Later, she found a special polishing paper that gives superior results and can be used either in bits like sandpaper for irregular pieces or to line the inner surface of the tumbler for beads. Several manufacturers of polymer clays also make gloss and matte glazes. These are brush-on finishes that dry in about an hour.
Some glazes are water-based; try to avoid these, since they have a tendency to peel over time, particularly in jewelry or other pieces that have to withstand a lot of friction.
Another glaze that can be used is Future floor polish. This is actually an acrylic coating that works well on polymer clay. It is very thin, so to get the best shine, you need to sand and buff your pieces smooth before using it.
When used on unsanded clay, it produces a finish more like matte glaze. You can also dip pieces in Future for a heavily-coated, very shiny look. Be careful to rotate the piece back and forth a few times after dipping to get rid of the excess. This is a lacquer found in hardware stores, in the area with the wood stains and finishes. It comes in satin matte , semi-gloss, and gloss finishes. A piece with Flecto on it can be re-fired for a stronger glaze.
Flecto will also bend and flex without peeling - an important consideration if you're using a flexible clay in thin sheets. Both Flecto and Future are much less expensive in quantity than the polymer-clay manufacturers' glazes. Since they come in large containers, you may want to put some into a smaller container for your workspace to make it more manageable. This is the other caveat to sanding polymer clay.
You can buff out the scratches quite a bit if you have enough patience and the right tools, but it will still slightly discolor your clay. The sanded areas are usually lighter in color. I like to start by dipping my lowest grit of sandpaper into my bowl of water. Wet sanding polymer clay is good because it prevents the clay dust from dispersing into the air and into your lungs.
Dip the sandpaper into the water as needed, making sure it stays wet throughout the process. You will get water everywhere, so having paper towels nearby and under your work area will help contain the mess. For my own process, this is enough to get rid of unwanted textures and dust but not leave scratches that show through my glaze. I recommend experimenting on test pieces to find what works best for you and your materials.
Dab the water off of your piece to see how everything is looking, and if you are happy with how it looks at this point, you can move on to step 3. In my case, I would work from to to to Skipping too many levels of grit will make your sanding much less effective, so working from one to the next will give you the best possible finish. You can even go higher than grit.
This also gives you the chance to give it one more look to see if you missed any spots. Using the paper towel, pat it dry. You think that because you're moving slowly up the scale in numbers, you're going to get the very best results, but actually, by using P, you'll be undoing all the work you did with the CAMI grit paper! This is not only wasteful, but it can also mar the finish of your clay. Keep this in mind when purchasing and using sandpaper. There are links to sandpaper grit comparison charts below.
Home Contact Us. Related Pages. Though it is not necessary to sand your cured polymer clay creations-in fact, sometimes you may want to leave things just as they are-sanding is certainly part of the process for many polymer clay artists and hobbyists. The following are few general guidelines for sanding polymer clay:.
Use multiple grits properly. Understand sandpaper grit scales. Sand with water. Some people say that soaking your sandpaper for five minutes before beginning to sand will prolong the life of the paper. You may sand under running or trickling water or in a shallow bowl of water. Some people like to add a drop or two of liquid soap to their sanding water to make it a little "slippery" and to facilitate moving the sandpaper over the clay.
It is not necessary that you submerge the clay and paper the entire time, but you'll want to dip them down into the water frequently to prevent the paper from becoming clogged with residue.
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