Help with varnishing clay

Hi,

I've been producing a thin black line design on a flat piece of Fimo
using permanent marker pen. However, this has been giving me big
problems, as I want to varnish the piece. The only varnish I've found
that works reliably is Fimo own-brand varnish, but that dissolves and
smudges the ink. Can anyone suggest either a varnish that will work
and not mess up the ink (I've tried a few), or a way of producing fine
lines on Fimo that I *can* varnish?

Thanks tons,
Tasha

Tasha, many inks turn color after a while, or bleed. Try archival quality dye
inks, like Ancient Page from color box. Also, black india ink sometimes works
well.
Try Flecto Varathane as a sealant--it goes into the clay.

look at these pages for more info
http://www.glassattic.com
http://www.polyclay.com/flecto.htm
http://www.polyclay.com/inks.htm




Sarajane

Sarajane's Polymer Clay Gallery
http://www.polyclay.com

Thanks very much! I've been using Pentel permanent marker pen so far,
I'll keep an eye on it to see if it starts to look suspicious.

As for the Flecto, I'd love to try that but I'm in the UK and it
doesn't seem to be available here (and would be expensive to import).
Can anyone suggest an easily British-available equivalent?

Cheers,
Tasha

Even though I live I the States, I've only been able to find Flecto
Varathane in one-gallon sized containers at about $45.00 each! Does anyone
have any ideas where it is available in smaller quantities?

Thanks,

--
Allen
Birmingham, AL
http://hobbystage.net/art/amealer

Ask your full-service hardware store to order it for you. It comes in pints
and quarts. (I think a pint cost me $7.50, and it will last quite a long
time.)

Georgia
www.bead-designs.com

"Allen Mealer" wrote in message
. com...
Even though I live I the States, I've only been able to find Flecto
Varathane in one-gallon sized containers at about $45.00 each! Does
anyone
have any ideas where it is available in smaller quantities?

Thanks,

--
Allen
Birmingham, AL
http://hobbystage.net/art/amealer

Have you tried using Future floorWax!! I apply it with q-tips, easy
cleanup that way and 3 coats or more produces wonderful results for
me.
(Tasha) wrote in message . com...
Thanks very much! I've been using Pentel permanent marker pen so far,
I'll keep an eye on it to see if it starts to look suspicious.

As for the Flecto, I'd love to try that but I'm in the UK and it
doesn't seem to be available here (and would be expensive to import).
Can anyone suggest an easily British-available equivalent?

Cheers,
Tasha

I just spotted this message - I don't know if you're still looking but you
can get the equivalent of Future here in the UK. It's what a lot of people
use as a finish on polymer clay instead of Flecto. There are a lot of people
who swear by Flecto and a lot that prefer Future.

Flecto is called Johnson's Klear over here and is available in most
supermarkets. It's a floor finish - so look for it amongst floor stuffs,
polishes, or shoe polish type stuffs. Future smells quite sweet, but for
some reason Klear smells of amonia, so watch out and ventilate well while
using! As far as I can tell that seems to be the only difference (I have
both Future and Klear so have been able to compare them). It's thinner than
Flecto but I personally prefer it.

When completely dry you can bake the item for about 10 minutes and this sort
of hardens the Klear and makes it less likely to come off. Do wait until
it's absolutely completely dry otherwise it will bubble.

There are other finishes you can use that are similar to Flecto but it will
take a little experimenting. Alan Vernall has tested and uses 'Aqualac'. No
idea where he got it, but he sent me a little sample, so it must be
available somewhere over here. I've tried using Blackfriars varnish with
good effect and that seems to hold up well on polymer clay. Most of the
water based varnishes that are milky in colour and dry clear are suitable
for poly clay. I say most, but you would need to do some test pieces to be
sure. You wouldn't want to find 6 months down the line your favourite
necklace going sticky!

As for pens, I've used Sharpie pens, they work well and dry well and then
I've been able to varnish over the top with Klear, Future, Flecto, or
whatever without smudging.

Hope that helps a little
Shelley
http://www.shelleym.co.uk - remove nospam to e-mail me
http://forums.delphiforums.com/PCJewelry/start -our Polymer Clay Jewelry
Forum
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/UKPolyClay/ - UK polymer clay group


Can anyone suggest an easily British-available equivalent?

Cheers,
Tasha