Am i supposed to be firing any of my puppet for sturdyness?

Hey Optik, it definitely helps if you bake certain parts. In Wallace and Gromit - Wallace's green sweater is actually baked clay that is painted. So when they grab the puppet it doesn't get smooshed.

Today I am going to bake the Sculpy hips and shoulders on a wire armatured puppet. I hope it turns out ok.

k lemme ask this....should i use sculpty III for the baking parts or does claytoon bake also? I have a MICHAELS store less than a mile from me if i need to get more clay. Im really having trouble with my puppets. Dont really understand how the tie-downs work either...am i supposed to drill holes all throughout my set?

ARG!!! i spent 2 days making a clay puppet and disfigured it as soon as i went to animate it...man am i lost or sumptin!

Only bake sculpey and other polymer clays. Claytoon should not be baked, it will just melt because it's an oil and wax based clay. After melting, it could burn and create toxic fumes.

For tie downs, yes, you are supposed to drill holes throughout your set. How warm is it where you are animating? The clay might be too soft if it's too warm. If you're using an armature, also make sure that the wire isn't too stiff or else the force needed to move it could make you squash up the clay in the process.

If you have any other questions, just ask.

k ive made some adjustments and found first off i forgot to put putty for the hands so the wire tore right thru. im also going to install an air conditioner in the workspace as it is getting close to summer here.

  Do you bake the head after you cut out the mouth part? and when you bake a head are the eyes in or out?

The sculpy-boned armature I mentioned above turned out great! I only used half the package so-if you use an A. C. Moore 40% off coupon and already have wire- it only cost $1.

Pictures of the half-completed puppet covered in clay can be found in my gallery. It's the all white one.