Texture Stamps, Texture Tiles, Texture Plates, Texture Sheets are all terms used to describe the same thing. An item used to apply a texture to polymer clay. 2wards Polymer Clay have a large selection chosen for their ability to be used with polymer clay.  However, they can also be used with many other materials and media.  A stamp is not just a stamp in the polymer world!  A stamp is also used to add surface texture and for mokume gane, hidden magic, faux dichroic, sutton slice & mica shift techniques.

There is certainly lots of fun to be had with textures. Easy, quick, impressive results are a winner for all!

How to Use Texture Stamps, Texture Tiles, Texture Plates & Texture Sheets

Impressing of textures:

Place a square of conditioned polymer clay on a piece of baking paper. Place the texture stamp on the clay. Press all over with the fingers without moving the stamp. Place a sheet of acrylic on top and roll thoroughly with a brayer or acrylic roller. Remove the acrylic sheet and roll again with the acrylic roller. Lift just a corner at first to check it is fully impressed. Once the pattern is completely embedded, peel off the stamp and see the pattern appear!

Adding Powders:

For a very impressive result, texture clay and using a finger tip or applicator sponge, apply Pearl Ex Mica powder, Cernit Sparkling or Lumiere Lusters to the raised areas of the pattern.  Or, another variation on this method is to apply a second layer of Pearl Ex or Cernit Sparkling using a paint brush. The first layer will retain it’s original colour while the second layer fills the hollows creating a background colour and a stunning effect.

Sutton Slice:

Using small pieces of conditioned clay, fill the hollows in the texture stamp, pressing in well. Then use a flexible blade to remove the excess clay by cutting the clay level with the top of the stamp. Slice a small area off at a time. Do not use a rigid blade to avoid damaging your plate.

Once you have carefully removed the excess clay, place a sheet of clay over the stamp. Turn everything over (so the plate is on the top) and place onto a layer of baking paper. Press firmly and evenly on the stamp so that both layers of clay adhere. Use the same method for impressing (as described above). Gently remove the stamp making sure everything is well adhered. The result is unique: the entire design of the plate is coloured in!

Mica shift:

Condition Cernit, Metallic, Glamour or Shiny clay (any clay that is heavily mica laden works). The next step is essential. Roll the clay through a pasta machine twenty times, always in the same direction. Thus, all the mica or glitter will be oriented in the same direction. Place the texture stamp on the clay as instructed above for Impressing Textures and press firmly to embed each detail of the design into the clay. Remove the texture sheet. Use a flexible blade to gradually remove the raised area on the clay. You will see the pattern remains due to the alignment of the mica or glitter by the pasta machine. To make the pattern stand out, pass the roller over the clay to smooth the surface completely.

Tip: To assist with releasing the clay from the plate, put a little talc on the plate.

Size: The texture plates are 9 cm squares.

To clean them, just use a little soap and water or a stamp cleaner which helps keep them conditioned.