| Welcome to the flexible mold info, instructions and customer art gallery page! The Enchanted Gallery molds work best with polymer clay, or materials that do not need to be thicker than 1/4" to 1/2" (such as art doll faces, jewelry and buttons.) The deeper molds that may also work with poured materials such as resin, utee, soap etc. are shown on the lower part of the Faces & Buttons page. If you want to share images of artwork made with my molds, please email me at EnchantedGallery@gmail.com along with your name/link you'd like featured here :) |
| Soap: My molds are safe to use with soap, however none of them are large enough for entire soap bars. You can make small cameo attachments or inclusions from your poured material, but I recommend testing a mold from the faces/buttons page first since they have easily defined edges. The walls/lip of the mold will be easier to control liquid in than my uneven molds such as nature spirits.) Most of my molds are around 1/4" deep up to 1/2" deep depending on the carving it was cast from, but you may be able to build higher walls for your purpose by using a material such as clay/play-doh for a base or by adding layers of mold putty as snakes around the edges etc. Glue: If you can find black glue sticks, there is a really cool looking technique for hot glue. After your glue has cooled in the mold, pop out your design. Use a heat gun or hot blow dryer to very quickly pass over the surface (just enough to make it sticky again, not to ruin the impression.) Apply gold/colorful mixes of metal leafing by rubbing it on with your finger. The glue keeps it in place for a rainbow metallic finish and the black glue is a great background for any tiny missed areas. Resin: Usually resin comes in a two to three part system: resin, catalyst (hardener) and color (oil based inks/dye.) Follow manufacturer instructions for mixing and pour into mold. Usually resin takes 24-72 hours to set. Since molds are shaped to the item cast, you'll need to build a base to keep it level with your table. Lego blocks work well for building temporary bases. If you are making jewelry that will not be glued onto fabric for beading/other backing, and need a thicker piece entirely out of resin you may need a deeper mold than I offer. A spray sealer is often needed for resin as it sometimes cures to a slightly sticky finish. ***Using molds with PMC (Precious Metal Clay)*** PMC3, or anything in clay form, will work fine. You can use these molds the same way you would use polymer clay. Press the PMC into the mold and flex the edges to pop out your design. Do not heat the mold itself. After pressing the PMC into the mold it can be left in the mold to air dry. Overnight would be the best as the clay needs to be completely dry before firing. You can also place the mold, with the clay in it, into a dehydrator for quicker drying. The PMC can also be removed from the mold immediately if you want to shape it into curves etc before drying. PMC takes on fine details very well. The shrinkage of the clay when firing brings these details out even more. ***Using molds with Ceramic / Terra Cotta / Kiln Fired Clays*** This is really just a matter of how smooth or gritty your clay is and if it can take fine detail. I have no way of experimenting with all kinds of clay, but other than the "picking up detail" ability of your clay - there is no reason these molds wouldn't work for you. Press the clay into the mold, flex the mold to pop the clay out, and fire the clay as usual. Ceramic clay could be used (for the impression, pre-bisque firing) but I recommend the more deeply carved molds. I know that this type of clay is more gritty and wet, thus it may not able to pick up the finer details of many molds. Nature spirit carvings and button molds should work, probably not the more shallow molds such as vintage art nouveau items or simple faces. ***Tips for making flat backs on your molded artwork*** For most of my projects, pushing them mostly flat as I make the impression works well enough for me. Sometimes when I need a flatter back (say for using glue to attach a the art to a board/stiff panel) I sand the backs with wet or dry rated sandpaper under water. You could also cut away the back of the clay before you remove it from the mold by using a craft knife (the long flat ones made for polymer clay are best.) If the clay is really sticky I put it in the freezer while in the mold for about 10 minutes to make the clay firm enough for cutting. You just have to be careful not to cut too deep and damage the mold. For the long term durability of your mold, I recommend removing your polymer clay from the mold before baking, but the molds CAN be baked at temperatures up to approx. 550 degrees. You could also use hot glue, candle wax, soap, paperclay, UTEE (poured heated embossing powder), plaster and much more! This is a non-toxic mold compound made for use with the "Melting Pot" by Suze Weinberg/Ranger. The melt art pot allows you to melt wax, UTEE, chocolate, etc. Copyright notice: You may use my molds for your art for sale, published works or online galleries. You may even sell plain, ready to paint beads/cabs made with the molds, but please do NOT use your cabs to make new molds for resale. Some are my own design, commissioned carvings or antique replicas. You have permission to use my craft supplies to make anything OTHER than molds for sale, or machine reproduced images. Store Index: pg.1: The Enchanted Gallery's Rubber Stamps, pg.2: EZ Mount Cling Cushion Mounting Foam, pg. 3: All Other Stamps, pg.4: Polymer Clay & Tools, pg.5: Jewelry Making Supplies, pg. 6: KrystalKraft - Acrylic Shapes to Decorate, pg.7: Mold Making Compound, pg.8 Face & Button Molds, pg.9: Nature Spirit Molds, pg.10: Goddess & Mythology Molds, pg.11: Fairy, Angel & Mermaid Molds, pg.12: Ink, Coloring Media, Embellishments, Stencils., pg.13: Handmade Jewelry, Artwork, Gifts and Clay Face cabs, pg.14: Miniature Food, Floral Scenery & Doll House Supplies. Gallery, Tutorials & Information Index: pg.1: Shipping & Store Policy pg.2: Flexible Push Mold Info & Instructions, pg.3: Kimberly Crick's Art Gallery, pg.4: Friendly Plastic Jewelry Tutorial, pg.5: Rubber Stamped Domino Jewelry, Pg.6: Paper Art Dolls with a Template, Pg.7: Other Ways To Use Domino Size Stamps, Pg.8: Stamp Positioning With Die Cuts (Nestabilities & Cuttlebug.) Pg.9: Coloring Options (Media & Techniques.) Pg.10: Creating Miniature Food with Polymer Clay. Pg.11) Making Miniature Gardens and Doll House Scenery. Pg.12) All About Alcohol Inks - Color Charts, Ideas & Projects. Shipping/Payment Info Summary: Orders ship via USPS 1st class or Priority mail depending on weight to the United States only (policy), estimated delivery time is 7 to 14 business days. Quantities of 3 or more of the same item may delay shipping about a week, large quantity orders will receive an email within a few days to notify IF there will be any delay. Shipping info and optional insurance available here. I accept online payments only (US based credit cards/e-checks) through my PayPal shopping cart. You do not need to be a PayPal member to pay with my secure shopping cart system. (After you click "proceed to checkout" on the cart page just click the "Don't have a PayPal account? Use your credit card or bank account" link to the left of the PayPal log in box.) All orders over $100 ship free! My "Angel Company Policy" applies to The Enchanted Gallery's exclusive rubber stamps and molds only. For other rubber stamps, check with the manufacturer for their individual company's copyright policies. Comments/Questions? Check Q&A before you Email: EnchantedGallery@gmail.com - Want to know what's new? Check blog updates! |
| Made from UTEE (Poured embossing powder in a melt art pot) heat set ink and rub n' buff metallics. |
| Click the image below to check out Karol's Etsy shop at venvysboutique.etsy.com |
| ***How to use flexible molds with POLYMER CLAY, air dry clays or Paper Clay.*** With these flexible molds you can skip the "release agent" used in hard molds (usually corn starch or water to prevent clay from sticking to the mold.) You can use any fine-particle clay such as polymer clay (I have used both sculpey and premo brands which give great detail. For functional button making try a stronger clay such as Cernit. I've also had good luck with Paperclay or the air-dry polymer "Makin's Clay" if you'd prefer to avoid the baking step. Roll it into a ball roughly the size of your mold. As a softened/hand-warmed ball, press the clay into the mold firmly, creating a flat back as you fill the mold. Some molds have odd shapes that are difficult for beginners, but you can overflow the edges and trim with a craft knife. If your clay is really sticky or so warm that it warps the image when you try to remove it, just place the mold (with the clay in it) in your freezer for 10 minutes while your clay becomes more firm. Flex the edges of your mold and the clay should pop right out. I recommend getting an inexpensive toaster oven (I got mine at Target for about $20) to bake your clay. A plain ceramic tile is a wonderful surface to bake your clay on (try Home Depot) which distributes heat more evenly than metal trays. I prefer not to use the same oven I cook food in, since clay fumes can leave residue in your oven and is not healthy. Toaster ovens also allow for better temperature control and visual monitoring. |
| ***Tips on painting, coloring and bringing out the details of your polymer clay cabs*** Before you bake your clay: A toothpick or needle can be your best friend! If your mold lacks details such as defined eyes, mouth , nostrils, etc. don't be afraid to make them more pronounced. Even add new lines or fancy designs to your cab, never let your mold limit your creativity! I love using perfect pearls metallic mica powders. You can use a fluffy paint brush to dust your clay cab, however you get a lot more detail on intricate designs if you lightly coat the tip of your finger with the powder. Dab powder gently onto your cab's raised areas and allow the dark clay crevices to show through. After baking your clay: If you are working with a clay color that you would like to completely cover up, I recommend using a quality acrylic paint. If you have a lot of time you can use multiple colors to fill in each detail. Usually I just use one color (like the gold Lumiere brand paint shown above.) Then, to add a glossy protective finish, you can use a wide variety of sealers such as DuraClear Varnish (by Deco Art), Multi Purpose Sealer, Mod Podge, Polycrylic or Sculpey glaze. To add a color tint to your sealer add a drop of acrylic paint or stamping inks. Sculpey glaze, like most other clear drying sealers, can be mixed with any color acrylic paint you want and will settle into the deeper areas of your cabs, doing your highlighting job for you. When you want to preserve a metallic powder finish just spray with acrylic sealer such as Krylon's Clear Gloss UV-Resistant acrylic coating in a spray can. |
| I ship within the USA only. All orders over $100 ship free! More info: Shipping & Store Policy, Tutorials & Gallery, Home, Artist Q&A |
| The following images are customer art examples of how you can paint your molded clay to make your own personalized work of art. (Click an image to check out that artist's website or ebay shop.) |
| The mold depth is limited to 1/4" to 1/2" deep (depending on the carving it was cast from.) If I try to build higher than the master cast the compound would set inwards (a lip that would not be upward, but folded in where the edge ended) blocking the impression. This would make removing your material, especially for people using clay or other unhardened media unable to remove the art without warping the edges. Because of this, my molds have low edges. There may be some difficulty using liquid/poured materials that need to be thicker than 1/4" without leaking out of the sides. |
| POURED materials (Utee, Wax, Soap, Hot Glue etc.) You will need to set up your mold to lay flat. Since most molds have rounded backs, they will not stand even on their own. Simple cup bases can be made from anything, such as lego blocks or scrap paper, but I would use play-doh, silly putty or other bubble-gum textured material to easily make bases for the molds that fit their shape. You could also build higher walls for your molds if you need to pour your material thicker than your mold is. I recommend trying some of the round shaped faces and buttons molds first to experiment with, since they have more easily defined edges than my Goddess/Nature Spirit carving molds. You can also create your own molds from my mold compound or heal a damaged mold with Mold N Pour (it's self- healing - sticks to itself) here. Utee: You'll have to pour already heated embossing powder into the mold. Don't try to heat the powder inside the mold with a heat gun. Use a melting pot such as the "melt art pot" by Suze Weinberg / Ranger Ink. After your cast has cooled a simple way to bring out the details is to gently rub metallic paint over the surface (Rub 'n Buff brand metallic finishes in small tubes work best.) |