Paper casting

Making Paper Casting Molds

Using Brass Charms And Polymer Clay

     The first type of mold you can make with our brass charms is made of "SCULPY". You can buy it at a craft store, if you have a decent one near you. This is a polymer clay that must be baked in the oven. Roll out a slab of sculpy about a quarter inch thick. The size of the slab will be determined by the number of charms you want to use. My small molds are about 2 inches across, they have 1 to 6 charms in them, it depends on the size of the charm. After you have the slab rolled out, dust the slab with baby powder or corn starch, a soft brush such as a make-up brush works well for this. Also dust the face ( the POSITIVE side ) of the charm with the powder. Press the charm into the sculpy to make the impression. Remove the charm carefully so as not to mess up your image. If you are having trouble getting the charm out because your sculpy is too soft, stick it in the freezer for about 10-15 minutes to stiffen it up. Repeat this with as many charms as you want to have in your mold. You can do a collage, or scenes, or just a single image. It takes a little practice to make the molds, if you don't like the way it looks, squish it up and start over. After you have your mold the way you want it, bake it according to the directions on the package. YOU MUST USE AN OVEN THERMOMETER WHILE BAKING SCULPY.

     After your mold has been baked, to use it for paper casting dust the mold with baby powder or "PEARL-EX POWDER" , blop on your paper pulp, sponge out the excess water and let dry overnight. When the casting is completely dry, it will pop right out.
 
Sculpy Mold Made With Charm

Paper Casting Made With Sculpy Mold And Tissues 

Dragonfly Charm

    The second type of mold we will use is one using the back of the charm itself. Select any charm with detail & depth (see example).  Brush some baby powder or pearlex powder into the BACK of the charm, blop on your pulp, sponge out the excess water, let dry completely. When the casting is completely dry, it will pop right out. 

Charm 2105  Used As Mold

Paper Casting Made From Charm Mold 2105

This is the recipe for simple paper pulp:

Take about 15 regular tissues ( they come in several colors), tear them up into small pieces , put them in a blender, fill the blender half full of water, blend until the paper is a pulpy consistency (about a minute). Store the pulp in a plastic container with a lid, in the refrigerator. I've kept mine several months this way. I usually mix up several different colors at a time. When you want to use it, scoop out some pulp with a small strainer and blop it onto your mold.

                                            
QUICK GUIDE TO PAPER CASTING:

1 Easy Paper Pulp; 15 tissues torn up. Put in blender, fill blender halfway with water,blend for 1 minute or till pulpy

2 Dust your mold (either your sculpy mold or your charm mold) with baby powder or "Pearl-ex" powder.

3 Scoop out some pulp with a small strainer.

4 Blop the pulp onto your powdered mold.

5 Sponge out the excess water by pressing down on the wet pulp. Let dry completely.

QUICK GUIDE TO MOLD MAKING WITH SCULPY:

1 Knead sculpy till soft. Roll out into a slab about 1/4" thick.

2 Dust the slab with baby powder or corn starch.

3 Dust the front (or top, or right side or whatever you want to call it!) of your charm, and press into the slab of sculpy.

4 Carefully lift the charm out. If it is sticking, or the sculpy is too soft, put the whole thing in the freezer for 15 minutes to stiffen it up. Repeat the process with as many charms as you want.

5 Bake the mold according to the directions on the sculpy package.