STEP 7: Fixing your polymer clay papercasting mold

Every mold is going to have some imperfections - until you look at a casting you can't tell which ones matter. Sometimes dents or bumps in the mold do't show at all in the casting, sometimes they show a lot but are hard to find on the mold.
The most serious defects are those that keep the casting from coming out cleanly (or at all). You should take your test casting and hold it next to the mold to figure out what changes are needed. You may have to look closely to tell if a rough part of the casting was due to the mold or simply didn't have enough pulp in it. An Optivisor or reading glasses can be helpful.

Where a bit of pulp stuck, you may have packed it in too tightly or you may have roughness or undercutting that is grabbing the paper.

There are two main ways to fix; scraping away and adding clay.
If there are bumps or rough areas, you can gently and gradually scrape with the x-acto knife, being careful not to scratch up your smooth surfaces with the tip. If you have done some real undercutting, you may want to scrape away the top that overhangs, but more likely you will want to add in clay. Roll tiny snakes of softened clay, smash them down in with your clay shaper, smooth away the excess with the clay shaper or other ceramic tools. If you add clay you will need to bake again, but if it is tiny bits you may only need 5-120 minutes. You can keep test casting and improving, but making too many times can really add to air bubble bumps.

If there is part of the mold that you cut wrong or just don't like, it is possible to fill it in with clay and cut/impress anew - what tools depend on whether you are working the baked or unbaked parts. You can carve into baked clay but be careful, you can chip off pieces you didn't mean to. Liquid Sculpey can be used to fill in or smooth a lower part of a mold for major repair (like when you cut a part through too many layers in a multi-layered project)

If parts of the design are too tight or narrow and it was hard to get pulp in or out, you can open up shapes without changing the design much by gently scraping more of a "V" shape, widening the top but being careful not to cut into the bottom layer. You can also cut or scrape along edges to make your letters or pattern more even or more bold.

If pieces of the mold (counters in your letters usually) came off into the casting, you might have left waxed paper under them. This rarely happens if you make sure it is cleaned off and use some Sculpey diluent/softener under small pieces. Sometimes after long use things will break off. You can reattach - the best way I've found is using a tiny bit of superglue gel. You can use a bit of clay and rebake, use E6000 or jewelry glue, even a gluestick for temporary (one-time) fix.

Feel free to send me close-up photos and ask for advice in fixing problems in your mold.

It may be that you like it just fine-- after all, this is hand-made art, so as long as the casting comes out, you might not want to do anything else to it - and often practice in filling the mold is the best way to get a sharper casting.

Remember, I'd be happy to come teach you in person, we'd do several small projects to "get the hang of it" and learn various techniques, then prepare designs and do a larger, individualized project.

Paper Cast Certificate of Appreciation

cast paper certificate, hand done in a mold carved by the lettering artist in polymer clay

Recently I completed three more castings for the Missouri Hospital Association. A few years ago they requested some form of certificate that could be reproduced and have the names and dates filled in as necessary. Making a calligraphic papercasting mold gave them something really unique that their retirees have enjoyed receiving. Some day I'll have to see if I can go back and figure out how many I have done altogether.

this calligraphic papercasting shows raised lettering as well as opposite "indented" letters) cast with cotton linters in a polymer clay mold

     I usually don't write on a cast surface, it is not friendly to writing. I have not yet figured out a good way to be able to write with pen and ink, so I have to use a pointed brush to fill in letters transferred on from pen-designed rough drafts, using acrylic ink after spraying with fixative to help seal. I do enjoy making each name different, using whatever style seems to work well for the length of the name in the available space, as well as looking good with the particular combination of letters.

learn papercasting through tutorials on this blog

     So far the mold has lasted quite well, though occasionally I have to repair small bits. It gets tricky when there are extra words and dates because they have to be quite small, but I have gotten plenty of experience making the castings and now they always come out quite crisp. I keep my eye out for various decorative textured papers or mats for mounting them on, even though it doesn't show very much. I tired other colors but the gold works well -  including the way it shows up differently if different light similar to the way the cast letters show up according the available light.
    So, if you want one, just get onto the board of trustees.................... or learn to make your own castings through the tutorials on this blog :) or through workshops for your group or guild.

STEP 6: Making your PaperCasting

Okay, those of you who have stuck with it to this point should have:
-planned your design (for your first try it could be something very small and simple)
-conditioned and rolled your clay (if your design is not small, there's also a post on joining strips of clay)
-transferred the design onto the clay
-cut, backed, and baked your mold
(if not, click on the links and go for it!)

Hooray! you are ready to make your test casting. There's a lot of detail here for those who really want a crisp, top-quality casting - you can just plop in some pulp and sponge the water out and see how it turns out if you aren't picky or want a rough look - but you won't be able to tell what defects you might have in the mold.

First you make some pulp. You will need a blender, a strainer, plastic tubs/bowls, cotton linter or paper, methycellulose optional. For filling your mold you will need flat toothpicks, clean flat sponge, thin terrycloth towel.This will not hurt your blender nor make it toxic. (Rinse or wash new sponges - sometimes the color bleeds)

I like to use cotton linters from Twinrocker but you can use other cotton linter, or cheap watercolor paper from a pad from the crafts store, or good paper scraps from your friendly print- or book-maker --- or just about any paper in a pinch but I really think you will be happier with something nice, like a good pure cotton. You will get good detail and no discoloration over time. You won't get a crisp result with paper towels, toilet paper, etc. I'd use copy paper quality at least.

Your first casting is your test casting to see how the mold works, so using pure white will make that easier - it helps you see detail.

Using additives is optional but I learned that I get the best results with a little methycellulose to help all elements of the casting adhere better. You must add it while the water is moving, using the hole in the lid of the blender. It takes less than half of a 1/4 tsp. measure for one blenderful of water. Some papermakers add a little PVA (white glue - teaspoon per blenderful maybe)

If you use sheets of cotton linter, you will need a piece a little larger than your casting mold.  Don't worry about making too much as it's easy to save for another time.

Fill the blender with water, start it blending and gradually pour in a small amount of methycellulose if you have it. While it blends, put the lid on the methylcellulose jar and then put center plug back in the lid of the blender, and by then it will have blended enough.
Tear up the linter sheet into pieces about 1" and drop in. It takes a little experience to tell how much - probably not over about 6x7 inches total. If you are using paper instead of linter, it helps to let it soak a while. Blend until you feel it is pretty evenly soupy - maybe a minute. Pour into a strainer over a bowl or plastic container and shake around a bit until some of the water is out and it's a very wet lump. Dump into another container. You can put the water back in the blender and add more linter and blend again.

Set your mold in front of you, have some flat toothpicks (not round pointy ones), a clean flat sponge, and a fairly thin terry towel handy. Unless there are no narrow or deep parts to your mold, you will probably have to "toothpick" it to ensure a really crisp casting. This is done by taking a small blob of pulp and setting it near the part you are working on, teasing a little bit into a shape similar to the hole and putting it in. You can use fingernails for really tight bits, but mostly the toothpick works well to tamp it down in. Make sure you get pulp into all the corners and don't feel the hard clay of the mold when you push down with the toothpick. It takes a little practice but you can tell by feel and sometimes by look whether you have enough pulp in. You don't want it hard, just somewhat firm with no holes where the clay is not well covered. If your backing is colored, you shouldn't see the color through the pulp. Note: We are still filling only the holes or depressions in your mold. Sponge off excess water and push pulp all down in.

When you feel you have gotten all the depressions filled and sponged off to check, you will cover the whole mold with blobs of pulp. After initial "patting" down to make the blobs spread to cover it all, you should have it more than 1/4 inch thick all over.
You will need to gently slap it with the flat of your hand - you should hear "slap" and see some water flying. Think patting someone's cheek. Keep pushing it back in toward the middle from around the edges so it is within your borderlines or near your raised or lowered edging. You should slap it for some time until it becomes a cohesive sheet - you will tell a difference. Turn it so you are slapping from different directions. This takes a couple of minutes or so. If it just won't smooth out, you have gotten it too dry. All pulp put into or on the mold should be pretty wet. You should need to sponge up puddles underneath the mold now and then.

When you think it is smooth and cohesive, make sure it is all in close or within the edge you want, then make the "deckle" by using your fingertips to tap the outer edge until it is very thin, you should see the clay through it. If you see clay anywhere else though, add more wet pulp.
Check the evenness of your edges and then start sponging water out. Lay the sponge down and gently press, allow to come back up and suck out water. Squeeze it out into your container and move to a new spot. Now is the time your deckle "sets" so check it closely -- if you need to add pulp, make it very wet and pat into place. You can gently pull back  if the pulp is too close or going off the edge.
When you are happy with your edge, continue sponging until you can't get much of any water out any more.

Now you "towel". Lay your  towel on top of the pulp and press with fairly flat fingers all over your mold. Lift up, move to a dry part of towel and do it again.Now turn the mold, move the towel, and press more. Keep towel-pressing until it's hardly damp. You should be feeling depressions in the mold and see some of them and have a firm surface. If your fingers aren't tired you probably haven't done enough, especially if the mold is large.

If you are anxious to see it, lean the mold near moving air from a vent. I usually keep a stiff cardboard (or a tile) underneath as the clay will sag. A small fan is OK but often the edges will dry too fast and start to warp - you can put weight on the corners to help flatten while the rest dries. Do not try to take out your casting until it is quite thoroughly dry or the letters may stay in while the backing comes off!. I always allow at least overnight to dry unless there's a good reason to speed things up.

To remove the casting use something like a butterknife or letter opener to slip under the edges and work your way around and around, gently working it up.If it seems to stick, take your time, keep oging aroudn coaxing gently.. If bits do stay in the mold you can get them out with a pin and glue on with with PVA.

Other problems will be addressed in "Fixing and Refining Your Mold" to follow.
Feel free to send questions!

This is much easier to demo than to write about, you can get personal help and learn many variations on these basic techniques by having a workshop in your area.
Or, stay tuned for information about online classes where we will go step by step through several projects with feedback - not as fun as live workshops but it won't matter where you are, and there will be a "group" to experience it with.

STEP 3: (or maybe 1!) Choosing or adapting designs for paper casting

Basically, there are a few "rules of thumb":
Simple, clean lines usually work best.
Things look smaller and farther apart in the casting - (make elements bolder/heavier and closer together than you might usually do on paper)
Sufficient depth is needed for the design to show up if viewed from any distance --narrow and deep molds can look good because they give good shadows, but they are difficult and labor-intensive to cast well.

a very popular casting, but do you want to spend several hours putting pulp into crevices with a toothpick?

There are several other things you might consider when choosing or working out a design for making a casting mold such as:
size, eventual use, difficulty (of cutting mold and of making a casting), legibility (this could mean "reading" or being able to see a design that's not lettering as well), as well as method of mold making (cutting vs.impressing or carving, etc.

Size:
Polymer clay molds can hold the tiniest details, but that doesn't mean they will be visible from a distance. If you are doing a card that will be held in the hand you can go small and detailed, but for wall art, you want to make sure it will not look like an empty frame hanging there. And very small things are not only hard to cut as a mold but are difficult to put pulp into when casting. However, you can successfully make impressed letters or designs very small -
When I teach beginning classes, I ask the students bring designs where the lettering (x-height) is not less than 1/2 inch high, preferably without hairlines or serifs. If you want it to be readable on a wall and easy to mold, you will need the clay layers about as thick as a matboard and your smallest design elements should be no smaller than that thickness.
Since the easiest method for transferring the design starts with a photocopy, make several in varying sizes so you can do some last-minutes adjusting, maybe even cutting and pasting elements from various sizes.

You will also have to consider the size of the oven. If you are being safe with a dedicated toaster oven, your mold does have to fit in it. Often an 8x10 tile fits well for baking on so this would be your maximum mold size including extra around the edges for making your lovely deckle, making the maximum design size more like 5x7".

these are samples I bring for beginning classes to try out their first mold

If you are going bigger, you can use baking sheets, cardboard, even masonite to bake molds on.

The height of the taller sides are the width of my oven, baked on masonite pieces

Use:
As mentioned above, you can go small if the item is something hand-held like a card or a book. You can make letter stamps from clay or do tiny writing by using the Clay Shaper to impress letters.You might be able to call attention to a wall piece with large letters or designs and have some smaller elements to discover as people come closer. Of course, the lighting where someone views it is going to make a big difference and you may or may not have control over that.

This one is easy to cast but harder to see,  I remade it in a smaller size to use as a card

Difficulty:
You will also want to consider how much time and effort you are willing to put into making castings. One of my most popular castings is also the hardest to cast (see second photo above), taking as long as three or four hours to make sure pulp is down in all the crevices and that colors are in the right places. This is not really a lot of fun and you are unlikely to sell them for enough money to make your time worthwhile (unless may you live in New York?). On the other hand, perhaps you only want to make one for yourself and many hours of work is not a problem.

Straight lines are good. Sometimes you can simplify just by cutting off serifs or other tiny details. Stencil designs are helpful to look at, they are usually bold and simple

As mentioned above, you will have trouble cutting if the width of the letter stroke (or design element) is less than the thickness of your clay layer. The simpler the design and the wider the area cut, the easier it will be to cast. Impressed letters, especially small ones, are fast and easy to cast.

This student project is very crisp and clear and will be fairly easy to cast. Below it is a test casting of small impressed lettering across the bottom - a small trial mold was made and baked and cast.

 Sometimes complications in the mold do not make it hard later, such as the multi-layered NOEL which was very tricky to figure out and cut, but is fairly easy to cast.

paper cast Noel from polymer clay mold

the planning for NOEL, second and third try

You can also make casting easier if you open up narrow areas by making it more of a wide "V" cut so the pulp can get in and out more easily. This can be done after the mold is baked and a test casting made,  by scraping gently with your x-acto.

Legibility:
If no one can read the words or figure out the design it doesn't matter how well you cut the mold or cast it. It is the shadows that really show up, or the contrast between the highest white and the cast shadow. So some things can work with the letters going down and some won't. Here is an example of a design done two ways to see which would work best (lettering "up" or "down"):

Its even more obvious in person, but the one on the right is so much more legible! In both cases the backing layer was textured, which puts the texture on the top part of the casting.

And this is one that I never fixed or cast after the test because I was thinking that having "darkness" going down would make it darker but it was lighter because of less shadow. (If I were going to use this mold I would rub clay into the name at the bottom and bake a little and redo.)

you can learn from my mistakes!

Here's one where having the letters "going down" works just fine-

This is a tiny one, used as an ornament or on cards.

 Method:
Multiple layers make it possible to have smaller and larger lettering or more complicated designs (just keep adding "backing") - the "windows" one above that I didn't like has three layers of depth plus "added on" words for the ones that go down in the casting.
If you want to impress instead of cut, you can make your own alphabet stamps of Premo, bake them, and use talcum to make sure you can get them out of the soft clay when pushed in-

Paper Cast Book using alphabet stamps made from polymer clay

 these letters can still take some care to cast if you want them really clean and sharp.

Here's a mold with letters impressed with a coffee stirrer stick pushed down around the outside of the letters. These are very quick and easy to cast and dry quickly, good for making lots of cards

The design came from a Christmas card done previously - original in pencil

Baked or unbaked clay can be carved with carving tools.

A workshop participant in Salt Lake City combined cutting and linoleum and other tools

Of course, methods can be combined in one piece.

Last but not least, all designs will benefit from having a borderline around them. Make it tighter in than you would think. Even if you don't use it to cut a raised or lowered border, you will need it to help make your deckle edge symmetrical - or as a guide to change where you put your deckle if the test casting shows its too near or far.

So, once you have the design chosen and its size worked out, you can decide how to prepare your clay (allow extra space around the edges, make layers thin if you are going to cut through more than one), transfer your design, and cut your mold. and bake.

Congratulations! next comes making your test casting.

 Feel free to send design ideas for help and comment. (joan@letterdesignstudio.com)
and don't forget, I love to come and teach this in person- I'm better at explaining and problem-solving  in real life than I am at writing.

Silk Fusion is Fun (not to mention gorgeous)

Here are a few notes and photos from an all-day silk fusion workshop. It is in the process (like papercasting) of being made into an online course through the LinkedIn group FAMM (fiber and mixed media). They will be six-week courses with step-by-step lessons in a forum where you can post photos, ask questions, etc. Most likely I will post all the lessons at once so you can move faster if you like.
 Of course, I'm always happy to travel to teach, as well.

Silk Workshop in  Jefferson City MO

Meanwhile, here in Jefferson City, a great group of ladies managed to complete five different projects in a day. This let them experience various ways you can make and use silk fusion (it's like paper, and sort of like fabric, but technically not either one).
They made a sheet of it big enough to sew and embellish as a small purse (or for a wall hanging or other uses), and a sculpted bowl, two or three or four or five pins (brooches), a couple of ornaments (or earrings!), and put silk designs behind a glass plate. Whew! no wonder I'm worn out!

laying down fibers for silk fusion at the Art Bazaar

Here's a participant laying out silk fibers on nylon net to make a sculpted bowl.
After two or three layers, more netting or tulle is put on top.

making silk "paper" or fusion

The silk has to be wet down with soapy water to break the resistance to absorption

silk fusion being made in Jefferson City MO

Here's a shallow bowl nearly dry, she was looking to make it like wood and decided maybe the silk ended up more like leather, but we all loved it however you describe it.

silk fiber bowl

Here are a few of the pins

silk fusion pins drying

silk fusion pin being created

and a pin being created by "smooshing" the fiber "bat" into a mold.

Silk fusion can be sewn on, painted, cut and glued or sewn together, worn or hung on a wall or made into masks or flowers or pins or collars or cards..... I recommend the book "Take Silk" if you'd like to learn more. For other examples of fusion, like covered frames, mosiacs, etc, go to "fiberscribe"  gallery on the website.

I'm hoping some of the participants will share their finished products when everything dries and gets embellished with wires and beads and whatever else this creative group is likely to come up with.
If you feel you missed out, there will be another Art Bazaar silk fusion class in the fall, you can get on the list now to be notified when it gets closer.

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