I Wanna Do that AGAIN!

by Staci Smith

Ever make something in polymer or metal clay, that you wished you could make again?  Well, I have, and I have found that two part molding compound is my friend.

 

I use it ALL the time.  I make most of my own textures, stamps and molds and it is something that I do not live without.

 

Yesterday I tried my hand at it using a more three dimensional, and detailed item that I made.  I thought I'd share how easy it is to make a mold of your beads so you can easily reproduce them.

 

Here is what I made free form, in polymer clay.  (It's a lotus flower, not sure if you can tell or not).  I baked it, and wanted a way to make more without so much time invested into it.

So I got out my two part molding compound- it is a silicone product.

 

Use a designated plastic spoon to scoop some out of each.

 

Make sure you have an even amount of each color.

 

Mix them together.............

 

until they look like this (some brands are yellow and will turn light yellow)

 

Next flatten it a little (not too much) and press it over your item.  Try to make sure it covers all the parts, and in this case, because it was very 3-D, in all the crevices. 

 

Then leave it sit.  The package says it takes 5 minutes to set, but I think its still too soft at that point and find 20 minutes to work best.

 

Voila!  You have a mold.  This one got a bit messy, I had to clean it up a little byt trimming some extra silicone off.

 

To test my mold, I pressed some new polymer clay into it, and got this.........

 

I am pretty happy with it.  I needed to use my needle tool and such to clean it up a bit, since the edges have excess clay, but it is still much quicker then starting from scratch!

 

I am going to try to use it in metal clay too.

 

So, remember- molding putty is your friend!

 

And saving time with the production, allows me more time to paint and create and make pieces like this with it.

 

 

 

 I leave you with Peace Lotus, my newest design.

 

 

Make an impression

As you read this I'm waking up in the Tucson desert, preparing to set up my booth at the Best Bead Show. Thanks to the wonders of modern technology and scheduled posting, I'm able to post today. If you live or work with a software developer, give them a hug and tell them thanks for me!

On to the topic at hand, which is, how to add unique textures to your clay elements. You probably know about texture sheets, those commercially available plastic or metal tools that allow you to transfer some kind of textural design onto your material. You probably realize you can use rubber stamps to do this as well. But did you know you can easily make your own molds?

I've used two part silicone molding compound to capture some priceless textures to use in my metal clay work. I found some very cool fan coral on the beach in Mexico and used it to create the texture used in this piece of jewelry. You could also easily use it to capture texture from a wall, concrete, or any other object you like.

Here's the texture I really wanted to capture for my metal clay.

It's simple to use - the compound consists of two separate (and distinctly colored) puttys that when combined harden into a pliable rubber sheet, similar to that on a rubber stamp. You just take the same amount of each putty, and knead them until the two colors meld into one. Then you press the item you want to capture into it, let it sit for about 15 minutes, and them remove your object to find the lovely texture mold.

Several different pieces of coral yielded similar, yet different variations on the texture.

I've used this with natural objects, buttons, and even some fabulous drawer pulls in my home. What better way to ensure that no one will have the same element as you?

You can get this at Fire Mountain Gems, Rio Grande, Artsparx, Art Clay World, Cool Tools, and many other places.