I've never sculpted anything, but i love working with polymer clay.  I recently saw where someone had covered Altoid tins with clay. It looked so cool!  But they had a pasta machine to make it really smooth, so I'm not sure that mine would look as good.   Has anyone ever done that with Altoid tins? Got any tips for that? Do you think someone with the minimal tools could do it successfully?

Maybe the best way to approach it would be through experimentation...gather up anything you think might give your the same smooth results...a wide, flat spatula, a plastic plate with a smooth underside you could mash down on the clay, an empty glass jar or bottle you could roll with...and see what kind of outcome you have. Then you could have a spare tin you use purely for scientific experimentation! Perfect you technique brofe going after the Finished Work you want; then you won't be annoyed as he** when early attempts don't work right!

My friend just sent me a heart shaped alotid tin.  I used a technique with oven cleaner to remove the paint from the tin and it worked!  Now I have to decide if I want to use alcohol inks or polymer clay on it. 

Zura, would you share the oven cleaner paint remover technique?

Heather

 Oooohhh, please tell me how to do this! I have a box full of altoid, aol, etc tins just waiting to be altered but haven't wanted to do the burning technique I read about.

 My sister has covered tins in poly clay and she usually just coats the box with a thin layer of gluestick prior to applying each piece. Not sure why...but she just does.

Are there any other ways to cover the tins? What kind of gluey substance would attach tissue paper? I need to do something with all of these tins!
 

 Sure I'll share.  The original instructions called for regular oven cleaner, but I bought the kind you use in a cold oven by accident.  So, here's how I did it.

The oven cleaner is Easy Off.  It says on the can "Safe for self cleaning ovens".  I just laid the tin on a rack in in the oven, opened up with the painted side up. I sprayed it down good with oven cleaner.  I shut the door and left it for 2 hours.  When I took it out, it looked like only a couple of spots had the paint removed. But I got an S.O,S, pad and held the tin under water and scrubbed it.  All the paint came right off.  I had to scrub the whole thing but it wasn't hard, really. The only tough place for some reason was the bar code.   The dark black lines that outlined the word "Altoid" are still there, but they are faint and I feel sure my alcohol inks will cover them up.

I like this method because it leaves an evenly colored surface and it's smooth.  When you burn them they are all different colors, which is great for texturing or real vintage look, but for painting I think this oven cleaner method is best.

Thanks Zura. Alcohol Inks have been on my wish list for at least a year now. I've only ever seen one brand. Where did you get yours?

Heather

 I've used alcohol inks on an altered altoid tin. I burned the paint off so it left a really rustic finish so I used lots of deep colours, reds, browns. It turned out really cool. If my brother can recover all my photos, I'll upload a picture of it.  I haven't tried the overn cleaner. I'm afraid of harsh chemicals because of my asthma.

I've been adhering things to the tins I have done with everything from craft clue to Jewel-it, which is meant for gluing rhinestones and stuff to clothes. It is designed to stand up to machine wash loads so it is quite durable.  I used it on an altered brooch I made, decorated with glass microbeads and other goodies...and I left the pin on a shirt by mistake and washed it. And sure enough, the pin came out intact! Astounding!

I've also discovered silicone to use as an adhesive, it's designed for slick surfaces and it holds really well.