I am so unbelievably proud of this project. It came out so amazing and I don't normally feel THIS proud of a craft. But I also know that die hard, long time, polymer clay artists are hit and miss about the application of polymer to glasses or mug. There is a risk of it coming off and so I will show you what I've done and tell you the risks as we go. YOU WILL NEED:
While I didn't list it in the supply list, I am using my trusty silicone sheet for this project. My grandmother-in-law loves cardinals, there's even a family joke about it. So I decided to make her a cardinal mug for her birthday. I printed out a coloring book page of a cardinal (a small enough size that it would fit a mug) and stuck it under my silicon mat. Since I can see it through the silicone mat I shaped my clay over top of the coloring page. I removed the coloring sheet down below it and smoothed out the clay. Then using the coloring book as a template for where the lines should be, I etched them with a toothpick. When I was happy with the way it looked I placed it on a mug and made sure it fit. Following the polymer baking instructions I set the oven to 275 and waited for it to heat up. Now, they say not to heat Polymer Clay up in the oven but when you paint mugs and glasses, they tell you to heat it in the oven before baking it. So I compromised and placed my mug in the oven when it was at 250 degrees. I don't know if it helped anything, but neither my clay nor my mug seemed to have been affected. Then I baked it for 30 mins and let it out to cool. Once it's cool you can pretty much pop it right off the mug. Then I placed it over a solo cup to paint it. This way I didn't have to worry about getting paint on the mug. When all the painting was set and I was satisfied with it I coated it in my polymer glaze and let it dry. Once the glaze is set, and looks fabulous, grab your trusty super glue. Now, THIS glue was recommended by a long time polymer user for this exact type of project. And if you search it you are likely to find others. Though even they say this is not a guaranteed hold. With projects like this hand washing is a MUST but it doesn't guarantee that the glue or paint wouldn't breakdown. And the other fear I've heard is that the heating up of a mug from the hot liquids inside it could cause the clay to expand and thus fall off. I don't know what's going to happen in that department but I think if you stress the LIGHT HAND WASHING, like I do with my hand painted glasses, that they should be fine. So, the loctite is supposed to hold it on best and you really only want to apply thin strips of it. This way it doesn't ooze out and around your clay onto the glass or mug. And after 24 hours your clay should be adhered to your mug and you can do as you please.
I just really think this came out gorgeous. It came out so wonderful that my husband's family didn't know it was handmade! My heart just soared at their delight! I definitely want to try more projects like this.
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