Wrought Iron Railings?????

I am rather in over my head this week ...in more ways than one...

My "professional" life is frantic right now.  Note to self: NEVER send out work to individuals whose skill sets are uncertain, regardless of how much there is to do or who recommends them...

On to the question for this week.

Jenn from Looking Glass Miniatures asked:  How to make miniature wrought iron railing? I have one tutorial for railing but the link is at home and i found it hard to understand.

She included the link.  Miniature metal railings how to

I had a quick look at it and while it appears relatively straightforward (aren't most things that often prove disasterous in the end??), I suspect it is not as easy as it looks.

I have no idea which metals work the best, what can be soldered to what.

...and how   ...and where to get supplies.

I confess that when I was planning the Alice Project, I really wanted an ornate gate at the entrance to the tea party garden.

Something like this...

......or this...

However, I quickly put it aside as something I had not the talent nor the time for.

The question intrigues me, as I am still of a mind to try a gate....sometime...soon...maybe.  I've not had a second to research it, though. 

However, I am sure sure someone knows the answers so I am tossing this one to the masses and hoping an "expert" steps up to the plate.

Come on...I know you're out there!!

Tabitha

You Can't Tell a Book by it's Cover....

The lovely Kate from Whittakers Miniatures asked:

I love making books Susan but half the time my method always seems to take forever and Im always wondering if there are easier ways!! Open and closed books would be a good question and answer, how people cut their paper, age it, do the covers, even to how to make mini proper book covers with front, back and spine images.

Books are so very versatile.  The can be used in almost any setting and time period from Ancient to Modern.  They are the kind of detail that adds dimension and depth to a miniature setting and they are not hard to make.

Book can be a variety of sizes also.  Medieval or magical setting can handle books of a much larger scale than an 18^th century or more modern setting.

They can be covered with paper, leather, faux leather or cloth; be open or closed; single or stacked.

One of the best miniature closed book tutorials that I have seen was done by Kris Compass from 1 Inch Minis.  Suffice it to say, I use my own adaptation of her technique now whenever I make books.

Can you believe that I used to cut strips of paper and then make individual pages and then glue the binding??!!  Took forever!  And the pages were never even…..

The tutorial is in 2 parts with a very informative addendum about printies for pages.

1 Inch Minis Book Tutorial part 1

part 2

Printies for pages    read through the comments on this one for important information!

Here is an example of some books I made using the technique.  I used scrapbook paper or paper I printed from the internet.  Some of the “leather look” is actually a scrapbook paper I found at JoAnn’s.  Some is real leather from old wallets or gloves from the thrift store.  For the edging, it is really important to use extremely thin leather. 

To get the coloration on the edges (I didn’t want white), I used a stamp pad with either a gold or champagne ink or an “old paper” or “tea dye” ink.  The last two are by Tim Holz.  I like those for aging paper.  I did that before I attached the cover.  The stamp pad ink allows the pages to be opened whereas paint or marker will make them stick together.  Your choice.

These books open but have blank pages. The largest (a ledger) is about 7/8 inch longer x 5/8 inch wide.

Of course, sometimes, you don’t want the pages even and you want your books bigger and a little less “nice” looking.  Here is an example of some of the Magical books I’ve made.   They are thicker, wider and a whole lot dirtier.  I used a less delicate leather on all of these and then did all manner of things to it to age the leather.  I sanded, inked, stained, re-sanded, re-stained….until I was satisfied.  I also used chalks and sometimes plain old dirt.  These pages of these books tend not to open because I have used a gold paint on the edges. 

However, I have made open books.

I start with the same book “blank”, attach the cover and then press the book open, usually in the middle.  If you have glued the binding sufficiently, it should not fall apart.  For open books, I used paper that has been aged to a cream or tan color.   I’ll often put a bookmark ribbon done the center by gluing a piece of silk ribbon into the binding at the top and then draping it over the page. 

You can make the two “printed” pages several ways.  I usually print out whatever I want on a pre-tea stained piece of parchment or tracing paper.  Then I cut it to size and glue it over the blank page.  The parchment pretty much disappears.  Or you can just add two printed pages (same paper as the book) to the center with glue and press them back.  Then add the silk ribbon.  It will be necessary to weight the book in the open position for a while to keep it from closing.  I press it between two pieces of thin wood with spring clothes pins.

Of course, there are other ways to make books…

When I was filling this bookcase, I cut foamcore to size, painted the edges with gold paint and covered them with scrapbook paper.  They cannot be removed from the bookcase.

These books in Professor Pimm’s study are made from balsa wood cut to size.  The edges were stained with a wood stainstick and lightly gilded.  Then they were covered with thin leather.

You can add paper details to the leather covers easily.  One trick I learned to make the paper look like part of the leather is to rub it lightly with petroleum jelly (just a teensy dab) and buff it with a cloth.  It soaks into the paper and makes it somewhat translucent.

If you are even the least bit computer literate, you can reduce and print out covers and text for your mini books.  Of course, on the smallest sizes, it will not be legible so it really just depends on what your final goal is. 



So that’s what I know.  What about you? 

Is there something you’ve learned while trying to make your mini books? 

Is there something I’ve missed that you have some questions about? 

Do you have any suggestions or know of another good book tutorial?

I'm waiting to hear from you.....

Tabitha

...technical difficulties...

...ahem...due to my inability to upload (or is it download....) pictures tonight, there will be a slight delay in the posting of this week's Q&A. 

With any luck, I'll have this sorted out by tomorrow....

Hope you all are not too shattered by this news.... :-)

Carry on....

Tabitha the Totally Inept

???????

Hi all!

I haven't gotten any questions for this weekend yet. 

Anyone have something they're buring to know?

...or even mildy curious about?

Send me an e-mail at   tabithacorsica@gmail.com

Later,

Tabs

A Sticky Situation....

.... in other words...GLUE!!

What’s your favorite?  What works best for you in certain situations?

There are lots of explanations/tutorials about various glues on the web and this is not intended to be another, but one of the things I find lacking in those descriptions is personal experiences.  We’ll focus on adhesive miniaturists are most likely to use.

Ya know, just because something is supposed to work in a certain way doesn’t mean it will. :-/

PVA

We have all heard of PVA glue (polyvinyl acetate).  Here’s some helpful info from the site  This to That:  I’ve add my comments in Red.

PVA (Polyvinyl acetates) are probably the most common adhesive on the market. They come in a variety of formulas, all ever so slightly different, and specific to what they are designed to glue. Here are some tips for using polyvinyl acetates.

§  All PVAs are designed to work on porous materials only. This means they won’t work very well when gluing plastic to plastic or plastic to wood, for example.  It might seem to hold initially but the bond is not permanent.  Of course, if you don’t want the bond to be permanent, that’s another story.  I use PVA to glue plastic window panes to the frames of the windows because it dries clear, doesn’t damage the plastic and I can remove them easily if I want.  It holds enough to keep them in place because there is very little stress put on that bond.  So it suits my purpose….

§  PVAs are water based, and clean up with warm soapy water.

§  PVA is only toxic to ingest, it does not emit any harmful fumes, and is not hazardous to touch

§  PVA sets best in good air circulation, at room temperature.

§  PVAs need pressure to adhere.  Only slight pressure is usually necessary, depending on what is being glued.  I use the little non-toothed clamps made specifically for electronics on paper or card.  I have some clamps for wood or I use tape.  When I use my gluing jig, the pressure from the magnets seems to be enough.

§  Most PVAs are not water proof. The yellow PVAs have a higher moisture resistance than the white ones, but neither are completely water proof.  If I want a wood join to be as strong as the wood itself, I always use a yellow “carpenter’s” glue. White glue works but not nearly as well in my experience.  Also, the yellow PVA is not flexible when dry; it forms a nice, hard bond.  Keeps the legs from wiggling on the table…

§  Never allow your PVAs to freeze. This breaks down the polymers and your glue will be rendered useless!  Found this out the hard way….

§  Yellow PVAs have a shorter shelf life than white PVAs.

§  Be wary of overpriced PVAs that claim to be for a specific use. There is very little difference from one PVA to the other and nothing that should increase the cost. Except that I find Elmer’s, while it dries clear initially, tends to yellow over time and is not very flexible.  Alene’s and Sobo both dry clear.  I personally prefer the flexibility of Sobo when I am looking for that particular trait.  Weld Bond (sometimes referred to as “Wellbond”) is also a PVA glue but, according to its manufacturer, the polymer is “catalyzed”, changing its molecular structure and, apparently, making it stronger.  Allegedly, it can glue some non-porous materials such as stone, glass and concrete but it requires clamping for up to 4 hours and 24 hours to cure.  I cannot think of an application for miniaturists except for perhaps large dollhouses…even then, I’d think wood glue adequate.

§  Although PVA is not gap filler, in some cases you can add sawdust to it to increase its gap filling ability.  I’ve never done this, nor have I felt the need…

Another use of PVA glue is as a sizing.  Meaning it helps paint to adhere to surfaces.  I got this suggestion from Nikki Rowe of Witch and Wizard miniatures when I was trying to get acrylic paint to adhere to Fimo polymer clay.  I had all but given up when she made this suggestion.  I coated the item with thinned white PVA, let it dry and then painted.  The paint went on smoothly with no streaking and peeling or flaking.  I re-baked the item and the paint seems to be permanently attachedJ. 

CA = cyanoacrylate

CA glues, better known as “Super” glues. These glues hold fast, some almost immediately, bind many non-porous things together and come in several viscosities.  Zap-a-Gap is well known to miniaturists but there are others which work in a similar fashion.   They are sometimes used in conjunction with PVA glues as the bond formed can be brittle, such as in miniature flower or plant construction.  The CA glue makes the initial bond while the PVA makes the more permanent one.  There are accelerators for CA glues but I don’t use them as I have a bad respiratory reaction to them in aerosol form.

Here is very interesting article by a model maker.

Personally, I use CA glues for adhering a variety of non-porous things together, such as tiny beads to metal or porous things to non-porous things, such as metal to wood, although I don’t use it exclusively as I find it “frosts” glass or crystal (beads and such).  I have found a CA glue which DOES NOT frost crystal or glass, however.  It is called Sinbad Glue, manufactured in Germany and available in the US.  I imagine it is also available in Europe and the UK. 

Here is an interesting review of it. It is a medical grade CA glue. I do have the accelerator for this as it can be applied to one side of what is to be glued with a brush, thus no aerosol fumes.

 I noticed several dollhouse retailers are carrying it at shows now. I bought mine directly from the importer who had a stand next me at a show several years ago.  It is a little pricy but when gluing glass or crystal beads, it is all I use now.  I have both the liquid and gel formula and I also use the Silicone Glove hand cream which does work as indicated….when I remember to use it. :-/     Sinbad Glue

E6000 Industrial Strength. 

This glue was suggested to me by a local jewelry artist and is probably my all-time favorite glue for non-porous materials.  It is a clear, multi-purpose adhesive, of medium viscosity with a self-leveling formula.  It adheres to more surfaces than virtually any other glue I’ve worked with.  Because it does not dry instantly, you have 3-5 minutes to make adjustments before the glue begins to set.  It takes 24 -72 hours to fully cure.  I use it, along with a CA gel (and the Sinbad glue) for all my jewelry-like doo-dads such as the telescopes, scales, orreries, etc.  It does have fumes that might bother some people but no worse that CA glues or their accelerators.

Is there a unique application you’ve discovered for an adhesive?  Does anyone have experience with epoxy glues?  What about glues for plastics? Any questions about the glues discussed or additions you can make?  Let’s hear from YOU!

Added:  Here a few links for Quick Grab.  And Here also.

 Tabitha

In Search of the Perfect Color...

...or, sometimes red and yellow DON’T make orange!

Janice of On Being Minimom recently posted a question about mixing colors:

"I am not very good at mixing colors, is there a site that gives you a mixing list...?"

Today, I read some posts on Facebook from a very frustrated miniaturist trying to make orange from red and yellow. Sounded like a topic that might interest more than a few people so here’s what I’ve discovered.

Most of the information I’ve reviewed deals with artist acrylic paints, which come in a tube or a jar, as opposed to the type of paint we are used to using called acrylic craft paints. There are rather significant differences between the two.

Artist Acrylic Paints
Artist acrylic paints use pure pigments, usually a single pigment or color. Each pigment dries to a different sheen, from matte to very glossy. Depending on the pigment, colors range from very transparent, semi-transparent, semi-opaque to opaque. These values are always indicated on the tube when using artists paint.

Within this category, there are both “student grade” and “artist grade” acrylics. The available colors are standard, though, regardless of grade. You will find colors such as Cadmium Yellow, Cobalt Blue and Phtalo Green. The colors are intended to be mixed to create different hues. The paints can be used as they are, directly from the tube or jar, but they are usually thinned with water or an acrylic medium.


Craft Acrylic Paints
Craft acrylic paint is made using fillers & opacifiers to allow the paint color to cover another color. Craft paint generally dries to a matte finish unless it indicates “gloss” or “shiny” on the bottle. Often the individual colors are created by mixing several pigments together. This makes mixing colors somewhat tricky as one is very often likely to get dull brown in the end.

Although there is no “student” or “artist” grade in craft acrylics, there is great variety among brands in terms of coverage and consistency of color. Some of the more familiar Brands are Ceramcoat, Americana and FolkArt. JoAnne’s has now produced their own brand of craft paint. The colors ranges are vast. I once saw a color chart in the store that matched a color of one brand with that of another, but I cannot vouch for the accuracy of that comparison.

Personally, I use both the Artist acrylics and Craft acrylics in my work, depending on my project. If I am painting the interior of a room or the exterior of a dollhouse, I will actually use latex paint from the paint store. I used to buy a quart of the color I wanted (of course, it was way too much) but now it is possible to buy sample colors for most brands. I prefer the latex house paint for the big jobs as it goes on nice and smooth and clean, isn’t streaky at all and I don’t have to buy multiple little bottles. Some dollhouse shops sell this type of paint in the same small quantity cans…must be about a pint, I think.

I use the craft acrylics when I am doing different painting techniques such as crackling furniture or with aging effects. I used craft acrylics on the wicker chair in the previous post. Craft acrylics dry much faster and have a much shorter “working time” than artist acrylics so that might be a factor when choosing between the two.

When I paint on polymer clay, however, I am usually going to use the artist acrylics, mostly because I find they stick a little better. I used a combination of both artist and craft acrylics on the Carnival masks I make a while back.


Color Mixing
I think most crafters have a box load of craft acrylic paints… I know I do. I love the variety of colors within a hue…so many different reds and blues and greens…that would be almost impossible to reproduce with any consistency. And the reason for this is because these colors are not necessarily made from one or more pure pigments.

With an artist acrylic, a true “'Cobalt Blue”, for example, will contain cobalt pigment and no other. But a craft acrylic “Cobalt Blue” may be a mix of white, black, blue and green and possibly even violet, depending on the brand.


Blue + Yellow = ?

Here are the results of a little experiment I tried. I took equal amounts of Ultramarine Blue and Cadmium Yellow from both artist acrylics and craft acrylics. I also used a color called Bright Yellow of craft acrylics because it looked closer to Cad Yellow to my eye.

I mixed them together on a ceramic tile.



Then I painted each on white paper.

The resulting greens all vary but the mixture of the artist acrylics produces the clearest and cleanest color while the two greens from the craft acrylics are lighter and duller. Also, the green produced by the Bright Yellow craft acrylic is closer to the range of the acrylic, even though it is considerably lighter. When it comes to craft acrylics, name probably mean very little.

I did the same with Bright Red, Cadmium and Bright Yellow with the following results:

The Artist acrylics are on the left and the Craft acrylics are on the right

They are all "orange" of a sort but the Artist acrylics (on left)  produced a much clearer color...on the top I used red with a spot of yellow; on the bottom, yellow with a spot of red.  The "oranges" in the right photos are from the Craft acrylics and they are more of a salmon/coral or brick/terra cotta.

So that's all I know about mixing colors, more or less.  One rule of thumb is always start with the less intense color and mix a bit of the other in gradually.

Here are a few links I found:  all deal with Artist, not Craft, acrylics but the principles are the same.

Acrylic Painting for Dummies

Color Theory and Recipies

How to Mix Colors

I am sure that many of you  have developed your own tips and tricks! 

Care to share?  Let us hear from you!

Tabitha

Fighting the Effects of Aging…..or Not!

One of the “left over” questions from the original Miniature Q&A Blog had to do with aging. 

Aging paper or cloth using tea, coffee, inks and ….good lord!!....scorching  were discussed under the “Paper”  topic. 

But miniaturists age lots of other things, too.  

What are some ways to age wood or stone or upholstered furniture or air dry clay or walls made of styrofoam or Mod Rock or spackling paste???  The list goes on…..

I’ll start with a tip I learned many years ago when I took a class by Bill Lankford.  The building in question was a ½ scale Chicago brownstone.  The walls were molded brick and architectural detailing in stone, but the actual composition of the walls was some sort of light-weight foam.  After the bricks and stone were painted (and thoroughly dried), a wash of denatured alcohol and India ink was liberally applied.  Voila! Instant old building!

The proportion is lots of alcohol and very little ink….like maybe 4 – 6 oz of alcohol and 2-3 drops of India ink. I think the "official" recipe was 1 tbsp ink to 1 qt alcohol.  We brushed it on with a large brush but I have also used this in a spray bottle on painted Paper Clay brand air dry clay.  I have also brushed it on to raw and painted wood with good results.  Use an old brush or one of those cheap bristle brushes.

I do not know if the reaction is different if one uses isopropyl alcohol as opposed to denatured alcohol but because their chemical composition is different, I’d guess that there might be. My understanding is that India ink was made by suspending lampblack (or soot) particles in denatured alcohol or even vinegar. 

Which reminds of something I read on Casey's blog just the other day.   Woolly Vinegar

This reference suggests using tea on the wood prior to the vinegar solution.

Be careful with the India ink as it stains permanently and is almost impossible to get off your skin…wear  gloves and old clothing and protect your table tops and floors.

Here are two examples of aging.

The original looked exactly like the settee on the right...which was dark glossy green.  I dropped it a while back and the front leg snapped.  The repair was too obvious and I put aside until recently when I needed another chair for the Alice project. 

I painted it white and then used several washes of various colors of acrylics to achieve the "aged" look...the added mosses help, too.

This is a door I did recently for a castle ruin I'm working on.

 

I used the alcohol solution on the raw wood after gluing.  You can see how it did not take where glue had seeped into the wood, even though I wiped it off well...I thought!

For my purposes, it was ok.  I also used some of Tim Holz's alcohol inks.  And ended up using some of acrylic paints (both washes and straight) to acheive that green damp and the rust.

I aged the metal bits also with paint as the metal aging product I had did not work on these jewelry findings.  First I gave them a light coat of Testors enamel (flat black) as the water based paints wouldn't stick to the metal.  Then I used burnt sienna and some grey and green to achieve the aging.

Here a great site:  How to Make it Old

The author discusses supplies, techniques and how to use "layering" to age an entire room or setting! Thanks to Lyn from lynstinycorner for the link!

So what about the rest of you?  How do you age your miniature creations?  Do you have more than one technique you favor?   Let hear from YOU!!!

Onward and Upward!....

All the information which was on the original Miniature Q&A blog has been transfered here and is avaible in the previous 5 posts.  These cover photography, resins and other "water" media, how to age paper and woriking with various polymer clays. You can still comment on any of them if you like.

On Sunday evening, the next question will be posted.  If you have any suggestions or questions of your own, please send me an e-mail!  If there is something you don't think was fully covered about the previous topics, or your specific question wasn't fully answered, we'll explore them further.

You can also leave a comment with your question if you wish.

Tabitha

Photography

Some tips on photographing miniatures...

Susan from http://tabithacorsica.blogspot.com/ emailed me earlier in the week asking if I would create a post about photography and in particular photographing miniatures

I'm not too great at taking photos of my minis myself, and mostly just hope for the best. But I do use my macro button which will be explained in the tutorial link below.
My knowledge on this subject is limited and hoping we can all advise and give each other tips, links, info etc.

Useful Links and Tutorials

Here's a link to Artisans in Miniature http://www.artisansinminiature.com/ . Once there go to the top of the page and click Archive... here''s a link for that anyway... http://www.artisansinminiature.com/photo_2.html and then find the April 2009 issue of the free online magazine, to follow a great photography tutorial by Aim Member Vicky Guile
This is an absolutely brilliant tutorial explained in an easy and clear way. It helped me loads and improved my own photos.
But, I know I could get better results too if I could just find the time to read my camera user guide.


Here is more info on using the macro mode for your camera.
http://www.ephotozine.com/article/Using-your-digital-cameras-macro-mode-4848


Here's another great tutorial.
http://www.ifelix.co.uk/phomin.html

Michelle said…I must confess that I found out the best (or hard way!) way to photograph mini's was by trial and error! More errors at first! lol Even with the macro on (that's the tulip symbol selected to on), you mustn't be too near to your item other wise your photo will come out blurred.

If I want a photo to look like you're in the room I hold the camera in the room and just keep taking photo's till I find the best angle and photo and then take them proper ones. For low down shots (for items that are tiny and low down) I have the camera on the same level.

For a group setting I simply move back a little more than if I want a close up (still with the macro on, in fact all my photo's have been taken with it on). As with anything..practice makes perfect. :o))

BlacknickSculpture said... Thanks for the links Nikki. I also have trouble getting consistent results when photographing miniature work.

Besides the macro setting I've found using a tripod helps with eliminating a lot of the blurry results I used to get.

Further Sources for Water Effects and Resins

http://www.taxidermy.com/cat/18/artwater.html
http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-resin.htm
http://www.aircraftresourcecenter.com/tnt1/001-100/TNT067_making-water_Geraths/tnt067.htm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BClLennY94I
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xqdPZK4K5qc&feature=related


These are a set of tutorials in sequence.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zpU4DB5TC_w&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EB53w_qcD6k&NR=1
Then look for 3, 4 and so on.

Now onto liquid fimo... sculpey too!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tG8YbRoXOqg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zj2-29yQJXY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TVxQc67DFEk
http://modroc.com/liquidfimoinstructions.htm
http://www.garieinternational.com.sg/clay/shop/color_liquid_clay.htm
http://www.miniseum.dk/scenicwater.htm

Resins, Liquid Polymers and Scenic Water

Resins, liquid polymers and scenic water was also discussed.

Resins, liquid polymers and scenic water

Resin
I’ve only ever used resin (solid water) by deluxe materials. I'd like to try other resins but not sure which and so have held back. Other makes are available in larger amounts and so would be more economical but as for which I have not got a clue.
I know there are dyes in various colours the makers of this product advise to use, although I’ve only used oil paints in tiny amounts to colour it.
I really like it; it dries to a high shine and has given me the results I want. I've not had any problems with clay or items I’ve set into this product. I know a lot of people say clay and painted items when set in some resins can have a chemical reaction but I’ve not had one... as yet!
So far I’ve only used this product for small items like jars, bowls and cauldron and used a cocktail stick to drop it into each item. I also managed to fill some tiny glass well with this product like test tubes and tiny potion vials.

Liquid Polymers
Liquid polymers such as sculpey and fimo, I don’t use much. When I have I’ve always coloured them with oil paints.
Mostly I’ve used this product for open containers such as bowls, sinks, and cauldrons etc. I've mixed all kinds of materials into this product with no problem and find it to be great for a variety of projects. I’ve also used it to create broken and spilled jars of food with great success.
I don't however like it for filling glass jars and the like because for me it always separates away from the sides and leaves air bubbles. But I know many people use it for this type of item with great success.
I don’t use a syringe like many people suggest. It just never happens for me and refuses to come out.
I tend to use a small brush or cocktail stick to drop it into whatever I’m working on.
It doesn't set to a high gloss and so needs a varnish if that is the look you want.

 
Scenic Water Re-meltable
Scenic water I really like although I find its use is limited, especially for items I sell.
I colour it with water colour paints and food pigment colour powders like those used for decorating cakes. Normal food colouring is no good.
This product is like a gelatin/jelly so melts as such.
I take from the pot what I need, and heat in the microwave in a small ceramic dish.
It only takes a few seconds for this product to melt in the microwave.
Again i don't use a syringe and tend to use a brush to drop it into what I’m filling.
It's great for glass food and potion jars although you have to seal these jars incase the product warms and melts at a later date.
Because it can melt I seal jars with corks and pva glue and then cover with a cloth for potions.
Because it can melt I don’t use it for anything that's open. It picks up dust easily and isn’t easy to clean on open items like bowls and ponds etc.
But if it's for personal use and you don’t have the worry of it melting maybe in the post, it can be used for almost anything and with ease.

Brian at http://blacknick-sculpture.blogspot.com/ has run through a few products for making water effects.
Brian’s sculptures are fantastic and the water effects are so realistic its untrue.
Pop over there for a good read about creating water effects and also to see the wonderful sculptures.

Ewa at http: //thesunnyhours112miniatures.blogspot.com/ has been running tests over on her blog using a product called still water. I too have used this product in the past and found it also took a long time to dry but with good results. For items like ponds and large item i would suggest creating them in layer and once each layer is dry then building up. But then it would take forever for an item like a pond. I also found it shrank a tiny amount.

Nikki xxx

Tabitha Corsica said... The only product I have ever used is a 2 part resin by EnviroTex. It is available at Michael’s or other hobby stores. I think it was used primarily for high gloss, super-hard, coating on surfaces like tables or bars...at least that is what is shown on the package. It looks to be similar to the Solid Water (which I have never seen in the US). I have tiny bottles of dyes for this product which I got eons ago. I have not seen them offered for sale anywhere lately but then I haven't looked online. It dries crystal clear and rock hard and it sets up fairly fast. I have used it to fill containers and for a pond. It is possible to layer it (for the placement of fishes in pond or fruit in punch) without an obvious line.
I am interested in a product that I can get a pearlescent look from. Any suggestions?

The Old Maid said... That's funny because I posted today about something I found in my country - as there is nothing else here - and is called Still Water.

Merry Jingle said... Have you tried these professional concentrated jelly like food colourings with the Scenic water? I have some of them in fab colours and wonder how they react with it.

Michelle's Mad World said... Gosh, how fortuitous that this has come up today! I am about to fill a few jars and I was going to use FIMO decorating gel. I don't want my liquid to come away from the sides, so I will use Solid Water instead - off to order some as that's only one I don't have indoors! lol

BlacknickSculpture said... Just a quick thought about creating ponds. You can use a sheet of Plexiglas to create the surface of a pond. You use a Dremel tool to carve in the water ripples.If it is to be a deep pond you can airbrush the underside of the Plexiglas to simulate the center of the pond being deeper.
After you fix the Plexiglas in place and seal the edges well you brush on a coat of catalyzed clear liquid resin. The resin hides all the carving scratches etc. It is a fun technique and a lot faster than building up a pond with multiple pours.

Glenda said... I bought a product from US eBay called Krylon Triple Thick Glaze after seeing it on a Youtube minis demonstration. It worked well when I filled a bottle by dripping it in with a skewer. You can colour it with non-oily pastel powders. The only trouble is that I reacted to the smell which was quite strong - but as I'm supersensitive to chemical smells (they trigger my unidentified 'tiredness syndrome') it might not bother other people. I'm hesitant to do more testing with it.

Michelle's Mad World said... I have a question. I want to make my solid water murky. I also add some tiny bits of scenic soil and the like. I gather I would need to add white to make the resin opaque and then add the colours I want? Has anyone added ultra fine glitter, soil etc to this substance?

Creepy_Creations said... Oh this is some great information! I have tried Castin' Craft Clear Resin with not much luck. The first time I probably didn't mix right and it stayed tacky. The second time it didn't set up until a week later. I will definitely try the Envirotex!! I have the Liquid Sculpey and have not used it much. I was wanting a more clearer look like for cabochons and stuff. I read where adding pastels (grind to powder) to the liquid sculpey or fimo can add color. You can probably get the murky look or if you can find pearlescent pastels might work for that too? I have not tried adding the pastel to resin though.

nikkinikkinikki72 said... Hi Michelle. I wish i could advise you. I do know if you want something to be right in the middle it’s a good idea to pour just under half way, let dry, add your object and then more resin. Kind of like if you were making a multi layered coloured jelly. I've tried adding tiny light flecks of flower soft into resin but it sank. Maybe glitter would be different. Try it in something that's not needed before you use a good item.

Hi Jamie… Thank you for the advice and tips. I think i have seen people using the triple thick for cabochons and similar. I’ve seen some tutorials online and you tube. Try and do a search, I’m sure something will come up. You can also get pearlescent food colouring pigment powders, I wonder if these work in scupley and liquid fimo.

Star said... Hi, I just wondered, do someone know about a place in norway, sweden or denmark you can buy resin, still water or solid water?
I've tried to find out what it's called in norwegian without luck;/

Marion said... It reminds me of my problems with Scenic Water. I had bought it and never used it for a year or two or longer. Never got it to work. Does anyone know if it has a 'use by' date at all?

Eva said... I am experimenting with ceramic varnish...I think that it works at least for small ponds ...I will post soon about this when I can show you.