I had no intention of getting into the putty wars, well, not really wars, but it seems everyone and their cousin is making and selling putty now. I'm tried many of them, none of them are awful, but most don't really hold up for me. I find that most get sloppy and leave residue on the canvas pretty quickly. I have tried adding corn starch (the suggested fix) and it will make a mushy putty a less mushy putty, but eventually it is corn starch with some sticky mixed in and basically loses the sticky in exchange for not making a mess. So it becomes useless.
An individual that wishes to remain anonymous broached the subject of putty one day in a conversation. They have been working on a formula for a long time to address the common traits that putty needs to have -- durability -- it needs to last a long time when its been loaded in a multiplacer-- pick-up stickiness needs to be strong, but not too strong that it won't let the drill go and pulls it back off the canvas instead of leaving it behind, and it is also a problem if it pulls the coating off of ABs, probably the number 2 complaint behind the next trait -- clean use without residue or strings left on the canvas or drills, the primary complaint or drawback to most putty available. It is related to the durability, if it is too wet, it gets messy and stringy, too dry with the addition of corn starch and it loses its sticky.
This anonymous individual claimed that nearly every issue has been addressed and they have a putty formula that is durable, strong and clean with fresh fragrances and no dyes or possibility of staining a canvas if some gets on it. ABs are picked up and placed beautifully without ripping the coating off. Hard pressers (me) don't end up with a sloppy mess as it smooshes out of the sides of the multiplacer requiring constant wiping and cleaning--it is dry enough to stand up to the pressure but holds well and does the work it was intended to perform.
Ok, fine, I'll try it, bought a couple of fragrances, got a few others as freebies, which is almost expected when your friend becomes a putty slinger, and I also got an interesting offer -- Would you like to sell it in your store? Nah, lots already sell putty, you should be doing that, it would wipe your profits out to sell to me and then I resell it with the necessary profit margin to make it feasible. No, was the reply, you sell it with your brand, your packaging, it becomes your putty, and you don't have to make it, just portion it out and package it. Hmm. Well, that is exactly how it happened that I have putty for sale with the Diamond Art Emporium name on it!
With a new website in the works and a second one finished, I am choosing to sell it directly, outside of the fee heavy nightmare of Etsy, from my personal site https://renfanning.com , a new site that will be an operational support site for Diamond Art Emporium when that monster is opened. I've had several people try it, all seem to have the same positive reaction, good and strong, no residue,
ABs are handled perfectly and the fragrances are pleasant. That to me makes it a no-brainer to at least give it a test.
I have been using it personally for almost 2 months and I have occasionally used other putty, but gravitate back to this one, it works and does its job very well. I was getting frustrated with larger canvas kits, it was just too much work with crappy putty. That is now solved, I'm back to 60x80 or larger projects and looking forward to the upcoming "Go Big or Go Home" sized kits that will be launching soon.
While there is no such thing as a perfect diamond painting putty, this one is well on its way, and I am assuming that as the recipe is continually evolving, it will only get better in time. I'm glad I was roped into it, it is not often that you can just straight up say --you really should get some of this to try it for yourself.
A regular package is $7, sample size is $2.50, I do charge $3 for your share of the shipping cost, I pick up the rest. There are 4 fragrance families, the individual scent may change from time to time as I reorder, but it will be one of those four families--Bakery, Butch (woodsy, masculine vs floral scents), Floral and Fruity. The first 50 orders will receive a $5 off coupon and a free shipping coupon for their 2nd order. I do that confidently because I think you'll come back if you try it just once.