STAEDTLER 8023 C12-3 FIMO Soft Oven Hardening Modelling Clay

Curated from 57 real Reddit conversations

Refreshed on: December 22, 2024

STAEDTLER 8023 C12-3 FIMO Soft Oven Hardening Modelling Clay

Brand: STAEDTLER
Price: $14
Snoop Score:
6.1
Sentiment
3.8
Popularity
4.8
Technical
7.3

Snoop's Take

STAEDTLER 8023 C12-3 FIMO Soft Oven Hardening Modelling Clay comes in 12 pastel-colored blocks of 25 g each, engineered for crafting detailed ornamental and sculptural projects. It is a polymer clay that stays pliable until baked in a home oven, transforming into a sturdy medium ideal for a wide range of artistic endeavors. Community sentiment swings widely: some users praise its high quality and strong post-bake durability, with one remarking, “It's strong after baking and is easy to work with.” However, feedback also calls out issues with inconsistent texture and conditioning, with a few reviewers noting that it can be too hard or crumbly to knead. These diverse views highlight the product’s polarizing nature among creatives. In conclusion, while STAEDTLER’s FIMO Soft clay remains a good deal for budget-conscious artists and beginners, experienced users might find its performance variable. Overall, it is recommended for those willing to experiment and adapt techniques to manage its quirks.

Not for you? Check out our other rated Fimo

Fimo is a good one high quality but just too hard for my liking.

Positive Feedback

It's completely crumbly, I can't knead.

Negative Feedback
Product
6.1
STAEDTLER 8023 C12-3 FIMO Soft Oven Hardening Modelling Clay
Jewelry Crafting
7 / 10
Sculpting
7 / 10
Home Décor
7 / 10
Educational Projects
7 / 10
See how this compares to all Fimo

What it does well!

Key strengths users can’t stop talking about.
High quality clay for detailed work
Fimo is a good one high quality but just too hard for my liking.
Fimo professional it's a nice clay to work with.
Good deal for bulk purchase
I think it's a bargain, don't you?
What a deal—hope you have fun with it!
Such a good deal!
Strong after baking and easy to work with
It's strong after baking and is easy to work with.
Fimo Soft is generally softer than other lines
Personally, I've never liked Fimo Soft since it just never seemed to do the things I'm used to being able to do.
I found the clay to be really soft, and easy to condition. Sometimes I felt like they were a little too soft though.
Easier to condition with added tips
The best tip I've found for Fimo is rub some Vaseline into it whilst conditioning it and it softens right out!

Where it needs some work!

Areas to watch—feedback on possible improvements.
Clay can be crumbly and hard to knead
It's completely crumbly, I can't knead.
i buy a lot of expired fimo. always hard as a rock. i have a very fool proof way to bring it back to
Adding some translucent liquid clay and kneading it works for me.
Hard clay may require conditioning
50 euros is about $58 so a very good deal, especially as long as none, or few, of the bars are too hard from having been exposed to heat at some point after manufacturing.
Clay can be too soft and brittle after baking
it is too soft and it gets brittle after you bake it sooo maybe its alright for getting some experience but for later use i wouldn't recommend it.
Meh, for the money, premo sculpey is much better imo, less brittle after baking and far less burnable.
Clay can be hard and difficult to work with
This clay is super hard.
Old clay may crumble when trying to condition
You can tell your clay is old if it's not just hard but, if it crumbles when you try to condition it.
Struggling with smudging when working with Fimo Soft
I am really struggling with working with Fimo Soft though, as I keep smudging it.
Clay can become hard and crumbly when conditioning
Solution for Fimo Soft being hard & crumbly.
I'm getting certin translucent clay which is known for being soft so maybe that'll help.
Fimo soft should be a pretty soft polymer clay.
Ideally, this plastic should be really soft.
Clay can melt if baked incorrectly
Did everything according to the instruction, but 13min into baking the lower part melted and the standing cactus pot went askew.

Compare On All Talked About Dimensions

Product NameImagePriceScoreCompareSee DetailsBuy Now
STAEDTLER SG Education FIMO 8020 0 Fimo Soft Modelling Clay 57g WhiteSTAEDTLER SG Education FIMO 8020 0 Fimo Soft Modelling Clay 57g White$2
8.7
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STAEDTLER FIMO Soft Polymer Clay - Oven Bake Clay for Jewelry, Sculpting & CraftingSTAEDTLER FIMO Soft Polymer Clay - Oven Bake Clay for Jewelry, Sculpting & Crafting$30
7.6
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STAEDTLER FIMO Soft Polymer Clay - Oven Bake Clay for Jewelry, Sculpting, CraftingSTAEDTLER FIMO Soft Polymer Clay - Oven Bake Clay for Jewelry, Sculpting, Crafting$14
7.6
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STAEDTLER 8023 C12-3 FIMO Soft Oven Hardening Modelling ClaySTAEDTLER 8023 C12-3 FIMO Soft Oven Hardening Modelling Clay$14
6.1
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STAEDTLER 8023 C12-2 FIMO Soft Oven-Hardening Polymer Modelling ClaySTAEDTLER 8023 C12-2 FIMO Soft Oven-Hardening Polymer Modelling Clay$15
5.9
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STAEDTLER 8043 C12-1 FIMO Professional Oven-Hardening Polymer Modelling ClaySTAEDTLER 8043 C12-1 FIMO Professional Oven-Hardening Polymer Modelling Clay$15
5.6
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STAEDTLER FIMO Soft Polymer Oven Bake Modelling Clay - Set of 6STAEDTLER FIMO Soft Polymer Oven Bake Modelling Clay - Set of 6$16
5.2
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STAEDTLER FIMO Soft Polymer Clay - Oven Bake Clay for ModelingSTAEDTLER FIMO Soft Polymer Clay - Oven Bake Clay for Modeling$14
3.9
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STAEDTLER FIMO Effect Translucent FIMO Effect Polymer Modelling Clay BlockSTAEDTLER FIMO Effect Translucent FIMO Effect Polymer Modelling Clay Block$4
3.3
DetailsBuy
STAEDTLER FIMO Soft Polymer Oven Modelling Clay - Pack of 3STAEDTLER FIMO Soft Polymer Oven Modelling Clay - Pack of 3$9
1.5
DetailsBuy

Core Power Plays

The specs and strengths that make it shine.
Fimo is often softer than Sculpey.
It seems softer to me, and for that reason I prefer Sculpy.
Fimo soft is similar to Premo but usually softer.
Fimo is considered good for all-purpose clay.
I work with Fimo as a good all purpose clay.
Fimo clay is safe to breathe when fully cured
better safe than sorry right?
If it's fully cured, it's just plastic.
Fimo offers a variety of clay types
Polymer clay can create many more patterns, shapes, looks, etc, than air-dry clays.
Different lines of Fimo have varying handling characteristics
all the Fimo's ARE STRONG after baking as long as they've been properly and thoroughly cured.
Liquid polymer used for making spreadable clay
I use liquid polymer, but mostly I use it to make 'spreadable' clay for things like icing and sauces.
FIMO can handle higher temperatures than recommended.
FIMO can handle 130 degrees at maximum... it might run at a little lower temperature and you might be able to bake FIMO.

Hidden Hero Hacks

Unexpected tricks and side‑door uses you’ll love.
Users share methods to revive hard clay
Works like a charm.
Put it in a plastic bag with a little bit of mineral oil.
It takes time, but you can condition it.
I just bought the sculpture clay softener and it does the trick for me.
Experience shared about learning techniques from resources
Discovering the depth of possibilities with clay after a serious accident in 2003 saved my sanity.
User plans to explore liquid polymer clay in the future
Wow, this is a LOT of wonderful information!!
Cooling and leaching techniques are helpful for working with Fimo
Looking good :)
Using a toaster oven can yield better results
Personally i’ve had better luck using a toaster oven.

Buyer’s Cheat Sheet

What to check before you click ‘Add to Cart.’
Comparison of various polymer clay brands.
I think they are all great.
Users recommend trying multiple brands to find the best fit
I recommend you purchase a brick of each kind....a fairly small investment....and work with them on a small project.
Discussion of different brands of liquid polymer clay
of those 3 clear versions the Sculpey/Polyform version is usually the least really-clear, or hardest to get clear, with the Fimo and Kato versions being the clearest.
Interesting note on partially cured clay
the conditioned clay is so satisfying!

Cautionary Callouts

Know the pitfalls before they catch you off guard.
Differences between polymer clays are considered negligible by some users
the differences between those clays for me is simply neglectable (I use different ones only for different colours)
Discussion on air dry clay's safety for masks
I've seen quite many air dry clay masks so I'm thinking it can't be harmful *right?*
Health and safety concerns with the clay
How risky is this stuff? I'm being slightly put off by all the health and safety stuff.
Companies will take the easiest route to explain things, instead of making their product seem incredibly fussy to use.
I always washed and used a cloth to help rub it off before moving onto another colour.
Liquid Fimo may not cure as clear as expected
the liquid fimo says it cures clear, but it doesn't look THAT clear.
Curing clay at too high of a temperature can result in burning.
Curing clay at too high of a temperature will result in burning.

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