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1500 questions
15
votes
5 answers
Making a rubber duck swim in a tabletop pond
I plan to build a small round tabletop pond (radius 15 cm).
I want to put a small rubber duck inside, and I want it to "swim" constantly, preferably moving randomly in the pond (as opposed to a fixed swimming path, like in circle).
What would be a…
HeyJude
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14
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2 answers
Does knitting needle material make a difference in knitting?
Knitting needles are available in wooden, metal and plastic materials.
Are certain needles more forgiving of mistakes? Does the material itself have any effect on the process or product, besides just how it feels in your hand?
If one has an impact…
Ram
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14
votes
3 answers
How to protect & preserve water color paintings
Is there a particular coating that I should be using to protect a watercolor painting?
And what is the best storage option for preserving paintings?
Tim Penner
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14
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6 answers
Which glue should I use to attach paper to glass?
When making things that go in bottles (primarily beer), I want to add labels to the bottles. I like the look of matte paper labels such as those found on fancy wine bottles, but I'm having difficulty attaching the paper to the glass. Superglue and…
walrus
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14
votes
4 answers
Is there a way to cleanly cut Styrofoam?
My roommate is a bit of a pack rat and has several old TV and computer monitor boxes with Styrofoam supports.
I am thinking of cutting the Styrofoam into little "bricks" and building a small house out of it.
Is there a trick or special tool to make…
Jay
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14
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1 answer
What do you call "negative" paint?
Many months ago, I came across an art medium used by painters. I cannot remember the exact term for this medium. It is white, but is transparent once used, I believe... having the consistency and appearance very similar to white liquid Elmer's…
howland12
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14
votes
1 answer
When mixing paint colours, what is a good technique for ensuring consistent ratios each time a new batch needs to be created?
Some Background
Back in 2014, I made a "wand" out of a wooden dowel, and some glue gun glue for the handle. The "wand" part was a single pre-made colour, but for the handle, I mixed together a few different colours to create a nice brown-ish colour.…
Paul Richter
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13
votes
3 answers
What type of paint should I use for stone painting meant for outside
Not too long ago, my family’s dog was put down and we spread the ashes on one of her favourite (or so we assume) walkies routes. I want to create some kind of tombstone for her. I was thinking of painting a stone and then placing it at the side of…
Jan
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13
votes
5 answers
What kind of paint best adheres to doll/barbie bodies?
Does anyone have experience with full-body repaints for plastic dolls? I'm working on a repaint/restyle and I need to paint the doll's entire body. I'm creating a fantasy creature but acrylic paint doesn't quite stick the way I need and it doesn't…
Lilybob
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13
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1 answer
What is this small hand held cutter?
I was liberating some old hand tools from my grandfather's shop again, before grandma throws them in the garbage, and found some more interesting things. This cutting tool was one of them.
The following is a picture of the blade removed. The…
Matt
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13
votes
1 answer
What is this tool in my sewing kit?
I found this tool in my sewing kit, and I wanted to know what it is.
It is a couple of inches (centimetres) long. It has two metal prongs on one end and one of them has a plastic ball protecting the tip. Do you have any ideas?
Dimitrios Desyllas
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12
votes
3 answers
What does it mean to "push your values"?
When I used to frequent art-critique forums, I would often hear senior artists advise people to "push values", generally with little to no explanation beyond that. I gathered that in many cases it meant to make darks darker, but that's as far as I…
user24
12
votes
1 answer
What causes frosting when applying a varnish?
Sometimes when applying the final varnish on a miniature, it ends up going opaque / frosting. What causes this to happen, and how can it be prevented? I have seen this occur with both Vallejo and Liquitex gloss varnish, while using a brush to…
beattyac
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12
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2 answers
How does shading & blending with carbon pencils differ from graphite pencils?
From what I've read, carbon pencils give a more matte-like texture than graphite, and are a drier media - similar to charcoal. Graphite can become reflective when photographed and scanned so I'm surprised that carbon pencils aren't more popular.
Do…
johnp
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12
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2 answers
How can I hand-sew an "invisible" hem?
I'm sitting at work and my pant cuff started unraveling. Luckily I have a needle and thread in my purse, and I would like to repair this while I'm on a conference call with little else to do.
Since these are work pants, I don't want to see the hem…
Erica
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