The firmest brands and lines of polymer clay will make molds with the highest detail (Kato Polyclay, Fimo Classic, Premo, etc) but any brand or line can be used with good results. (Image doesn’t show Kato Polyclay, Cernit, Souffle or Craftsmart, or other doll and flesh-colored clays. )

Cornstarch (or baby powders made from 100% cornstarch) - Apply cornstarch onto the clay and/or into the mold with the tips of a soft fluffy brush or perhaps a homemade pounce bag (a pounce bag is a piece of fabric, like muslin, that’s gathered around the cornstarch, so the powder can be applied evenly and thinly or thickly according to need). Brush or blow until no pockets of cornstarch remain in crevices. Cornstarch will rinse off the casts later if necessary. Water - Mist or wipe the mold lightly with water. (It’s best not to use water when using certain brands of raw clay such as Fimo and Cernit since one of their fillers may absorb water causing stickiness. ) Other powders - Apply metallic-colored powders, colored chalk powders, etc, to the clay with a soft brush. Metallic leaf - Apply to the clay, making sure to adhere the leaf well. (Note that metallic leaf and the colored powders will change the color of the clay’s surface. ) Oils - Mineral oil, etc, can also work though may make the clay slippery. ArmorAll spray is effective too but the silicone in it may prevent paints and clear finishes used after baking from adhering to the clay.

Position the raw clay mold on the carrier on any of its flat sides. If the mold is not flat or thick, place it instead on a wad of tissues or stuffing or in a pile of baking soda or cornstarch– all are heat safe at polymer clay temperatures. If the raw clay mold is thin in any area, first lightly stuff its interior with tissues, polyester stuffing, etc (or just re-make the mold so it’s thicker). Polymer clay softens slightly with heat. As it may droop where it is thin, stuffing can help by adding support. If desired, avoid the shiny spots that show up on polymer clay after it’s been heated in direct contact with very smooth surfaces like metal baking sheets, aluminum foil, glass or ceramic dishes, etc. To do that (or any time polymer clay is baked), place another material on the carrier before adding the clay. A flat material like a sheet of ordinary blank paper, patty paper (for separating hamburger patties), parchment paper or deli paper work well; or a non-flat material may sometimes be wanted like a sheet or wad of tissues, bit of polyester stuffing, pile of baking soda or pile of cornstarch, etc. Bare unglazed tiles work well too and are their own rigid carriers. None of those materials will change the natural texture of cured polymer clay which is similar to ordinary paper. (When making molds, shiny spots may not be a problem though. )

There are other ways to cure polymer clay, too, but using a regular oven or toaster oven is the most common. Always read the manufacturer instructions for your polymer clay regarding specific temperature and time guidelines.

Antiquing involves coloring only the lower areas of a dimensional surface; highlighting involves coloring only the upper areas. Antiquing is often done with brown (or any color) acrylic paint, and after baking. Highlighting is often done with metallic powders (mica or real-metal powders), and usually before baking. To apply powders, touch a middle or index finger into the powder then tamp into the cap or onto another surface; rub the powder lightly in circles on the topmost parts of the clay. Permanent paints won’t require sealing. Mica powders won’t require sealing if they’re rubbed in well, but some real-metal powders can oxidize and require sealing. {“smallUrl”:“https://www. wikihow. com/images/thumb/2/28/Molds_highantiq-sep-lf-wH2. jpg/460px-Molds_highantiq-sep-lf-wH2. jpg”,“bigUrl”:"/images/thumb/2/28/Molds_highantiq-sep-lf-wH2. jpg/561px-Molds_highantiq-sep-lf-wH2. jpg",“smallWidth”:460,“smallHeight”:369,“bigWidth”:561,“bigHeight”:450,“licensing”:"<div class="mw-parser-output">

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\nLicense: <a target="_blank" rel="nofollow noreferrer noopener" class="external text" href="https://creativecommons. org/licenses/by/3. 0/">Creative Commons</a>\n</p></div>"} Metallic leaf can also be used for antiquing using a special technique, or for completely covering the item with leaf. (If a clay surface is not oily enough to grab the leaf in all spots, it can probably be coated very lightly with polyurethane or even thinned white glue which is allowed to tack up before the leaf is applied or raw or baked clay). Most leaf will need to be sealed against later oxidation so polyurethane or other sealers can be added before baking and then again after baking, or after baking then baking again and recoating. Many colorants and materials can be used on polymer clay surfaces in addition to powders, paint and leaf. For more information on highlighting and antiquing, etc, see a concise summary here: http://glassattic. com/polymer/stamping. htm, under Basic Techniques (scroll down to Raw Clay). And for more on leaf, see http://glassattic. com/polymer/leaf. htm {“smallUrl”:“https://www. wikihow. com/images/thumb/6/68/Molds_high-antiq-whDianeBlack. jpg/460px-Molds_high-antiq-whDianeBlack. jpg”,“bigUrl”:"/images/thumb/6/68/Molds_high-antiq-whDianeBlack. jpg/728px-Molds_high-antiq-whDianeBlack. jpg",“smallWidth”:460,“smallHeight”:159,“bigWidth”:728,“bigHeight”:251,“licensing”:"<div class="mw-parser-output">

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onlays and embellishment - placing onto (raw or baked) clay surfaces and items, or onto non-clay ones like wood/metal/cardboard boxes, Altoid tins, glass votives/jars, phone cases (decoden), Christmas ball ornaments, lids, cabinet knobs, light switch covers, bow centers, or almost anywhere. beads, jewelry, buttons - making cabochons or beads of any kind, pendants, earrings and other jewelry; using as onlays on clay jewelry parts; making buttons (wire shanks if wanted, can be pressed into the backs of buttons while still in molds)[2] X Research source clay faces or body parts - using for dolls and other human or animal figures including amulet figures, Halloween or Christmas figures, diorama figures, etc; or face casts can be used alone on more clay or other surfaces then be embellished with different kinds of hair, headgear, scarves, collars, bodices, etc. (for more details, see http://glassattic. com/polymer/heads_masks. htm > Faces Used Alone) duplicates - making identical casts any time many copies of the same thing are needed (saves time and creates accuracy) replacements - making molds, and then casts from them to use as replacement parts (polymer clay will be quite strong if it’s not thin and doesn’t have projecting parts)

It will be best to place a sheet of paper or deli wrap, etc, under the clay sheet before continuing so the clay won’t stick to the work surface later. This will help with separation of clay and texture sheet as well.

Just a few examples of texturing materials found around the house would be plastic canvas, areas of textured plastic from packaging or from anything, wire mesh, rough sandpaper, tree bark, the skin of cantaloupe or other veggies/fruits, salt, fabrics, lace, string, backs of leaves, stiff bristles, brick or stucco, textured wallpaper, etc. Texturing materials can also be created by making impressions all over a sheet of clay with “stamps” of any kind, including wads of aluminum foil, ends of ball point pens, bits of bark, stiff bristles, etc, or they can be made from hardened clays, paints, and more. Pointed tools, combs, tracing wheels, etc, can also be dragged or rolled across clay sheets to create texturing materials. [3] X Research source (Note that most texturing materials can also be used to texture polymer clay directly without being used as molds or stamps. ) {“smallUrl”:“https://www. wikihow. com/images/thumb/e/ea/Molds_texturing-materials2wh-DianeBlack. jpg/460px-Molds_texturing-materials2wh-DianeBlack. jpg”,“bigUrl”:"/images/thumb/e/ea/Molds_texturing-materials2wh-DianeBlack. jpg/606px-Molds_texturing-materials2wh-DianeBlack. jpg",“smallWidth”:460,“smallHeight”:342,“bigWidth”:606,“bigHeight”:450,“licensing”:"<div class="mw-parser-output">

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To use the new textured clay sheet while it’s still raw, cut parts of it into one or more rectangular, circular, etc, flat shapes with a blade or a shape cutter, or shape cut parts any way you want (e. g. , roll into a cylinder to make a bead, etc). Embellish the cut piece with more clay or non-clay items, or use it with other textured pieces of clay, or use larger pieces to cover whole lids or box sides, etc. Then bake. To make the raw textured sheet into a hardened texture mold/sheet, bake, then use it later to texture new raw clay (that will create a reversed pattern). (If you want a very flat texture sheet/mold, be sure to use a flat rigid baking surface in the oven. ) Textured clay can be used as backgrounds for other clay or as focal elements, can be attached to the lids of boxes or wrapped around bottles, and more. Molds and texture sheets can also be used directly on raw clay to cover fingerprints in the clay, create animal skins, texture background areas or beads and other jewelry items, etc.

Add “registration” marks, if you want, which will help the two hardened sides fit together exactly when used later. That can be done, for example, by pressing a hole/etc. into the dusted side near each corner with the end of a paintbrush, or by pressing something hard and bakeable into the clay near the corners and leaving in place permanently.

If you have to remove the item, it should fit when placed back in the baked mold before using the second slab; be sure wiggle it around in this first slab before removing, to make a slightly larger impression.

If using a non-bakeable item, carefully remove the item and the bake second half separately.

Dust the surfaces and press the clay into one half of mold, then press the other half of mold on top being careful to align the registration marks. Open, remove the newly molded clay item, then bake it separately. (If excess clay called flashing has squeezed out between the mold halves, trim it off with a blade or just smooth it down if possible. )