Most artists tend to be representative of one of these categories, but more often than not, many fall into the third category. The interesting thing is that no matter what category an artist works within, you can never compare one piece of art to another. All have their place, and their respective purpose. You wouldn't want to, lets say, create a child's nursery setting then set a fully furred grizzly bear sculpture in the corner. Nor would you have a dramatic mountain landscape and set a pink and white crocheted bunny in it.

When creating small animals almost all of the artists polled use polymer clay in one form or another. When making furred animals it is best for shaping the body and defining details. Once baked, the clay hardens and can be painted or furred over - sometimes both!

Depending on the size and weight of the animal, a wire frame may be used to support the clay and build the sculpture in layers, often requiring several stages of baking. For smaller pieces wire is not needed, and the animal can be shaped and then furred or finished with paints or flocking.

Clay is also used for eyes, where glass beads may not give the final look a piece requires. Clay is frequently used as the only medium when creating a piece, with the finish and final details added by hand painting. Nicky Cooper uses this technique when small birds are being reproduced. And Courtney Strong might be well known for her small-scale foods, but she also can create the cutest bears and penguins from colored or painted polymer clays.