Metal-effect paint on polymer clay

Hi,

I've been trying to achieve a 'chrome' effect on some of my baked Fimo
creations without much luck - silver acrylic paint from my local art
shop gets me a 'brushed' effect, but it's not true chrome silver and
has a distinct texture. Can anyone recommend a product that would get
me a smoother and shinier finish?

Many thanks,
Tasha

+++++ Jongleur Cosplay +++++
www.thenoodlebowl.com/jongleur

Hi, Here's my experience, hope this helps!

To achieve the look of real chrome w/ no "distinct texture", you must first
start out with a surface that is absolutely smooth. Totally smooth. The
only way I know of to achieve this, is by 1st sanding with 400 grit wet/dry
sand paper, then 600-800 grit then 1000-1200 grit. Always sand polymer clay
under water, in a tub or bowl of water. SO YOU DO NOT BREATHE IN POLYMER
PARTICLES. You can purchase wet/dry sand paper at Wal-Mart automotive dept
or your local auto parts stores also may carry it. If not your local auto
body shop, might be sweet talked into selling a few sheets of each for a
buck or two. Or trading your say, a dozen or so home baked chocolate chip
cookies. LOL Guys are such suckers for home baked anything!! LOL After
the piece is completely dry, apply very thin coats of "Revlon Super Top
Speed Chrome Nail Polish". It comes in a variety of "chrome colors" not
just the ordinary silver tone we all see on car bumpers, and be aware even
at Wal-Mart it runs approx. $4.00 a bottle. ( If you are doing a large
project, like a plate or something, the nail polish may be a little
expensive.) You may be able to find it less expensive at a
fingernail/beauty supply house, but I used what I (my daughter's polish) had
on hand. It turned out beautifully. The sanding is absolutely necessary
also, I tried it without sanding and had to use 6 coats of polish to get the
texture not to show through. Then the polish didn't hold up very well. ( I
did it on some beads, and when I wore the necklace the 1st time, I bumped
the beads on our copy machine at work and the polish cracked 1st , then by
the time I went home that night I noticed it had actually started chipping
off. So I stress, sanding very smooth, then VERY THIN coats of polish. Oh,
and DO NOT BUFF, or the polish doesn't want to stick to the clay, apparently
even minuet 1200 grit sand paper gives the surface enough "tooth" to hold
the polish. Buffing caused the polish to peel off because the surface was
so smooth it had nothing to grip onto. I also use a 12 minute drying time
acrylic spray finish, made by Krylon. It comes in gloss or matte finish, I
used gloss for that "real chrome effect". I had a girlfriend of mine wear
this necklace for 1 month, everyday, even in the shower, and the beads held
up beautifully. I had to replace the hanging cording twice, but that was
because she broke it ( 2 boys very active sports Mom ) and the beads still
held up, even after bouncing all over her hard wood floors.
There may be other products that you can probably find at the automotive
store that would work, but I haven't tried those. I do remember seeing a
product at "NAPA auto stores" called "RE-Chrome It" or something like that,
but it was a whole kit and was fairly pricey. Plus, my mechanic, told me it
doesn't really work all that good for it's original purpose on metal. Not
sure how it would work on polymer clay projects which are basically plastic.
He also does re-chroming work, and we also discussed just dipping the
polymer pieces in the chroming vat, but decided that wouldn't work due to
the intense heat of the vat/chroming liquid.

The only other thing I can think of that I do use quite successfully is
automotive "pin-striping tape". I used it on some small car replicas I
sculpted and some antique toy cars that I made replacement parts for and it
works very well on polymer clay. ( FYI - It's also great for creating
special effects on finger nails and is much cheaper then the stuff in the
finger nail kits.) It also comes in the chrome colors as well as many other
colors and is sticky backed as well. I sealed it down by burnishing then
applied some liquid Kato clay, and baked it on for 10 min.'s @ 250 degrees,
then sprayed with Krylon sealer. Make sure to let anything you use the
Krylon sealer on set for a couple of days, in a well ventilated room or even
the garage, as it does have an odor and that needs to dissipate.

You might also try foiling your project. Or better yet metal leafing it.
I have done both. Foiling is ok for projects that are flatter and have less
nooks & crannies to get the foil into. But I absolutely love leafing
things.

In case you don't know the difference, foiling is where the metal foil is on
a plastic sheeting, you apply glue to the project & when the glue is
tacky/set up you apply the foil side down to the glue. Burnish the heck out
of it, then slowly pull the plastic sheeting away, leaving the foil behind.
I have never been able to master getting the foil into all the nooks and
crannies, to where it looks really good (you could still see where I patched
it). But if you want an antique look where either black or burnt umber
paint will be in there anyways, it doesn't really matter. You can cover up
your "happy accidents" with the paint. Tee-Hee!! (In crafting there are no
mistakes, just Happy Accidents or "IT WAS SUPPOSED TO LOOK THAT WAY" LOL
Leafing is very much the same process, except the leaf doesn't come on a
plastic sheet, you apply it directly to the glue and dab/tap it in with a
soft paint brush. I find it much easier to repair "missed spots" with
leafing. Because if you do miss a spot or nook/cranny, you just apply a
little more glue, and foil until you achieve the effect you want, and you
almost never even see the patches. You again will have to burnish it but a
lot less then with foiling. Foils comes in composite (faux) metal finishes
and real metal finishes, but the real silver/gold is truly expensive,
because after all, it is real precious metal. Just remember with leafing
the least little air flow, even a dog or cat just walking by, a cough or the
dreaded sneeze & this thin metal leaf will fly all over the place. Plus
save all the little pieces and use them again on a card or another project.
Very little waste so that makes it more economical to use. There are some
good instructions on HGTV.COM for both products. Search under the Carol
Duval show listings.

Lastly, depending on the exact effect you are looking for you may be able to
get a chrome like finish with "silver pearl ex powders" but I have never
done this. And from my experience with pearl-ex powders, you would have to
seal, sand, seal and sand several times to get the high gloss sheen of
chrome. Sanding the sealer with ultra fine 1000-1200 wet/dry sand paper,
between coats after it is completely dry and I would do this at least 3-4
times. That will give you a depth to the glossy shine, that you can only
achieve with lots of elbow grease and plenty of patience.

FYI - You can use old nylon panty hose in place of 800 grit wet/dry sand
paper and you can sand with it wet. And for 1000-1200 grit wet/dry sand
paper, in a pinch you can also use brown paper. Like brown paper bags from
the grocery store. The heaver bag paper works much better then brown lunch
bag type paper. It will take longer and you can not use the paper wet, so
you will need to either sand outside with wind blowing away from you or wear
a dust mask or both. You absolutely do not want to breath in any polymer
dust, this can & will be very harmful to your lungs.
eliquint

"Tasha" wrote in message
om...
Hi,

I've been trying to achieve a 'chrome' effect on some of my baked Fimo
creations without much luck - silver acrylic paint from my local art
shop gets me a 'brushed' effect, but it's not true chrome silver and
has a distinct texture. Can anyone recommend a product that would get
me a smoother and shinier finish?

Many thanks,
Tasha

+++++ Jongleur Cosplay +++++
www.thenoodlebowl.com/jongleur

Use pearl-ex mica powders (in silvery/chrome color you desire) on raw clay, or
use Rub 'n' Buff (see http://www.craf-tproducts.com/) on baked clay. Each
product can then be sealed with Future floor wax, or Flecto Varathane.




Hi,

I've been trying to achieve a 'chrome' effect on some of my baked Fimo
creations without much luck - silver acrylic paint from my local art
shop gets me a 'brushed' effect, but it's not true chrome silver and
has a distinct texture. Can anyone recommend a product that would get
me a smoother and shinier finish?

Many thanks,
Tasha

Thanks very much both of you for the advice! Especially Quin, I've
been taking notes for future reference :-)

I do usually smooth my items with 400 through 1200 grade wet-and-dry
paper. Unfortunately, the piece I'm thinking about has thin, delicate
strands of Fimo on it. They're glued to the backing so they don't
break in use, but I don't think they'd stand up to any rubbing or
sanding at all. I'm wondering whether maybe some kind of thick enamel
or similar might be the answer - something that would produce the
smooth coating like Quin's many layers of nail polish, but without the
chipping risk.

The piece I'm thinking of, incidentally is this costume prop:
http://www.thenoodlebowl.com/jongleu...ocke****ch.jpg

I'd love to be able to get the crest to match the mirror finish on the
watch itself, but I'm not sure whether it'll be possible without being
able to sand it.

Tasha

Ok now that I know what you're trying to finish, I can point you in the
right direction. There is a such thing as "polymer clay smoothing fluid".
It comes in a 2 oz bottle and it sold by "Wayne the Dane Hansen". You will
need to go to his website & order some- sit down the price is NOT CHEAP! But
it works really really good. So go seek smoothing solution, and be happy!!
LOL
Wayne's website is at:
http://www.figuresculpture.net/ I bought some of this fluid from e-bay.
That is how I found him. Boy, his sculptures will blow you away, the detail
is incredible. I'd almost do anything for one of his how to video's too!
Glad I could help!
eliquint


"Tasha" wrote in message
om...
Thanks very much both of you for the advice! Especially Quin, I've
been taking notes for future reference :-)

I do usually smooth my items with 400 through 1200 grade wet-and-dry
paper. Unfortunately, the piece I'm thinking about has thin, delicate
strands of Fimo on it. They're glued to the backing so they don't
break in use, but I don't think they'd stand up to any rubbing or
sanding at all. I'm wondering whether maybe some kind of thick enamel
or similar might be the answer - something that would produce the
smooth coating like Quin's many layers of nail polish, but without the
chipping risk.

The piece I'm thinking of, incidentally is this costume prop:
http://www.thenoodlebowl.com/jongleu...ocke****ch.jpg

I'd love to be able to get the crest to match the mirror finish on the
watch itself, but I'm not sure whether it'll be possible without being
able to sand it.

Tasha

Oops almost forgot, on Wayne's website the smoothing fluid it the last item
under the tools category.
eliquint
"Tasha" wrote in message
om...
Thanks very much both of you for the advice! Especially Quin, I've
been taking notes for future reference :-)

I do usually smooth my items with 400 through 1200 grade wet-and-dry
paper. Unfortunately, the piece I'm thinking about has thin, delicate
strands of Fimo on it. They're glued to the backing so they don't
break in use, but I don't think they'd stand up to any rubbing or
sanding at all. I'm wondering whether maybe some kind of thick enamel
or similar might be the answer - something that would produce the
smooth coating like Quin's many layers of nail polish, but without the
chipping risk.

The piece I'm thinking of, incidentally is this costume prop:
http://www.thenoodlebowl.com/jongleu...ocke****ch.jpg

I'd love to be able to get the crest to match the mirror finish on the
watch itself, but I'm not sure whether it'll be possible without being
able to sand it.

Tasha

You're a marvel. I'm on it, thanks so much. :-D

Tasha


"Quin The Crafter" wrote in message ...
Oops almost forgot, on Wayne's website the smoothing fluid it the last item
under the tools category.
eliquint