can make new colors:
MUD
...scraps of many different
colors can be mixed together to give what we call "mud" --kind of
a rosy medium gray
SINGLE COLORS
...scraps of similar
colors (e.g., blues and purples) or two or more colors that won't "cancel"
each other out since they're complementary colors top each other ... see more
below
BLACK
...(from adding certain materials)
MARBLED
COLORS
...scraps of any colors can be mixed together just until marbled
a little or a lot (can make scraps into smaller pieces before, or not) (see Color
> Marbling for more on that)
...if the scrap color are rolled
together, then rolled into a log and twisted, a log of twisted stripes
will result
DISCRETE COLORS not blended into one color
..James
Lehman's use of discrete scraps (or could be scraps) to create elements for
his "draped" bowls (see Vessels
for more info)
.....one section of chopped scraps is made with same color
scraps (green and light green), one is made with similar family colors
(red and orange with black), and one is made from unlike colors (red, white,
black)
...this bowl was started with scraps and finished with some cane work
to make the colors of the scraps work together better (it was made on a
ten inch glass gazing globe) James
http://www.akrobiz.com/polymer_clay/i_32.html
```````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
See
Color for much more on how to mix colors
together to get various new colors, which colors are complements
to each other, etc.
...Also, remember that darker
colors will always overwhelm lighter colors when mixed with them, so don't
use much of those unless you don't mind getting a darker value color.
If
your scraps contain
other materials, or just have other materials on their surfaces,
cut those parts off before combining, unless you don't mind the effect
they create in the new mix
(like metallic
leaf or lots of metallic powder, releases--esp. ArmorAll,
finishes, inclusions of
any kind, dust or pet hair)
...Also
remove any hard clay bits (cured, or just
really hard) because those won't go away in the new mix (except over a long time,
with lots more conditioning).
It's good to get in the habit of separating your scraps
into various containers, if you want "good" color scraps. The colors
could then be separated by:
...color families . . . for example:
......primaries
& secondaries --reds, blues, yellows, blues, greens, purples, oranges... black-based,
brown-based, etc.
......larger related colors -- reds, oranges, &
yellows... blues & purples... greens & bluish greens
....each
family could also be divided into light or dark
values, or tones (but if the scraps are left in hunks, those
could be in the same container)
When you need new colors, or just anytime,
you can then mix new colors from hunks in your containers.
NOTE: don't create new colors with colors that will neutralize each other ("complements" of colors --like mixing any type of red/orange with any type of green ....or like mixing grays, browns/beiges/etc, blacks with any colors)
Mixes from similar-colored scraps can also be used like shadow colors of the truer color if they've been toned down a bit with other colors.
Don't immediately give up on the clay if it gets messed up with another color. I'm sometimes amazed by the great colors I get by thoroughly mixing my scraps! Jody B
(special clays --scraps)
metallic
scraps:
...metallics (including Pearl) can be mixed together
to create beautiful new metallic colors
.....these can be similar colors like
gold and copper, or they can be the pre-colored metallics with a gold or silver,
etc., and Pearl can be mixed with any
.....metallics can also be mixed with
regular colors or translucents, though their effect and mica-shirting properties
may be changed depending on the amount used
..Yes, that was Kyle's egg that
inspired you....I gave him all my gold scraps and he proceeded to mush and
smoosh the scraps together as only a 5 year old could (but not thoroughly
mixing), and then he placed them on the egg. I smoothed it out for him and baked
it. Claire
....(original message for "satin swirl" eggs)
...I run my sheet of (gold) clay thru the pasta machine about 10 times. then,
roll this sheet out thin, and roll it up into a log. I have 2 different
sized logs of clay (one big, one small) so when you take a slice off the log,
the center is dark, and the outer edges are the bright gold. then I would run
those thick slices thru the pasta machine on #3, and apply the slices
to the egg. some of the slices I would fold in half before running thru
the machine to get different effects. ...and after baking, sand the crud out of
it, and buff. Kelley
...satin swirl eggs in various colors http://www.kelliesklay.homestead.com/satinswirleggs.html
lesson: http://polymerclaycentral.com/satinegg.html
tinted translucent scraps
... I had scraps from
a mokume gane I'd made using translucent clay and Pinata inks....I
fed them through the pasta machine til they looked good to me and then
covered a votive holder. All that ink and layers and tiny trapped air bubbles
came out really cool. Ginger
When scraps of many different colors are mixed together, the usually give what we call "mud," which is a slightly-rosy medium gray
... these may be colors
that are too mixed together to separate (from canes or anything), or just
those you don't want to bother separating
mud or discrete scraps
or marbled scraps can all be used in many ways
....using scrap
will also avoid wasting "good" clay and often $ave money...
molds
(& casts)
....I sometimes like to use my scraps
as mold-making material
.....also I often mix up the amount of clay in paricular
colors to make molds with a similar theme (for example, all face molds
will be green, geometrics molds purple, nature images blue, etc)... after baking
I can always tell at a glance which molds were created at the same time, or with
the same theme in mind.
......ditto for the casts from the molds that
I may keep with the molds (I find it helpful to make a cast of each of my face
molds especially so I can more easily see their details)
.......(I do the same
with SuperSculpey since it's mostly translucent and shows up the added colors
well)
Be sure and mix the colors completely though for molds
-- little tough to see what a mold is if it's made with marbled or choppy
colors. Diane B.
....shallow molds can also be clay "stamps"
(see stamping below)
armatures
& cores for covering with decorative clay
...beads
......larger
beads
..... any beads where a decorative layer of clay is added over
a pre-baked or raw base shape
.......(see
Beads
> Covering a Core, but also some Tube beads and Pillow
beads--under Hollow, but not hollow in this case)
...eggs
...boxes
...mini-furniture...
houses ... walls ...parts of dioramas
....masks
....sculpts
......larger
sculpts, or any where a decorative outer clay layer is desired
..........polymerclayexpress'
lesson on sculpting a very nice small dragon with scrap clay (over foil armature)
http://www.polymerclayexpress.com/dece2001.html
beads
with symmetrical patterns (not with a
core)
...mirror-image, or symmetrical, beads
.....(1 symmetry)....cut 2 thick slices from a rectangular
or square log of discrete scraps, then place them together in any of
their 4 matching orientations to create flat beads with a symmetrical pattern
(press the seam together)
..........each set of 2 slices will yield a slightly
different symmetrical pattern as one cuts further down the scrap log, but will
be in the same color family unless separate logs or hunks of discrete scraps were
added to create the log
...(4 symmetries) ...rectangular-solid logs
of scrap can be cut and rejoined so that they have 4 symmetries, one on each side...
for lessons and examples of those, see Beads
> Symmetrical Pattern Beads, Natashas, etc.
...Elissa's lesson
on making flat-backed, mirror-image hearts from scraps, in Polyzine (for
rounded backs, see Hearts sub-category) http://www.pcpolyzine.com/february2001/eheart.html
other beads
...swirled
bicone beads (see Beads > Flat
Rollers > Swirled Bicones)
stamp,
texture or carve the surface... then highlight or
antique or backfill the depressions (see just below)
(see Stamping...
Texturing ... Carving
> Backfill)
metallic
powders ...metallic leaf
....completely
cover or just highlight or your raw scrap object
with metallic powders (see Powders for more)
.......Balinese
Filigree might be one possibility
.......with crackled leaf, can always
color the cracks with other color to hide the mud, see Leaf
> Crackled)
....antique or backfill the
object with powders (of leaf if sand top later) or with a finish like Varathane
with powder in it, so that only the crevices have the color
....
I had made a mokume gane stack and had a lot of scraps left over so I smushed
it all together and came up with the most gorgeous (to me) reddish
brown color (like cordovan) ...then I antiqued it with black.
Ernie H (see Molds and Paints
for more)
paint over
(sculpts or other items) with paint
.....create a sculpt with scrap
or mud, then paint over with opaque paints (acrylics) --maybe using gesso as a
base coat
.....(can also use paints to highlight or antique or
backfill over dimensional or stamped, textured, or carved
scrap without painting entire object)
........using white acrylic
paint as antiquing can look quite cool
(see Paints
and Sculpting)
holders
...for anything
.... neat holders can be made
with scrap or other clay, since sometimes they don't need to be "decorative"
........(see Cutters-Blades > Small
& Medium cutters for a holder to make for lots of little plunger cutters)
.......
Jean S's holder for blades and pointy hand tools
http://s96.photobucket.com/albums/l163/DianeBB/tools/photo/294928803167058235/3
.........I
made a divided tray (clay separators in a box lid) to hold various colored powders
(eyeshadows, chalks, blush, etc.) to I could easily dip my brush into any color
I wanted at a glance
clay handles might be the same too (see
Tools > Handles)
canes
(use scraps in canes)
....Sarajane
suggests using scraps (in this case an excess of marbled green) as backgrounds
in canes .
....or use scraps as components of canes
...your images will then looked more "textured" or more complex
than if you used only a single color..DB
...some other canes use variations
of scrap too, like "faux fabric" which uses "worms"
of clay between layers (see Canes-Instr >
Ikat > Faux Fabric)
...mokume gane & other techniques
that require a loaf of layers could use scrap between the layers (Mokume
Gane, etc.)
.........Jenny's beads from shavings
of layers of twisted-scraps stack (website gone)
...likewise,
scraps could be rolled up on a sheet of clay to make a spiral cane (see
Canes-Instr > Spiral) or folded
cane (see Folded)
using canes
as scrap
(lots of ideas --many
applicable to general scraps as wel-- in Canes-GenInfo
>
Unloved Canes
... and Canes-Old)
sheets
...bits, shreds, etc.
.......to create heavily visually-textured
(busy) sheets of patterned clay by placing
bits, shreds, shavings, or clay gun extrusions of scraps onto a base clay
sheet (scrap may show through as background as well) ...see Sheets
of Pattern > Flattened, shreds)
...using
as base clay sheet underneath the "real"
sheet of slices to make it thicker
.......or
to make it thicker so you can then stretch it by putting it through
thinner openings of the pasta machine
.........doing the same for mica-shift
techniques ....see
Mica
.........creating
a sheet of very fine, scalloped lines much like the
combed, feather patterns you see inside the covers of old books (paste papers;
nonpareil), by dragging a stylus across the stripes of a sheet,
see Sheets of Pattern >
Marbled Paper/ dragged lines
cutters
....roll out a
sheet of scraps (or marble, etc. first), then cut out shapes to use for
pins, embellishments, etc.... if using unmixed scraps, can also embellish cutouts
with solid color clay bits for decoration or features, etc.
mosaic
tiles... and other inlay (for faux ivory, e.g.)
...
you can bake your leftover sheets of leftover colors, or chopped or marbled
colors, then cut them into tiles for mosaics you make later . .
.It really helps if they are organized by thickness (I usually make my
sheets at the #4 thickness. It's pretty easy to cut with an exacto
knife if you warm it up a little first). Jody B.
....or you can
bake and save for later cutting for mosaics, and inlays
(see
much more in Mosaics)
add
things
... run a bit of wire in and out of it ... add beads.
autumnae
... use with mixed media
practice
....caning or making a Skinner blend, etc.
....see
how many bead shapes you can come up with by rolling in your hands (also
useful for sculpting and onlay)... more
info in Beads > Rolling by Hand
as
inspiration
...What you do with scraps of clay and cane
are amazing...your color mixtures and personal style are always delicious
eye candy! ....Sometimes a handful of scraps rolled out or twisted
a certain way just 'says' something to you and a light goes on.
A lot of times I have stopped in mid-roll because the colors throw out an idea
of their own and I have to find a way to use it just like it is. . . . I had made
a small cane in some Flamingo-ish type colors and then tried to niggle it into
the 'look' I wanted which achieved nothing after an hour of screwing around. I
just gathered all the scraps into one big wad and twisted it with the intent of
making yet another mirror bead when the Flamingo face just jumped out.
Same thing with the sea gull pin. Some days you just have to let the clay do the
creating! michele 'luny'
dyeing & inclusions
The black
dye paste does work well, but it is mes-s-s-y!
.....You should probably wear rubber gloves and mask your work area well.
Your food processor will need a *thorough* cleaning afterward and don't use any
tools you can't clean well....(After it's mixed it, it doesn't seem to come off
on anything though.)
Munro's still carries it? http://www.munrocrafts.com
Accent Imports? (http://www. fimozone.com...gone)
(Nov 03.. Eberhard Faber does not make it. Since Fimozone is now affliated
with Amaco, and with my request, they are going to work on getting this product
again)
...We do carry the black dye for...polymer clay. We sell it in a
8-oz jar for $9.99 and you can find it on our website in the shopping section
under tools and things. We also carry a 1 gallon container of the black dye if
you wanted to purchase it in bulk and distribute it yourself within the guild
or class or what have you. The 1-gal container runs $44.95. Please feel free to
contact us via 1-800-989-2889 with any other questions you may have. Sean Donovan
....However, when I went back to their site to find what he was talking about
I couldn't locate it on any page. So my recommendation is to make an e-mail to
him from their site or contact him by phone. Tamila
Sue Screws of the Metro Detroit Polymer Art Guild used (black?) "Tempra
Powdered Paint" to mix in with her clay too and it worked pretty good (I was
told about it, didn't actually "see it" so I don't know the process) ...Tamila
... will it fade with UV light the way regular tempera does though?
Will other artist pigments work?
With my sun-dried, hard canes, after crumbling them I whizzed the pieces even finer in my food processor, then incorporated them into some "mud" I already had--and came up with my own version of Granitex! . . . use as a color, or mix with other colors ... or use in a cane or twisted-ropes or something that needs a bit of neutral color
I tossed out all my old spices
a few months ago, before I got into clay... Dang! Dang! Dang! Sunny
(see more
on what to do with these "scraps" in Inclusions)
more pages here at GlassAttic with scrap ideas
There
are many more categories here at Glass Attic to consider
for using scraps:
....for creating .....
Mokume Gane ..... Fauxs .....
Miniatures......
Paints
....for mixing
with ...Translucents
....for
extruding with Clay Gun
.......including
sanded multi-color filigree, and sanded woven braid
--for
ideas on using scraps for regular marbling, see Colors
> Marbling
--for
ideas on making blends, see Blends
...for
ways to store scraps, see Storage
Or
donate your scraps to a non-profit group (see more details in
Business > Donations)
grinding, grating, etc.
Chop up your hard scraps, then partially (or completely) food process the bits. Desiree
if your scrap waste (or burned) clay is already baked, grate it with a grater (small hole, or larger hole too?) or grind it with a food processor, coffee bean grinder, hammer (put clay in a pastic or other bag), or mortar and pestle (for that though, put a thick plastic bag inside so it can be used for spices again)
use
these gratings/crumbles/powder, as is, in one of the ways below
......or mix them with a binder of translucent or colored
clay... or into a liquid carrier like liquid
clay or Varathane/Future, etc, then use as below.
Use your speckles of hard clay by tightly squeezing it into a snake.... Wrap it in a sheet of some marvelous color and, again, you've got a kind of patterned thingy cane that can be used in other canes.... These canes make good cores of flower canes. Desiree
these crumbly
bits are good for landscaping . . . there is no such thing as
garbage clay around here, not in the mini world.
....crumble, then bake, and add it to raw clay for things like:
......texture
for flag stone , bumpies in stucco
..... or could be dirt,
gravel, pebbles beside a stream... or snow, or shredded
coconut. . . Nora-Jean
With
my sun-dried canes, after crumbling them I whizzed the pieces even
finer in my food processor, then incorporated them into some raw clay--and came
up with my own version of Granitex!
...NOTE: I put it
aside to use later, but by the time I got back to that project a week or so later,
the dried out pieces had actually become "reconsituted"
by the good clay so that when I ran it through the pasta machine a few times,
the speckles blended into the rest of the mud! LynnDel
He made "grog" of polymer with thin, baked polymer which he'd ground to a powder then screened, just like you do with fired earth clay. ....He mixed that into raw clay, which adds body for throwing, and gives a very earth-clay look to things.
It looks pretty
cool too to use the dryish crumbled pieces as is, in pasta-machined sheets
.... I have several that look almost like scenes . . . with varied layers
of fine, speckly colored bits of different colors. Diane B.
use crumbles of clay as inlay. I have seen jewelry where a sand-textured
mixture of a semiprecious stone (e.g., turquoise, coral) is mixed with
epoxy and inlaid into a depression in the surrounding metal. You see this frequently
with Mexican silver jewelry; it is a good way for the jeweler to use up fractional
pieces of stones. I've done the same with intentionally cured polymer clay that
I have ground up. Place the crumbled clay where you want the inlay to be, cover
this with a mixture of half Sculpey Diluent and half TLS. Mix it
all together and pat it into place.
....If you want a smooth surface
for the inlay, after you have mixed the crumbles and solution, pour a thin layer
of 1/2 and 1/2 solution over the mix so that you have a smooth layer of the fluid
laying on top. If you don't have this smooth top surface, you'll be sanding forever
(I learned the hard way). Celeste
Crumbles can also be mixed in with polymer clay to get a wonderful rugged texture for the clay. You just use the crumbles as you would colored play sand. Celeste (see Inclusions > Sands)
You
could also bake any still raw crumbles...
and then run them through the food processor to make a fine powder.
.... If mixed with translucent polymer clay, using enough fluid (Sculpey
Diluent or mineral oil) to keep the mixture
pliable, you;ll have a softer version of your original color. Celeste
.... (see more on this in Sheets of Pattern
> Other Sheets)
ordering cheap clay scraps
online .. .
--http://www.enasco.com
site, the scrap clay is under Arts and Crafts> Sculpture and Modeling> Polymer
Clays> Recycled Clay (though it's only 8 oz for $3.75 + SH --almost the same as
ordering regular clay bulk).
--danielsmith.com?
...sometimes scrap clay is sold on eBay, or one of the polymer or beads auction sites?
I just got my latest issue of the Fire Mountain Gems catalog, and you won’t believe what they’re selling now junk clay! Basically, they’re half-pound logs of mixed-up leftovers which they are selling for (get this) $4.80 each! That’s almost as much as the original clay was before they used it. Lisa
Crooked
River Crafts: http://www.crookedriverinc.com/
no longer carries Claymates, or scrap? (gone?)
scrap clay
trimmings and some assorted cane ends from ...
The 10 pound box of scraps was $20. Marilyn H.
Nora
Jean's many uses for scraps (organic)
http://norajean.com/Tute-List.htm
(look down under Tutorial list... many do use scraps or could use them)