Ask the Experts | Fire Mountain Gems and Beads

Ask the Experts Pendants Q&A

Q: I’ve been looking everywhere for pendant settings with dogs or paws. I’ve found owls, turtles, dolphins, cats but no dogs. Doesn’t seem like they exist. Is there a way to make them?

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Ask the Experts Metal Clay Q&A

Q: I bought some silver Art Clay some years ago, it's never been opened. Do you know if it can still be used? I would be firing it with a butane torch. Thanks!

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Ask the Experts Stones Q&A

Q: I'm interested in embedding very tiny CZ's in a PMC pendant. The stones are too small to use pliers to pick up, so I'm not sure how to do this.

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Ask the Experts Metal Clay Q&A

Q: Can you mix the different Art Clays, the slow drying and the regular? Or do they need to be used seperately because of different working times?

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Ask the Experts Metal Clay Q&A

Q: Can I use different metal clays on the same piece, e.g. bronze, copper, and or silver?

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Ask the Experts Metal Clay Q&A

Q: How can you prevent open, unused silver clay from turning moldy? We have the unused silver wrapped tightly in plastic wrap, sealed with masking tape to keep the plastic wrap from coming loose. Then we place the silver in an air tight rubber maid container with a sponge that is wet. Does it just turn moldy over time or is there something different we should be doing?

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Ask the Experts Metal Clay Q&A

Q: Can I cross the gold precious metal clay with some of the copper to successfully have rosegold precious metal clay?

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Ask the Experts Firing Q&A

Q: I just bought a new kiln and have tried the time and temperature listed, but my pieces are coming out not completely fired. How do I adjust the time and temperature without ruining more silver and copper clay?

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Ask the Experts Firing Q&A

Q: I want to make a bracelet that is not a bangle but one that doesn't touch each side. What can I use to mold and fire on?

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Ask the Experts Molds Q&A

Q: I am interested in creating my own jewelry company. I have started out by making bracelets, however I need to separate my bracelets from other bracelet makers. I have many ideas of beads I want to design myself but am not sure how to go about getting them created. For example, some companies have their logos as pendants on a lot of their jewelry. I want to make a logo pendant for my bracelets but am not sure how to "create" it. Are there jewelry supply companies that can make my logo into a pendant or is this something I have to create on my own?

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Ask the Experts Setting Marcasite in Art Clay® Q&A

Q: I'm interested in doing silver clay jewelry. What's the best way to get started? I love marcasite. Can I put them in the silver clay and then heat or is it best to glue them in later. Would I use jewelry glue or slip?

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Ask the Experts Metal Clay Q&A

Q: I have many large uncalibrated stones. I would like to create my own mounts with Artclay. Will the prongs bend and not be too brittle for setting the stones after firing?

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Ask the Experts Fine Silver Q&A

Q: Can Hill Tribes items be fired with metal clay? This is technically fine silver; but, will it mess up any design?

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Ask the Experts Art Clay® Is Pure Silver Q&A

Q: I am interested in working with metal clay but was wondering if there is a difference between the silver clay and the pure silver that you can buy. Also, if I sold a piece of silver made from the clay, would I have to make a special note of it to the customer or could I just say it is pure silver?

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Ask the Experts Disposing of Liver of Sulfur Q&A

Q: After you have used a liver of sulfur bath for a fired metal clay piece, how do you dispose of the liver of sulfur? Thanks for your help.

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Ask the Experts Metal Clay Q&A

Q: After firing metal clay earrings, I decided to try to bend a corner of one of them, and it snapped off! Was it not fired long enough? Is there any way to make a new piece and fire it on the existing earring?

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Ask the Experts Clay Q&A

Q: During a recent shopping trip I bought three containers of what was grouped with the metal clay supplies in a local hobby and craft store. The product brand is Pardo, and the company website gives the product as the metal listed combined with beeswax to help hold shape until firing. Firing is supposed to be done in a home or convection oven at 266 degrees Fahrenheit (130 degrees Celsius) for 30 minutes per 1/4-inch thickness. I bought one jar of gold, one jar of silver and one jar of bronze. My questions: How does this product match up to the other metal clay products on the market? Could this product be fired using a torch instead of an oven? And how might this product stand up long-term in items crafted with any of the clays purchased? Thank you.

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Ask the Experts Polymer Clay Q&A

Q: Can foil leaf be used on raw polyclay and then baked? If so, should it be covered with a thin sheet of translucent clay or glazed after baking? Can it be used in the mokume-gane technique?

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Ask the Experts Metal Clay Polishing Q&A

Q: I work in bronze clay and I find that after firing the metal is dull even after polishing. I even changed the carbon recently. Can you tell me a solution to this problem?

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Ask the Experts Solder Q&A

Q: I want to "trim" the edge of a seashell with silver. I definitely do not want to just glue metal on. Is there some way to attach metal to a shell? Could I perhaps even use metal clay?

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Ask the Experts Bezels Q&A

Q: I want to create a thin metal setting to go around a variety of different stones and crystals ... to make them shape specific in a gold plate or copper color. Do I need to use bronze/copper clay for that or buy a thin sheet of metal and cut it to the stone? If I go with the second idea, will I need a kiln to fire it or can it be glued to seal? Thank you!

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Ask the Experts Metal Clay Q&A

Q: I had some left over Art Clay and wrapped it back into the original packaging. When I went to work with it again a few weeks later, it crumbled. I added some water and put it back in the packaging but it is still in pieces. Can you suggest another way of reconstituting it?

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