From Chris Shibata:
Next time you open an old bottle of craft paint, or water-based or gel
stain that appears to have turned into a solid-seeming mass or very
thick goop, with or without visible liquid, don't throw it out. Find 1
or 2 small pebbles, glass beads (plastic or wood are too light), ball
bearings or even hex nuts or screws. Drop them into the bottle and then
push them down through the thick skin and into the goop inside, using a
pencil end or similar tool to submerge them. Replace the cap tightly and
give the sides of the bottle 5 or 6 hard whacks against the edge of a
table or countertop, then shake, shake, shake ......... You should
start to hear/feel the objects inside begin to move through the paint,
remixing the contents, much like the cans of spray paint that tell you
to shake until the metal balls inside move freely (which by the way, is
where I came up with this idea a few years ago.) Continue shaking,
checking the consistency of the paint as the sounds from the bottle
change, until the contents are fully blended. If you find that the paint
still is too thick, add 2-3 drops of water and shake again. You may
have to add another few drops if it's still too thick, and possibly even
more, but I wouldn't add more than 1/2 teaspoon total or it will become
too runny. Of course, if after all this, the blob is still a blob, you
can always soak off the label and use the bottle as a roller for polymer
clay, or cut off the neck at the ring just below where the threads for
the lid start, stick 4 beads on the bottom for feet, cut a card stock
circle to fill the top and turn it into a hot water tank, water
softener, or wood-fired room heating stove (add a card stock or heavy
foil door for adding fuel), and appropriately sized bendy straws for any
water pipes or the smoke pipe pushed into a hole in the card stock
circle.
HINT: From now on, every time you open a bottle of paint, new or
partially used, add the pebbles, beads or what's-its before you shake.
Eventually, all your bottles will contain these mixing balls, and even
that bottle of (name of oddball colour here) you bought in 2006, opened
but never used, will be good to go in no time. If you are an SFM (aka
"Super Frugal Minimaker" ), you can remove the items once the paint is
all used up, wash them off, reuse in another bottle AND follow the hints
above for using a bottle you can't revive. It's up to you to come up
with a use for the flip-top lid and the part you cut from the neck. :-D
A Miniatures Christmas Story 2
1 day ago