Button shanks and polymer clay

[Metalfairy]

Can the button shank you carry (30-668) be baked in the polymer clay, or do I need to glue them together? '>  '>

[Metalman]

Since the shank is plastic, it may depend on the temperatures you are firing your poly clay at. So, I would take a couple of the shanks and just put one plain in your oven when you do a firing and build one into a sample poly clay piece and fire to see what happens.  Many plastics are very heat sensitive, so the shanks may distort.  They may not distort but might release fumes so make sure your ventilation is good [if you are baking poly clay, you should already have good ventilation because of its fumes]  The 3rd  possible consideration is that some plastics chemically interact with the poly clay - this might make them stick together better or it might make the plastics never harden and become sticky and gooey.
There is no way to know the answers to these question/considerations except by careful experimentation and observation.  I checked with the sales staff, if you contact one of them at 1.800.366.2156, they can send you a couple to experiment with.  If you do that, please let me know your results so that we can answer these questions better in the future.

[Luann Udell]

I used to make polymer clay buttons with plastic shanks and I attached them with glue after baking the polymer components separately.  For all the reasons Metalman mentioned!  Most button shanks I've seen look like styrene-type plastic (crystal clear, hard) and that is notorious for interacting with raw polymer clay.)

I used to use that E-6000 glue, but either my stash was always too old (it has a shelf life) or conditions weren't right and stuff always popped off.  Others swear by it, so if I were sure I were getting a good fresh tube, I'd try that.  Otherwise, it's hard to go wrong with a good two-part epoxy.

hope this helps,
Luann

[buyagain]

Anytime you glue plastic to plastic you must rough up the hard smooth plastic with 60-80 grit sandpaper to give the glue something to hold onto.

However, making buttons form fimo clay and the like just don't strike me as being durable enough to serve as buttons on anything. JMHO

[Polly]

I really like e-6000; it's very easy to use, and quite durable for about a year.

I've used it for a lot of home repairs (including gluing Birkenstock sandal components back together), as well as making jewelry.
But it seems to last only about a year, whether on highly abused shoes, or gently-used jewelry.
Perhaps it lasts better for people in climates that don't change as much?  Spokane gets a bit of decently hot weather in the summer, and I've been guilty of leaving items in a tightly-closed vehicle in a hot parking lot. And we get a fair amount of below freezing temps in the winter, too.


Buttons made of polymer clay can be quite durable - and are usually more durable than the glue used to attach them to button findings.  But I wouldn't recommend tossing them in the washer (except cold wash, gentle cycle, and maybe in a garment bag, too).  And I would certainly recommend line-drying anything with handmade buttons on it.  
Hmmm... I should probably follow that advice for the dep't store sweater I just bought, that has thin abalone shell buttons.....  It says dry clean (yeah right), but dry cleaning chemicals can't be good for abalone either!

--Polly

[Luann Udell]

I think years ago it was quite a common thing to remove fine buttons from garments before dry cleaning.  They were resewn onto the garment afterwards.  Nowadays, it seems totally unthinkable to make that kind of concession to our buttons!   '>

I used polymer clay buttons on my handknit sweaters for years.  In fact, it's the reason I originally started working with polymer clay.  When people raised concerns about machine washing and drying, I'd remind them that a handmade wool sweater shouldn't go into the washer and dryer anyway!  It should be handwashed and laid flat and smooth to dry.  When people put the button care into context with the sweater care, the objections were erased.

Having said that.....I'm always asked how durable my horse pins are, especially since I use a backfilling technique (similar to scrimshaw) to accent the carved areas.  I always said they should not go through a wash-and-dryer cycle, but that I've worn them on my coats through New Hampshire spring (rain!!) and winters (snow! ice! sleet!) and I've never had the finish wash off.

Then one day I accidentally washed a top with a horse pin.  It DID go through the washer and dryer cycle.  And came through completely unscathed!!  Just a little cleaner....

But I still wouldn't RECOMMEND it!
hope this helps.
Luann