Sunday, May 17, 2009

CopprClay...

On May 7th CopprClay was released to the public for pre-sales.  (It won't actually ship out until May 22nd.)  CopprClay and BronzClay were developed by Bill Struve and his family, who own and operate Metal Adventures in North Carolina.  As the latest metal clay, CopprClay is just fabulous.  Cynthia and I had an opportunity to work with it a few months ago and it's just divine.  It's easy to use, has a silky texture, and has a longer working time.  We were sworn to secrecy, so we haven't blogged about it, but have been doing tests when we could squeeze them in.  (I'll ask Cynthia to post the pictures of the copper coins we stamped out.)  I'm going to try and get ahead this weekend so that I can play around more with it later this week.  I'm so excited about all the possibilities!

14 comments:

SummersStudio said...

Hi Andrew, I'll be looking forward to those photos. I've got some copper clay ordered. I love the bronze clay. Thanks for the tips on etching.

Beth Hikes said...

So cool! I didn't know about this so thanks for the heads up :)

Gaea said...

OHHHH! Can't wait to see! Is it difficult to fire? I'm excited to investigate on this! Thanks!

Sharon said...

Thanks for the good news! I have some copper ordered. Been playing with the bronze clay and love the patinas...

kate mckinnon said...

Yes, and it comes in powder form, for easier metal dust breathing, right?

TesoriTrovati said...

I am fascinated by the whole art clay movement, but know nothing about it and don't have the right tools to experiment. Keep us posted when we can buy something from Green Girl with that stuff! Cool! Enjoy the day! Erin

FunkyMonkey Girls said...

I bet you need to use a klin? I can't wait until my folks sell their house in Florida and move here. Mom does glass and promises to share her kiln...

Funky Monkey Girl,
Jolene

Andrew Thornton said...

Hey LeAnn,

I think you'll be really surprised with how much you'll fall in love with the new copprclay. The firing time is the same as the silver and the texture is really nice. I've been using Glove In a Bottle and don't have to worry about my hands turning green or anything like that.

Andrew Thornton said...

Hey Beth!

Can't wait to see some of your pieces done up in Bronze or in Copper. I think they'd look SHARP!

Andrew Thornton said...

Hey Gaea,

No, the firing schedule is the same as silver. Two hours at 1650. You do have to fire it in a carbon environment like bronze clay, but it's worth it!

Andrew Thornton said...

Hey Sharon,

I like the different patinas as well. I'm really big on mixing metals, so this is really up my alley as far as a designer is concerned. I'm really looking forward to playing MORE with it.

Andrew Thornton said...

Hey Kate!

Hadar Jacobson developed a "copper clay" but it was like you said, metal clay dust madness. Copprclay, developed by Bill Struve and sold through Rio and other metal clay distributors comes pre-mixed. So you don't have to worry about metal clay dust unless you make it yourself. I love the silky texture. You don't even have to condition it as much as BronzClay. I feel with BronzClay, the moisture will sometimes "retreat" to the center and you have to work the clay from the outside in to get the moisture redistributed. So far, every package of CopprClay I've opened has been uniform in moisture.

Andrew Thornton said...

Erin, you should definitely check out metal clay. I think you'd love it and you'd find a lot of freedom in making some of your own components. I'm sure that there are some classes or facilities around that would be good to experiment in. You should really treat yourself to it!

Andrew Thornton said...

Hey Jolene! Yep, a kiln is needed. All metal clays should be fired in a kiln for a full sinter.