August 14, 2008
Fimo Clay, Premo, Sculpey - Which is Best for Cane Making + Sculpting
1) With so many polyclay brands to choose from, how do you know which one is best for (a) polymer clay sculpting and (b) making polymer clay canes.
2) Instructions for mixing up your own Emerald Green Premo polymer clay recipe.
Today's questions were sent in by Pamela Reader and Karen Sexton. And here's your answers, girls!
Q-1: I was just wondering what the difference was between the different types of clay, where to use them, when to mix them and what to use for sculpture or canes. I could use an article on each of the clays and suggestions on type of art projects to use them for. ~Pamela Reader
A-1: There is actually quite a big difference between the different brands of polymer clay, even though they are all basically made with the same materials. Because of these differences in formulations, their qualities differ as well.
The four clays I'll compare are Sculpey III, Fimo Classic, Fimo Soft and Premo Sculpey. There are other clays available, but since I have not personally worked with them, I would bot be able to provide a fair comparison.
Sculpey III
- super soft
- easy to condition
- lots of colors
- cheap
- readily available
- dull finish (doesn't buff up very well)
- weak, brittle
- too soft for caning (unless very experienced)
- too soft for sculptures (slumps, sags and breaks)
- poor quality
For an interesting read, click here:
Why Sculpey III Polymer Clay Really Makes Me Mad
Fimo Classic
- very firm (old stuff can be crumbly)
- hard to condition
- limited colors
- available
- mid priced
- strong
- excellent for caning
- good for sculpting
- medium shine (when sanded and buffed)
- good quality
Fimo Soft
- soft
- easy to condition
- lots of colors
- readily available
- mid priced
- not as strong as Classic but much stronger than Sculpey
- so-so for caning (Classic much better, Soft can be too soft)
- OK for sculpting
- medium shine (when sanded and buffed)
- med - good quality
Premo Sculpey
- firm (old formula)
- soft (new formula) (may be changing formula again to firm it up)
- easy to condition
- lots of colors (not as many as Sculpey III)
- colors based on traditional artists palette (predictable mixing)
- higher price
- very strong (strongest of all three brands)
- great for caning (old formula best, new formula must be leached)
- good for sculpting (old formula best)
- high shine (when sanded and buffed)
- best quality (old formula)
As you may be able to tell, I like Premo Sculpey the best… especially the old formula.
All clays were reformulated to remove Phthalates and make it a greener and safer product. Unfortunately it made Premo and Fimo Soft, too soft.
After many complaints from the polymer clay community they are looking at firming up the new Phthalate-free formula to make us happy again. Hopefully that will happen soon!
As of right now Fimo Classic is best for caning and Premo is best for everything else. Premo can still be used for caning but it must be leached to make it firmer and more workable.
Here's another article that may be of interest:
Phthalate-free Polymer Clay - Blessing or a Curse
Q-2: How do I mix the Emerald Green Premo called for in some recipes? Thanks! ~Karen Sexton
A-2: Premo doesn't actually make an Emerald Green clay, though Sculpey III and Fimo Soft does.
Perhaps it is the Sculpey that the recipes are calling for. However, rather than using the Sculpey III, I would substitute Fimo Soft's Emerald Green or mix your own Emerald Green using Premo.
Here's the recipe:
|
Two recipe cards are now published every week. The A-Series cards are included with the weekly video membership option at my Polymer Clay Tutor Library (Very Affordable Pricing :) And the B-Series (Bonus Recipes) are available for FREE to everyone who subscribes to my Polymer Clay Tutor Guest List (Weekly Email Newsletter). |
Hopefully this brand comparison info was helpful. You should now have a much better idea on whether to use Fimo clay, Premo or Sculpey for your next polymer clay cane making or sculpting project… even when the receipt calls for Emerald Green. If anyone has further questions, be sure to ask!
Spread the Word!
Filed under 03: Supplies, 07: Cane Work, 09: Color Recipes by Cindy Lietz
Comments on Fimo Clay, Premo, Sculpey - Which is Best for Cane Making + Sculpting »
Cindy,
How does Fimo Effect fit into this comparision?
YES! Thank you so much. I am going to print this guideline out and hang it by my little working table. I'm sure it will save me a few dollars in experimenting . . . although experimenting is quite fun. I am now trying a halloween mixture of Sculpey III with ecru and two different oranges and I'm trying to marble the look, instead of just making your basic ick-mess color! Thank you for the articles.
@MJ: Fimo Effects are really just the transparent clay, glitters, glow-in-the-dark, etc. Anything that isn't just the plain clay. The Fimo Effects packages I've had seem like the Classic formula. There may be some in the Soft version, I'm not positive on that though.
@Pamela: If you are going to use Sculpey III make thick chunky beads with it… they will be less likely to break that way.
Cindy Lietz's last blog post..Fimo Clay, Premo, Sculpey - Which is Best for Cane Making + Sculpting
Ahhhhh!!!! The light bulb just went off over my head. The premo I purchased has been really really soft. It lets my animal heads hang down and I have to be really careful making sure all of the parts are laying perfectly before I bake them. However, it really makes some puffy types of leaves, tendrils and curves quite nicely. I have been thinking about using the different clays for different effects. (I am laughing at myself as I write this sentence, it sounds like I know what I am talking about (I don't, I am just making observations)).
Marianne
I forgot to mention why the light bulb went off. As I was reading this blog, it helped me understand why the different clays are why they are.
thanks again for great articles. I like Pamela's idea of hanging it by our work areas.
Marianne: That is great you had a light bulb moment!
BTW just the sheer fact that you are talking about making something out of polymer clay and the different consistencies the clay, means that you know more about polymer clay than 99% of the population!
Sounds to me you might know a thing or two!
Cindy's last post..What's Better than Receiving Beaded Polymer Clay Jewelry as a Gift
Here's a copy of an email conversation I just had with an experienced clayer who follows this blog. I wanted to post it here because she shares some valuable information about Sculpey Studio, another PC product line that I did not address in the main article above.
NANCY LANCSTER: Have you seen the new Sculpy Studio brand of PC? The colors are absolutely scumcious. It is between Sculpy III and Premo for softness. Baked it's strong, not brittle like Sculpy. As much as I have always loved Kato PC I must say this is a nice addition to my clay selection.
CINDY LIETZ: Hi Nancy, Thanks so much for your email! Yes I have heard of Studio by Sculpey. Haven't tried it yet because the local Michaels Craft Store in my area doesn't carry it and I haven't got around to ordering online yet. I'm glad you like it. I've heard some neat things about it. Will have to get some and write about it sometime, won't I!
NANCY LANCSTER: Hi Cindy, I live in northwest Arkansas and the only craft store we have is Hobby Lobby. While visiting in Virginia I went to an A.C. Moore Craft Store. That's where I saw this wonderful display of Studio by Sculpey. When I got back home I went to my Hobby Lobby and talked to the lady who orders PC for the store. Usually the home office decides when to sell in each store but when a customer requests something they look into ordering it. So, maybe I'll have it here too. I guess it is just so new that the powers that be haven't discovered it yet. Love your web site. I've been claying for years but I'm always happy to learn something new!
CINDY LIETZ: Thanks for your input Nancy. Would you mind if I transferred our conversation over to my blog so that others can benefit from your insights about the new Studio Sculpey brand? The information would definitely be helpful to others. Let me know and I'll take care it.
NANCY LANCSTER: Sure Cindy, no problem.
Here are some questions emailed to me by Marianne Huber:
I am sending these questions rather than commenting on you blog because I thought the one might be something that you might not want to be public.
I was wondering why you never mention Kato Clay when you
compare clays.
I didn't want to contradict you about sculpeyIII clay in
comments but I think that it is like a brick. The ones
that I got were seemingly fresh, but very firm. I didn't dare let them cool down or I couldn't bend it. It was very crackable. And I had conditioned it until I was blue in the face. I just don't know.
Last but really most important to me is….I made some
dragons and the clay was so smooth it did not allow the
sealer to adhere to it. I still gave it three coats hoping that the sealer might adhere to itself. I baked it and it has some blotches. It was a piece that would have been near impossible to sand. Phew..
Thank you for any reply's you have.
Marianne
**************
Hi Marianne,
Don't worry if you have different opinions than me it is OK… If I'm wrong, I'm wrong… and if I have my reasons, I'll explain. :-)
The reason why I don't mention Kato Polyclay very often is that I have never worked with it. I think it is unfair to compare it to other clays, if I don't know what it is like.
Currently there is nowhere retail I can buy Kato Polyclay and it must be ordered online. I've got so much Premo, Fimo and Sculpey III that I haven't needed to order any clay new yet.
I should though because it would help to know what it is like. I think Donna Kato is fantastic and imagine a clay designed by her is probably really great too!
The Sculpey you have is really old. Probably sat on the shelf for a long time or was part of an old shipment.
You can soften that back up with a few drops of baby oil, but because of it's quality it will never be that strong.
When Sculpey III is actually fresh it is like putty.
For your Dragons, if you can't sand, wipe the surface with rubbing alcohol to cut the film that can sometimes be on the clay after baking. That will help with the finish sticking better.
You can also use rubbing alcohol to remove that finish that didn't stick and start fresh.
I hope that helped and thanks so much for your questions Marianne!
Cindy Lietz's last blog post..Fimo, Premo, Sculpey Clay Storage Ideas | Baking Polymer Clay Oven
Thanks for the quick reply Cindy. Your answers sure did help I couldn't figure our why my Sculpty was so hard compared to yours. I think that it would be nice if the clay had the date they were made on them so stores could not keep old clay around. I was sure unhappy with the sculpty and was not going to buy it again. If I had known it was older I may have treated it differently.
I will use the rubbing alcohol trick on the dragons right away or maybe I should just drink it, maybe my dragons would turn out better.
Marianne
You're welcome Marianne! Oh good lord!! Don't drink the rubbing alcohol!!!… go get some real alcohol instead if you think that would help your creativity! Rubbing alcohol would probably kill you!
Cindy Lietz's last blog post..Premo Clay Flower Pendant Necklace Project with Vintage Glass Beads
Bonnie Jones, a friend of mine that makes beautiful polymer clay dolls, sent me a note I would like to share with you all.
"I read your wonderful description of the different clays. I am not sure if any of your readers even use Puppen Fimo since it is used primarily by dollmakers; but after much experimenting by other artists, it is one of the strongest clays we have found. We have also found that mixing in Quick Mix to soft and classic fimo, makes them stronger. ~bj"