Light modeling clay ~?

By Aikome. 06/06/10, 01:53 pm

Does anyone here know of the brands/type of sculpting clay I could use~? And where I could purchase them?

I'm looking for something perferably light as can be; I am making cat ears and would rather use clay (as the base/inside thingy, before covering with furz) than cardboard or wire. I don't want to make a band with it and my idea is to attach and clip it onto my hair (wig) so I don't want it heavy and falling off.

Light modeling clay ~? 711668

Know what's best to use? (an estimate price perphaps).

By Huntress. 06/06/10, 01:55 pm

I get my clay from http://www.schoolsupplies.co.nz

If you get over $60 worth then your postage is free. I think 20kg is about $20 or so. You can ring them and ask for prices.

By **JVCA**. 06/06/10, 02:11 pm

Though one wonders if 20kg of airdry clay might be both a bit much and a bit brittle for cat ears? Wink

It's not the cheapest stuff (though if I'm not mistaken, you can buy it for cheaper off trademe?), but I think a polymer clay might be the best kind of clay for what you're after? Sculpy/Fimo are the two major brands in NZ, but they're those little square packs of different coloured clay, and you have to oven bake it.

It's very light (as afaik it's a kind of plastic-ish material or something?), and if you needed an extra way to secure it, I've been able to hand sew through it in the past with a heavy duty needle - though I was sewing through a 5mm layer or so - any thinner and it may crack, I'm not sure.

The price really varies from place to place, but sculpy at Spotlight is $6/packet or something? I think Fimo might be about $4-$5 a packet from Whitcoulls, but as I said above, it's probably cheaper to buy some on trademe I'd guess. Depending on how big/thick you make the ear bases, I'd guess you'd need 2-3 packets for both ears?

By Huntress. 06/06/10, 05:26 pm

Eh - didn't read first post properly. I thought you wanted to sculpt in clay and mould and end up with latex ears. My bad. I wouldn't personally use clay for the inside of cat ears. I would use a combination of plastic and stiffening. Or sculpt it and end up with latex ears which I could stuff and cover with fur.

By **JVCA**. 07/06/10, 02:14 am

Yeah, I agree that plastic or latex would make for more suitable materials, though latex is kinda expensive. You could cut up an ice-cream container? You can crease the plastic to make it maintain the shape you want, or use an existing curve in the container, maybe?

By Huntress. 07/06/10, 03:56 am

You can get a small container of latex (i.e. all you'd need) for about $12.95. That would be relatively affordable.

By Mischa. 07/06/10, 04:00 am

That's true, but you can't use latex on it's own- you need molds and tools that you wouldn't need with a polymer clay.

By Huntress. 07/06/10, 04:38 am

Comes down to a question of time and what works best for you. The latex will give a nicer finish, but that isn't to say other options won't give you a good finish. More options are always good.

By neimhaille. 07/06/10, 05:02 am

Do you have to make it from clay? If it is being covered in fur you can look at stiffened felt or other millinery options :)

In fact if you get a half meter or less of craft vilene you can layer that up and use that for support that you can sew or glue the fur to. It will be extremely light, have some flex (I know my kitty cat has ears that bend when he cleans them ;) ) and there will be zero risk of them breaking if they fall. And if they get crushed you can probably iron them back to shape. But good care (ie not sitting on them or putting them at the bottom of your luggage) will prevent that anyway ;)

Or heat'n'bond between two layers of hair canvas makes a very solid base too. I have a 16thC headdress I am making using this and it was almost too solid! So heat 'n' bond between felt would be a more budget friendly option too.

I would suggest buckram but that is prone to distortion as the glue is water soluble- it's very hard to keep it from getting wet.

Also felt as I mentioned above. You can soak it in PVA or other glue (PVA is the least toxic, cheapest and easiest to find) and shape it over a mold or temporary support. It is also very light. I used solvent based glues for my Galadriel armour as it made the whole thing water proof. I did the same for the support of my top hat for my Satine costume.

By **JVCA**. 07/06/10, 05:09 am

Given that the inner won't be visible, I'd probably go for a cheaper option than latex - getting used to the materials is another hurdle that latex requires, and given that you wouldn't even see the latex, I personally don't see it as the most time/money/energy efficient matter - but then again, that's up to the OP really.

By Huntress. 07/06/10, 06:01 am

Absolutely!

@ Neimhaille>> Where do you get the heat'n'bond from?? Spotlight/Goldings?

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