Leora's polymer clay sculpting tips! FAQ1

Hey all,

I will continue the miniature baby wip soon, but today I want to start something new. I have got a lot of questions, and maybe it will be helpful to post answers in
this blog.

Faq1: What polymer clay to use (or not, lol)?

The first one is about polymer clay itself. When I started to sculpt with polymer clay, the question was "what polymer clay" to use? For me the question was not so difficult, the only polymer clay, shops in Germany seem to sell is Fimo clay.
Fimo classic and Fimo soft, to be precise :)  The first polymer clay I used was Fimo classic and it works very well, when you sculpt miniature food or jewelry, because it is very hard and beginners will appreciate that. The downside is, it smells very strong when baking and smoothing it is difficult. I do not use it for figure sculpting but it has it's uses, it is perfect for caning. And if you interested in caning etc. check out this website: polymerclaycentral
Do not use fimo soft for caning, it will not hold the details, it is as the name implies a softer clay :)
Be careful that you buy fresh Fimo clay, I had severe cracking issues with old batches.

The next polymer clay I found was Puppen-fimo, or doll fimo, it is harder than prosculpt or livingdoll but I found this the only advantage (IF you like to sculpt figures with harder clay). Again, it smells badly when baking and I had problems with moonies.

Cernit is another polymer clay that has its uses, when you know what you can do and cannot do with it. It is mostly used by doll makers who sculpt large dolls, and no wonder it is very soft, it reminds me of soft chewing gum, making nice folds but is horrible for sculpting miniatures.

Prosculpt or Livingdoll are both produced by Sculpey and these are the clays I would recommend for sculpting miniature figures. For a beginner these clays seem to be too soft, but I think it is the best clay for figure sculpting. The "skin" is beautiful and I had no moonies or cracking problem with both of them.

Kato clay, I never used it, if you want to share your experience, please comment!

Also, if I forgot a polymer clay that is usable for figure sculpting, please comment!

Have fun sculpting and visit me again soon :))