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To keep the baked original face from sticking to the softer raw mold clay, a release agent like powder, cornstarch or water mist can be used.
This can be baked in place and removed--IF the piece has been completely covered with the release agent. Kato Polyclay also has a product called Repel-Gel that can be used to keep raw clay pieces from sticking together while curing in the oven. The original piece can also be carefully removed prior to baking, but sometimes this results in the mold being deformed in the process. Molds for use in glass slumping can be made using polymer clay originals with a special plaster mix sold in glass supply sources such as D&L Stained Glass in Boulder CO.
One part of the silicone material set is a white compound and the other is colored. There are many brands on the market, and these are all differentiated by the color-- Miracle Mold is hot pink, another brand is blue, and one is purple, and Amazing Mold Putty is yellow. Some, like Miracle Mold are able to take very high heat, up to 600 degrees F. Amazing Mold Putty can be heated to 395 degrees F and is also rated at Food Grade, which means you can use it to make molds for gelatine, chocolates or other candies and it can also be baked as with cakes or cookie doughs. For more information about the kinds of RTV silicones and their uses, click here. All can be used for making shaped soaps, or for creating items with polymer clay. They are also extremely useful for making items using PMC (Precious Metal Clay) or Metal Art Clays. Amazing Mold Putty is the product used throughout this tutorial. (To see more about molds made with Miracle Mold and with SuperElasticlay, click here.)
One full kit was used up completely in making the molds shown here. The 2 1/2 inch face in this tutorial was cast twice so that I could have one to use and one to send to the manufacturers as part of a promotional display showing how it can be used. I also cast the front of a commercial fashion doll but will use that to create scale model jewelry displays, NOT replicas of the doll herself. That would be a violation of the doll maker's copyright. Pulls from that mold will be purposely distorted and changed, but will at least begin at the right size! In addition to these, casts were also made of a smaller face originally modeled using polymer clay to create a Japanese doll. Although the face had already been painted using acrylics, the mold making compound does not remove or otherwise damage the paint. Several of these molds are quite large; the same amount of molding compound used to makea smaller button type molds would result in quite a few more molds.
The vintage lace tore slightly when peeling it away from the hardened putty, but this is because it was old and fragile; contemporary fabrics can withstand the process easily. In this tutorial, we will start with modeling an original polymer clay
face. Click here to skip ahead to how to form the mold. Click here to see how the pulls from the mold are decorated to create pins or a doll! |
Have you ever wondered how to create and use a mold
made from a hand modeled polymer clay face? 
The original piece is lightly coated with the release
agent and the soft clay is pressed around the original.
My favorite 
Amazing Mold Putty comes in a box as shown above
left and the kit contains 2/3 pound total of the two parts.
A hand formed polymer clay rose earring was also
cast, and three texture plates were created using flattened balls of the
silicone modeling material pressed into two pieces of lace and a straw basket.