One of the most interesting and useful hobbies is the modeling of paintings and figures from various plastic materials. In the good old days, people made dishes and toys from clay, and today it has been replaced by new, more modern materials. Plasticine, salt dough, plastic, foamiran - this is not a complete list of them. But today we’ll talk about such a relatively new material as velvet plastic. In addition, we will even try to make it ourselves.
What it is
For a long time such wonderful material as plastic entered the life of needlewomen and artists . This wonderful mass is very similar to ordinary plasticine, has bright colors and easily kneads and sculpts. Its distinctive feature is that after complete drying, the figures made of plastic become solid, as if made of plastic. Plastic has one significant inconvenience in work - in order for it to freeze, it must be subjected to heat treatment: bake in the oven or cook. This is not always convenient.
Velvet plastic, or, as it is also called, velvet clay, does not have such a drawback. This is a very light plastic mass, pleasant to the touch. It dries independently in the air and hardens. No heating or special hardeners are needed.
Molding velvet plastic is a very pleasant and very simple task. You just need to practice a little. The material has wonderful qualities:
- dries out in the open air;
- non toxic
- does not cause allergies;
- after drying, retains its shape and does not crack;
- does not have a strong chemical smell;
- has bright various colors;
- mixes well;
- easily glues on itself and on any rough surfaces;
- it is well cut by stacks and an office knife;
- gives in to coloring by different paints;
- keeps prints of molds, is easily decorated;
- varnishes.
Instruments
If you decide to work with velvet plastic, you will need tools. In principle, the kit is not much different from what is used when sculpting from ordinary plasticine.
You will need:
- Stacks
- silicone brushes;
- needles of different sizes;
- foil;
- molds of different sizes and textures;
- scissors;
- a glass or rolling pin for rolling the mass;
- round pliers;
- copper or steel wire of different diameters;
- a variety of small items for applying textures: feathers, caps from pens and so on.
Beginning of work
Before you begin, you need to draw a sketch of the future animal. This is very important, it helps to correctly assess the anatomical features and work out many details in advance.
If you need a wire for the basis of the future animal, go to its choice with all responsibility. For example, it definitely should not be aluminum. Such a wire is too thick and loose. With numerous bends, it simply breaks. It will be very unpleasant if you have to redo an almost finished job because of this moment.
Also, the wire must be stainless so that the product delights you for a long time and is not covered with ugly rust spots. And of course, the thickness ... The basic rule is: "The larger the model, the thicker the wire." Too thick, too, is not worth taking, it will bend with effort.
Skeleton creation
If you decide to use velvet plastic to create an animal, first of all, you need to make a skeleton. To do this, cut three pieces of wire. A ridge is formed from the first, from the nose to the tip of the tail. Of the other two we make paws. To ensure that your animal is stable, and the mounts do not fall apart, paws need to be formed in pairs. The right side is formed from one piece of wire: front paw + hind. From the second piece - the left side. Now all three frames are fastened together, simply twisted with a thinner wire. The legs of the animal can be slightly extended for stability.
We increase the "meat"
The next stage in the formation of the skeleton of a figure made of velvet plastic is wrapping the wire with foil. The body of the animal is formed from it. To do this, small pieces of foil are adhered to the wire frame in the right places. So that the foil does not "crawl", its ends are tightly wrapped around the wire. Thus, the body of the animal, the head, legs and tail are formed.
As a result, you should get a foil sculpture worn on a wire frame.
Decorate the product
Now it's time to work with the plastic itself. Separate small parts from the main piece and coat them with the whole figure, smearing the mass on the foil. Color in this case is absolutely not important, because this layer is draft and will be practically invisible.
After the whole figure is covered with plastic and already looks like a future fairy dragon or bear, it is left to dry. To prevent the figure from breaking during further processing, it must dry well. Depending on the size of the product, this may take about a day or more.
When the product is completely dry, you can proceed to decorating. To do this, you can apply a wide variety of techniques and tools. To make the print clear and beautiful, small pieces of plastic of the desired color are smeared over the workpiece. Now with a fresh layer it is very easy to extrude or draw the desired pattern.
Since velvet plastic is a very delicate and delicate material, simply chic feathers, villi, flakes and other small details are obtained from it. This work, of course, is very long and painstaking, but the result is worth it. Each feather or wool is made separately, and then glued to the workpiece. It is noteworthy that the glue is not needed for this at all, just smudge the edge with wet hands.
All small details like scales, feathers or wool are attached to the figure according to the principle from the bottom up. That is, the top row slightly overlaps the previous one. This allows you to achieve the greatest naturalness of the composition.
The finished work is carefully dried in the open air and, if necessary, painted. For staining, you can use almost all types of paints: acrylic, watercolor, colored pencils or gel pens. The only thing that experienced masters do not recommend using for painting is gouache. It dries very poorly on plastic and still remains sticky. After complete drying, the product can be coated with clear varnish. This will give it a peculiar shine and additional strength.
Where to learn
If you still do not dare to use velvet plastic for creativity, master classes will help dispel your doubts. One of them we cited in the article. Even if you could not find a suitable master class on working with velvet plastic, you can take advantage of modeling lessons from plasticine. These substances have a lot in common.
Almost all work using a substance such as velvet plastic, photos of which are presented in this article, was performed by Moscow artist Evgeny Khontor. The master has been using this material in his works since 2006 and has perfectly mastered the techniques of working with it.
Where could I buy
Since velvet plastic is a fairly new material in the Russian market, it can be found far from every needlework store. The most popular is the TM TUKZAR plastic, which is supplied by Diamond. Plastic of this brand is considered the leader in terms of price-quality ratio.
In stores of the Orange Elephant distribution network, you can purchase A-cley molding mass, and in online stores you can find plastic from Modena.
The approximate price of velvet plastic is 2 rubles per 1 gram. That is, a jar of 50 g will cost at least 100 rubles. In general, not cheap.
How to make self-hardening plastic yourself
Since the price in stores bites quite strongly, many needlewomen are interested in the question of whether it is possible to make velvet plastic with their own hands.
It turns out you can. Only there is one caveat. Home
plastic mass can be quite toxic, so it’s definitely not worth giving it to young children to play.
So, in order to make velvet plastic, you will need:
- a small glass or metal jar;
- acetone or nail polish remover;
- polystyrene foam - packaging from household appliances;
- a metal spoon or spatula for stirring.
Pour a small amount of acetone into the container, and break the foam into small pieces. Gradually lower the parts of the foam into the solvent and mix well. A chemical reaction occurs, as a result of which the foam is melted and mixed with acetone.
We repeat the process until the polystyrene ceases to dissolve, we act on the principle of "how much will it take." The result is a viscous viscous mass. Now you need to wait a few minutes until the remnants of the solvent vapor evaporate. Remember, acetone is very toxic. Therefore, try not to inhale its vapors when working, and be sure to take care of eye protection.
To remove excess moisture from the mass, mash it into a small cake and wrap a small piece of foam in it. Set aside for a while. The mass will dissolve and absorb it. Repeat the operation until the pieces cease to dissolve. Now you can add the dye of the desired color, such as food, and knead well.
Home velvet plastic is ready. The approximate time of its complete solidification is 20-30 hours, depending on the size of the piece. If you did not manage to use it during this time, put a piece in water for 4–5 days. It will become soft again. The general properties of such homemade plastic are very similar to those purchased, although they are not completely identical.