Wednesday 25 September 2013

Mould Making Part One



Tarina Tarantino awakened this jewelry making craze in me, particularly in mould making. I’ve got so many oddities lying around that would make cute unique pieces in a necklace, brooch etc, from keychains to small figurine animals. And once you have the one mould, you can make these pieces in different colors again and again.
I got an 8oz packet of Sculpey’s Mould Making clay on Amazon. The results were...complicated.
First, I did not realize how sticky the stuff was gonna be! True, it’s gotta pick up all the intricate details on the original piece, but I panicked that conditioning it would wreck it during baking.
My assembly of mould choices consisted of a tiny clock, a butterfly, a cameo, a heeled shoe, and a mouse and hedgehog figurine. Some were easier, others way more challenging for a first time moulder. 


I wouldn’t recommend this product because of the inconsistent instructions. It seems easy to do, but during baking I was totally flabbergasted. First, the instructions say to bake 20 minutes per 1/4 in of thickness-of what? Of width? Of height? Second, they specifically warn against over baking. Out of habit I always add to the recommendations, whether it’s cooking or cutting extra seam allowance. And they certainly didn’t mention how the clay would take on that purple tinge when baked, so I had no idea if I was overdoing it, or should wait for the mould to be a consistent purple tone throughout. And finally, the instructions claim that after baking, the mould should be ‘permanent and flexible’. How the heck is that possible, those descriptions are completely opposite! When I  got the nerve to take out the smaller pieces first, after cooling off the clay did stiffen a little, but the texture was more rubbery that I’d imagined it be. 
The final verdict won’t be clear until I’ve made the polymer clay pieces themselves, but overall I’m disappointed in this product. 

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