Conditioning Polymer Clay Quickly - some tips
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- Опубліковано 14 сер 2024
- Conditioning Polymer Clay is a vital part of the process, and in this video I give you some tips I have learnt over the years on how to speed this up. I have 3 main tips, cut thinner slices, use a thinner setting on your pasta machine, and fold side to middle. To see what I mean, and how to use this to condition really crumbly clay, within a few minutes, just watch the video.
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Thank you for watching.
I'm brand new to polymer clay. Brand new. I've spent the last 2 weeks watching videos as my Amazon orders rolled in, trying to psych myself up for my new projects. I must have watched dozens and dozens, if not hundreds of videos, and this video is the very best, most informative, absolutely thorough and completely relevant video I have watched. Every word is important and there's nothing in this video that's irrelevant, impractical or useless. Everything you say and demonstrate has practical and useful applications and your approach is straightforward and helpful. Thank you, you've helped me immensely, and because of this video, I found that courage. I'm off to condition and fold xo
Oh that's brilliant, thanks so much for telling me Dayna, and have great fun with your clay, I am sure you will never stop once you have started :)
@@FionaAbelSmithPolyOriginals You're most welcome, but any gratitude should come from me. My first lot is baking as we speak. I'm making talavera and delft tiles for jewellery, in miniature of course. Any tips for painting and sealing?
@@daynawithawhy Thank you :) My tip would be go to The Blue Bottle Tree and look under her articles. She has covered both of these topics in depth and all of us use Ginger's site for reference for any technical clay issues :) Good luck and have fun :) thebluebottletree.com/category/articles/
@@FionaAbelSmithPolyOriginals thank you. Yes, I've been reading those. I find them thorough but broad-spectrum. I'm looking for specifics and while I have most of what I need, there are still some holes. That's not an entirely bad thing, it's just an opportunity for trial and error.
Another aspect of your videos that I find superior is the visual. It's one thing to read "cut off a piece of your block and then cut it into little pieces" and something else entirely to get the visual and complimentary verbal details and directions
@@daynawithawhy Thanks so much Dayna :) Yes experimenting is half the fun :)
This should be #1 video to watch for anyone starting polymer clay crafting. Thank you for excellent content.
thank you so much :)
I'm new to polymer clay and have been feeling defeated. I now realize that I've not been conditioning the clay properly. Thank you!
P.S. Your voice is quite lovely!
I'm glad it was helpful, thanks so much Sharon :)
Really informative , Thankyou, and nice to have a soft British accent doing a video
Glad it was helpful, thanks so much :)
your voice is quite soothing and this video was very helpful thank you!
So glad it was helpful, thank you 🙂
Thank you so much Fiona. I appreciate your replies & will certainly follow your posts
I know this is probably an old video but I am SO grateful to see how to condition clay. I have new slabs of translucent clay that is so crumbly I've had great difficulty using it & wondered if it is old, even though I've only just bought it. I'll be using this every time I use my clay so thank you very much for this tutorial. I'm very grateful. Melody M, Sydney Australia
I am so glad it was helpful, thank you Melody 🙂
Thank you, Fiona, for showing these methods for softening clay! When I started buying clay, I bought many off of eBay and found them to be old and hard to work with. Now, thanks to you, I might be able to use them! You are a great teacher and artist, and I feel honored to be one of your "students".🌺
awww bless you, thanks so much Ruth 🙂
Thanks Fiona, i have seen this also by you, but its always good to watch again!
Thakns so much Lynne 🙂
Revolutionary! Thanks for the hot tip...I've been struggling unnecessarily.
I'm so gla dot was helpful, thank you :)
I received an entire pack of metallic clays that came to me impossible to condition, at least so I thought. I am now very glad I did not throw it away. I will definitely try this. Thank you .
It really does work, but only condition as you want to use it, or if may fall back into being crumbly again after a short while :)
I'm so glad that I watch this. I like that you showed me how to get straight edges. So simple. Thank you. I love your voice, I watch all of your tutorials.
So glad it was helpful, thanks so much Mary :)
Thank you so much for making this thorough video! I hadn't realized that old clay could be salvaged this way. I also appreciate the tips for conditioning clay with arthritis.
I am so glad it was useful, and thanks so much for your comment, I really appreciate it 🙂
thank you for this one. I am making the ornaments and was having trouble. I figured that if I watch this, less trouble. I was right. You are awesome!
I am so glad it was helpful 🙂
Your voice is absolutely lovely. Thank you for the tutorial!
Thank you very much :)
It’s a lifesaver for me! It is always a big struggle for me to condition old, hard polymerClay. I have tried adding baby oil, clay conditioner whatsoever and it is still pain to work things out. I never thought conditioning clay would be as easy as the way you show us! Thank you so much for sharing this tips with us Fiona! This is a very generous and helpful video!
I am so glad it was of help, thank you so much :)
😢😮 this was like Christmas day 😂... ive enjoyed watching this tutorial. like someone else said this should be the very 1st video for new clay working students. im excited to use this. Thank you
I am so glad it was helpful, thanks so much :)
Thank you for this! I'm new to polymer clay and couldn't figure out how to properly condition it. Very informative!
So glad it was useful, thanks so much :)
I started watching one of your videos on making a tiered trinket box. That one got me very interested in what you were doing. So I watched more of your work the more I watched the more I started thinking maybe this is something for me have a go. I really wanted to start from the beginning to fully understand where to start. This has been so helpful for me to start this journey. I have watch how meticulous you do everything and listened to how you explain what your doing and why. Don't think I have ever watched someone doing a video that does it so well. Your voice is so sweet it makes me want to see all your work and videos. Thank you so much for your help now i will start getting my materials and clay ordered.
I am so pleased the videos have been helpful. I love working with polymer clay and hope you do too once you get started. Just relax with it, have fun, and enjoy your polymer clay journey. 🙂
Great advice thank you, you have a really relaxing voice xxx
Thank you very much :)
Perfect timing for me to find this video. I've just acquired a large amount of slightly old clay and a smaller amount of really old clay. I didn't know if the really old clay was worth bothering with but clearly it is. Also, I don't think I run my clay through as many times as you do. I'm gonna add a few reps to the sequence. Thanks.
I'm glad it was helpful, thanks so much Jude 🙂
This is the best information I have found. Great tutorial, thank you so much for sharing your tips x
I'm glad it was useful, thanks so much :)
I'm new to working with polymer clay and have been watching so many videos on the best way to condition the clay. You video is by far the best video I've watched. Thank you for explaining which thinkness to use on the pasta machine as well as your folding technique. You also are the first to suggest cutting thin slices which makes so much sense. Thank you for helping someone new get started!
I am so glad it was helpful, thank you Patti :)
Absolutely brilliant. I've watched lots of tutorials on this subject - this was the most comprehensive. Thank you.
Thank you so much Lorna :)
The wisdom you share is worth it's weight in diamonds! Thank you thank you thank you 💜
Thank you so much Holly :)
Extremely useful information. I cannot wait to try this method. Thank you!
I am glad it was helpful, thank you :)
Thanks Fiona! After this lesson I solved the problem of hard clay. Your lessons are wonderful! ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
So glad it was of help, thanks Chris :)
Absolutely fantastic. Huge improvement over my way lol
Brilliant, so glad it was useful 🙂
I’m about to start playing with polymer clay and with the shortage I was able to find a good deal on some fimo professional but was scared to try it being so new to this because it can be hard to condition and I am sooooo happy I saw your video because you made this seem so easy to do compared to what I’ve heard. Thank you for creating this wonderful content and helping us!!!
I am so glad it was helpful. Yes I had some very hard old Professional I needed to use the other day, but I cut it thin, put it through a thin setting and within a couple of minutes it was back to working condition. The good thing with Professional is that once you have it conditioned it is a really nice clay to work with. Have fun and enjoy your clay experience :)
I am new to all of this....But I LOVE your videos.....You explain all of it so nicely...Thank You so much..... Wishing you well & stay safe...
Thanks so much Glenda, and I wish you the same ;)
Great demo, Fiona
Wonderful, thanks so much 🙂
This is the best informative video on UA-cam I've ever seen. You literally saved my life! Can't believe your gorgeous words and informations. They are very helpful and practical. Thank you a lot
I am so glad it was helpful, thank you :)
Im waiting on my pasta machine to arrive and I'm so excited. Really glad I found this video! thank you!
You are welcome, thank you Emoliee :)
Thank you, Thank you so very much. I just recently thought I would try working with polymer clay again. What I have is about 8 years old. I am going to try this method to condition my clay. Thank you again for sharing.
I am so glad it was useful :)
Thank you. Just got the same pasta machine. Your introduction are in front of me. This is great. You are soft spoken which is great and easy to understand. Your my miracle for this beginner. Hopefully I’ll find more of your videos.
I am so happy you are enjoying working with polymer clay, have fun :)
Awesome Fiona, thank you for sharing.
Thanks so much Nuna :)
Answered all my questions and more!
Brilliant, thanks so much 🙂
I watched this yesterday and tried it today, thank you so much for passing on this information, it certainly works especially with old polymer clay.
Wonderful, thanks so much Valerie :)
This is the best video I have watched, out of the dozens I have watched, in making me feel more comfortable in starting a journey into trying polymer clay. I have been a bit worried about how to condition the clay, as I have arthritis, and this is such brilliant information. Thank you so much for sharing your expertise!!
I am so glad it was helpful, I hope you have great fun making some wonderful things from polymer clay :)
I'm very new to polymer clay and I'm so thankful I found you. It's like learning from a good friend. I imagine you're very patient !! Thank you x
Thanks so much Helen :)
Brilliant info! enjoyed the tutorial and learnt! Thank you. One trick I use is to put a sheet of baking parchment on top of the base of the pasta machine to catch the crumbs, slide it out to gather up crumbs once the clay gets going.
Good tip Andrea, The British Polymer Clay Guild had that as a tip in their Polynews last Autumn, but it was using a used envelope instead, folded to fit inside - either way, it is a very good tip, and I probably should have remembered to use it when I was doing the video - thank you xx
Your tip with the paper on the base, saved me extra work, dealing with my crumbly black clay! Thanks so much!!!
Excellent demonstration, thank you so much. I have some very old clay and now feel better about tackling it! x
Thank you Anita, definitely go and tackle that old clay, it really does work doing it this way :)
Excellent video! So many good tips. Thank you for sharing with us.
Thank you so much :)
This was so helpful! I have a pasta machine but all my clay is rather old and I could not condition it. Now I know why! Thank you
So glad it was helpful :)
These are such excellent suggestions. I am so grateful that you shared them.
Thank you very much :)
Wow...it really does work!!! Thanks!
It really does ;) Thanks Elaine :)
Asking for pasta machine for Christmas 😀😀😀😀
Wonderful, have fun with it 🙂
I have been using your method since I watched this video. Best thing that every happened to me!!!!! I commented before, but I will comment again. - absolutely brilliant!!!
I am so happy about that Maggie, and thank you for taking the time to comment twice, so sweet of you :)
Fabulous tips! Thank you!!
Thanks so much Lisa :)
I think this is the most helpful video re polymer clay ever!
Oh wow, thank you so much Marianne, I am so glad it was of help :)
Oh this is absolutely brilliant! I’ve been struggling to get the conditioning bit right since months now! This video came as recommendation from a friend /fellow artist and I can’t thank her enough to recommend your video and all thanks to you for creating such insightful videos 😇 lots of love to you from India :)
I am so glad it was helpful, have fun and thanks so much for the comment :)
Brilliant video. Thank you so very much!!
Glad it was useful, thanks so much Lisa :)
OMG You saved my life!!! I have a hand and wrist condition and I learned to condition clay with my hands and when the clay is hard and crumbly, they tend to hurt. Thank you for this thorough tutorial. I definitely needed this to finish two projects I’ve been working on.
I am so glad it has been of help Jarenice, you have made my day, thank you :)
Thank you for explaining all of that, I’m going to keep watching more videos before I attempt that beautiful little box.
Wonderful, thanks Carol :)
Thank you ! This was aAmazing tutorial 💞
I'm so glad it was helpful, thank you :)
Thank you. Excellent tutorial.
🌲🌝☘️
thanks so much Eliz :)
Thank you! I am just starting with polymere clay and was wondering how to condition. The answer is already there😁💃
So glad it helped, thanks Diana :)
Excellent video, information much needed! Thanks for sharing your knowledge!
Thank you Gloria :)
Thank you so much for sharing your techniques! Conditioning clay has been a struggle because of carpal tunnel and weak hands! This video is a game changer me!😉❤️💛🧡💜💙💚
Oh I am so pleased, yes, anything that saves your hands and wrists is definitely a boon, Thank you :)
Excellent video!
Thank you very much 🙂
So glad I found this video it it brilliant
Thanks so much Carol :)
THANK you so much for this.. I've had a few problems with conditioning, and you've answered my unspoken questions. I haven't been conditioning properly. So know I know how,yay! Thanks again. You have amazing videos and your a fantastic teacher! Blessings to you!
I am so happy to have been of some help, thank you Angela :)
Thanks Fiona, really informative,
thanks so much Trev :)
Testé aujourd'hui avec une pâte très sèche et jamais il n'a été aussi simple de récupérer un pain de polymère !
Souvent on recommence d'ajouter de la crème nivea ou un peu de fimo liquide, de l'huile d'amande douce mais le travail est fastidieux. Des grumeaux se forment et le pain ne reste pas aussi souple qu'on le voudrait. Un grand merci pour cette technique, c'est simplement très facile pour un résultat magique ! :)
Je suis tellement heureux que cela a fonctionné pour vous aussi. Merci beaucoup pour votre aimables commentaires :)
Love how you recondition hard clay. I always find this challenging, attempting to roll it physically while adding Sculpey Diluent. Messy and hard on the hands. Even attempting with the diluent and pasta machine. Wonderful how it reconditions just using the pasta machine. Thank you for this valuable information.
Thank you Bonnie, I have been using this techniques for years now, and it just works, I hope it does for you too :)
Thank you! This is so helpful
I am so glad, thank you :)
Through the years, I've come across the pasta machines while shopping. I even saw one by chance when I went to a thrift shop. I didn't buy it at the time because I thought I don't really need it and besides...if I wanted pasta, I could just buy the ready made at the grocery store. Now I regret not getting one for art purposes. If I ever get a chance to see one again, at least I have some idea that I could use it for something else other than food purposes. I'm new to polymer clay art. I found it useful to make things that I would not normally find at the store.
oh how frustrating, yes a pasta machine is invaluable at times, and you are right, it is so fun to make things with polymer clay you can't find elsewhere :)
Gosh that's so helpful, thanks!
I'm so pleased, thank you Diana :)
Very good Tutorial, thanks a lot 👍👍👍
Thanks so much Hans-Jorg :)
Such a great way to do it
Thanks so much :)
I had watched this before and forgot that the second batch you conditioned WAS hard and crumbie. Should have known you’d do the best!❤️
Superb video. Thank you.
Thank you very much Clive 🙂
This was an incredible tutorial! Thank you for sharing and inspiring us to create well!
thank you so much :)
I've been struggling with hard polymer clay for some time now & i thought it cannot be used if it is too old & crumbly. Thanks to you i'll not through it away & i'll continue working with it. Thanks a lot it was very informative & really helpful.
I am so glad it was helpful, thank you :)
I haven't worked with the clay yet but want to start. Thank you so much for posting this... I will be buying a pasta machine....
Thanks Tammy :)
Thank you Fiona. Good to know how to do this
Thanks Irma :)
Thank u so much. Was trying to find a alternative to buying expensive polymer clay conditioner/softener
Yes this really does work, so glad it was helpful, thanks :)
Thank you, you have helped me tremendously.
that's so nice of you to say, thank you Lyn :)
Thanks so much for this! Incredibly helpful and concise, will be using this method now as conditioning can become so tedious!
So glad it was helpful Bryn :)
Great tutorial. If anyone has a short attention span, may I suggest speeding up the playback? I put mine on 1.50 and it worked for me.
ha ha, love it, thanks Lisa :)
Excellent video
thank you Chris :)
Great video on conditioning the clay, especially old clay, thank you!
Thanks Monica :)
Fiona Abel-Smith PolyOriginals Hi, I conditioned my dry clay as you showed and it worked great, didn’t spend as much time on it as I did previously, thank you!!!
so glad it worked for you, it always has for me :)
My goodness that old clay really took some work. Thanks for showing us both ways.
yes, but even though it was really crumbly it came back ;) thank you :)
This is exactly what I needed, thank you so much. ❤️
I am so glad it was helpful, thanks you Ita :)
Ooooo yeah you're my poli teacher 🫶🫶🫶🫶🫶🫶🫶🤘🤘🤘🤘🤘
awww, thank you so much Rose 🙂
I will adopt your method of folding. For dry clay, I would have used the sheet of soft white clay you first conditioned and added thin slices of the dry cracked clay to that, a few pieces at a time. If I don't have any soft clay of the same color to add dry cracked clay, then I use a bit of pearl clay to start with or transluscent clay that I condition and warm up.
Thanks Jill :)
I'm not longer angry about hard and old clay! Thank you very much 🤩🙋♀️🐶
that makes me so happy, thank you Heather :)
I have Rheumatoid Arthritis, so this is very helpful. Thank you! 😊
So glad it was of help Millie :)
Fiona Abel-Smith PolyOriginals
I only just started & covered (my first ever) crochet hooks; they came out good, but with just finding your channel, I think my next few hooks will come out even better...😉
Thank you again...💗
wow I wish I had seen this video a few months ago ha. But I'm so glad to have found your channel.
Thanks so much for posting this.
Thank you :)
thank you. i want to work with clay that i got 10 years ago... this will help a lot
Glad it helped, thank you Nezumi-san :)
Thank you so much! I too bought clay that is old and my "old" hands can't keep kneading it. I'll try this because I realky want to make things and I really can't afford having to buy all over again. I wonder why it seems that transluscent clay us so much drier? Anyway, thank you and 1 tip that I learned in my reading is that if it gets too sticky, to add baking powder or soda a pinch at a time. Thank you for taking the time to show us how to recycle our clay! You're the greatist!😊👍💥🦋💗
I am so glad it was helpful. I have never needed to add any softener to clay yet, by using this method. Have fun and I hope your clay comes back quickly and lets you make lots of wonderful pieces 🙂
@@FionaAbelSmithPolyOriginals THANK YOU!
Brilliant! Thank you.
Thanks so much Janis :)
Thank you SO MUCH for this. I have a pasta machine coming and what you have shown me here is amazing. It really is EASY to work polymer clay :) fun part is making all the canes which I am so wanting to learn to make lovely beads and other amazing creations.
Thank you Fiona.
have fun with it when it arrives, thanks so much Kerry :)
@@FionaAbelSmithPolyOriginals is there such a thing as having 'too much fun' with our arts and crafts? :)
@@silverpromidi ha ha, no, never !! :)
@@FionaAbelSmithPolyOriginals oh good :)
Wow that’s amazing advice 😄🙏 I spent so long using my hands and oil, getting in a right mess!
So glad it was of help Heather :)
Brilliant tips Fiona, thank you so much.
Thank you Marlen :)
Thanks so much for the information. I have some old clay that I wasn’t sure would still be workable after all this time. But I added some clay softener and stuck with it and made a project with it. Took some time but I’m glad I was persistent.
Glad it was helpful, thanks Jennvelope :)
Great tutorial. 🥰🙏🏻😍
Thanks so much :)
Super! plus very nice voice!
Thanks so much :)
🎉❤Gratitude for this, 😊 thank you for sharing.
Thanks so much 🙂
I’ve never seen anyone use a pasta machine that fast!! That sure beats the way I condition old clay. I’m going to have to try it. I can’t believe you didn’t even have to add softener.
Thanks, and no, I have never had to add any softener. Give it a go - it does work !! :)
Fiona Abel-Smith PolyOriginals You don’t know how excited I am to hear this because I make what some call clay paintings and I also make little animals and fairies and the like, and when I have to use softener it makes the clay really hard to work with.