Renaissance Wax For Finishing Polymer Clay
Video #358: This microcrystalline polish was originally formulated at the British Museum in the 1950’s.
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IN THIS POST: — renaissance wax — wax — polishing — buffing — shiny — (Topics marked with an asterisk* are discussed in the Comments Section below).
Topics Covered In This Video:
- Why I love Renaissance Wax so much. In fact, in this video, it kind of left me speechless for a second!
- Examples of Waxed and Un-Waxed Dragonfly Beads… Not Butterfly Beads like I said a few times in the video, despite fully knowing the difference between butterflies and dragonflies :)
- Types of projects that benefit from using a finish, such as Renaissance Wax, over that of other types of glazes and finishes.
- Overview of what Renaissance Wax is, where it is made and the many ways in can be used. It is commonly found at high-end museums for protecting just about everything!
- Seemingly expensive up front… but not so in the long run because a just little goes a very long way.
- I purchased Mine at Otto Frei online, but you can also find it at Polymer Clay Express and on Amazon.
- I show you how simple and easy it is to apply and the gorgeous glossy finish it creates.
Would you use Renaissance Wax on your polymer clay pieces, or would you prefer to use a liquid? And are you willing to pay $15 or so for a small container?
I look forward to hearing from you.
00:00:04 –> 00:00:09 Hi guys, its Cindy Lietz, your Polymer Clay Tutor, and today’s studio tip is Renaissance
00:00:09 –> 00:00:10 Wax.
00:00:10 –> 00:00:17 Now this is a new product that I am currently in love with, it’s probably my favorite finish
00:00:17 –> 00:00:22 for getting a shiny glossy look on Polymer Clay.
00:00:22 –> 00:00:30 Now, the reason why I love it is that it’s easy to apply, it gets a nice beautiful gloss
00:00:30 –> 00:00:39 and it’s just…it’s just so easy, there’s no drips, there’s no wait time, there’s no
00:00:39 –> 00:00:44 dry time, there’s… it’s just easy to work with and beautiful finish.
00:00:44 –> 00:00:49 Now let me just show you what it looks like on some little butterfly beads.
00:00:49 –> 00:00:55 Now here is a little butterfly bead that I’ve put the wax on, and you can see it’s just
00:00:55 –> 00:01:00 gleamy and shiny and beautiful.
00:01:00 –> 00:01:08 I’ll show you the difference between…here’s one here where I’ve put the wax on one side
00:01:08 –> 00:01:13 and I didn’t put the wax on this side, and you can see this side is quite matte finished;
00:01:13 –> 00:01:19 that’s how it came out of the oven, and on this side, it’s all shiny and glossy.
00:01:19 –> 00:01:25 Now sometimes you know… like…you know that I already…I love to sand and buff things
00:01:25 –> 00:01:31 to a high shine and not even put a finish on, but on projects like this, on these little
00:01:31 –> 00:01:36 beads where you’ve got a lot of sculpture and especially anything that has a finish
00:01:36 –> 00:01:44 on it like Gold Leaf or Silver Leaf or PearlEx Powder or something like that, where you can’t
00:01:44 –> 00:01:51 sand it, or it’s difficult to sand, it is great to put a finish on it to protect it
00:01:51 –> 00:01:52 or give it a nice, shiny look.
00:01:52 –> 00:01:59 But there’s so many different finishes out there, and I am really starting to find that
00:01:59 –> 00:02:05 most of the liquids are more hassle than they are benefit.
00:02:05 –> 00:02:12 A wax like this, now this is a specialty wax, it’s made in England actually, and it was
00:02:12 –> 00:02:17 designed for the galleries to use.
00:02:17 –> 00:02:25 Now it’s a UV protector, you can put it on absolutely any finish, and without harming
00:02:25 –> 00:02:26 it.
00:02:26 –> 00:02:34 You can put it on paintings and that’s what they do in galleries, they put it on wood,
00:02:34 –> 00:02:44 plastics, fabrics, paper, they’ve even used Renaissance Wax for things like really precious
00:02:44 –> 00:02:51 photographs that they’re worried about breaking down by UV light.
00:02:51 –> 00:02:56 You can put this wax onto anything you’re worried about getting fingerprints on, or
00:02:56 –> 00:03:01 oils, or it works beautifully on metals, so you can put it on like a Copper pot or Copper
00:03:01 –> 00:03:09 jewelry and it won’t tarnish, you can use it on steel and it won’t rust, it’s just an
00:03:09 –> 00:03:10 amazing product.
00:03:10 –> 00:03:18 And it says it’s a micro crystalline wax, and it comes in a little tub, I believe you
00:03:18 –> 00:03:25 can buy great big giant tubs of it, it’s relatively expensive, but not in the long run, it’s about
00:03:25 –> 00:03:26 $16 or so.
00:03:26 –> 00:03:31 I bought mine at Otto Frei, or Frai, I’m not sure how you pronounce that, but you can also
00:03:31 –> 00:03:37 get it at places like Polymer Clay Express and other places online.
00:03:37 –> 00:03:43 It comes with this little pamphlet that just talks about the wonders of it and how it’s
00:03:43 –> 00:03:50 used, and where it was designed and everything, it’s just a really neat product, but it’s
00:03:50 –> 00:03:52 super easy to use.
00:03:52 –> 00:04:00 So I’ll just show you on this little dragonfly bead where I didn’t coat these 2 wings here,
00:04:00 –> 00:04:06 and you can just use a soft cloth or a piece of paper towel, and you just wipe it on, and
00:04:06 –> 00:04:11 like I said, it seems expensive for a little container, but it goes forever and ever and
00:04:11 –> 00:04:15 ever and ever, so in the long run it’s not expensive at all.
00:04:15 –> 00:04:22 So I just got a little bit onto my towel here, paper towel, and you just wipe it on, and
00:04:22 –> 00:04:35 it dries really quickly, it makes a very hard clear surface that dries really quickly, and
00:04:35 –> 00:04:41 you just can wipe it on, it works beautifully on, you know…surfaces like this that are
00:04:41 –> 00:04:46 kinda tricky to get a nice glaze on.
00:04:46 –> 00:04:55 Then you just let it dry for a minute or so, and then you can just buff it right up, and
00:04:55 –> 00:05:01 it looks to me like it’s kind of gone matte, so that should be dry, so I can just start
00:05:01 –> 00:05:12 buffing this up, and you can add…you can add more layers if you like, it’s not quite
00:05:12 –> 00:05:19 dry enough yet, anyways I’ll just keep going, and as it starts to dry, it buffs right up
00:05:19 –> 00:05:23 to a beautiful shine.
00:05:23 –> 00:05:29 You can add more finishes, I mean more layers if you want to get it super glossy, much easier
00:05:29 –> 00:05:33 than putting on a liquid finish, don’t you think?
00:05:33 –> 00:05:42 So my question is, would you use a wax like this for surfaces instead of a liquid?
00:05:42 –> 00:05:49 Or do you prefer to use like…something like a gloss finish, that kind of thing?
00:05:49 –> 00:05:53 And would you pay the $15 for a little container or not?
00:05:53 –> 00:05:59 If this was helpful for you, make sure to press that like button; that would be great,
00:05:59 –> 00:06:02 and feel free to share this with whoever you like.
00:06:02 –> 00:06:08 And if you have any comments or questions, please leave them in the comment section below.
00:06:08 –> 00:06:11 So I hope that you enjoyed that, and I will see you next time.
00:06:11 –> 00:06:12 Bye for now.
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Resource Links:
- Amazon: Renaissance Wax **
- Related Video: How To Get Shiny Polymer Clay Using Renaissance Wax
- Related Video: Finishing Wax as a Bead Polish Tutorial Intro
- Related Video: Sealing Polymer Clay Best Practices
- Related Video: Tips for Using Inka Gold Metallic Rub on Polymer Clay
- Related Video: Shopping at Shipwreck Beads
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Found this source too, @ $4.25 for a 2 oz cup of the wax. Probably more practical than the pound slab from Douglas and Sturgess link in my previous comment.
Those look interesting Harriet. How soft is that wax? It seems like it may be a lot harder than the paste wax that the Renaissance Wax is. It is inexpensive though, so it would be a neat thing to test.
Sorry I just saw this today. Good to hear that microcrystalline wax works so well on PC. Here is a cheap source for the wax without the Renaissance name.
Is it safe to rebake pieces with Renaissance Wax on them? I sanded and buffed the front of a pendant and added some wax, but I want to add a textured back to it.
Hi Krithika, I haven’t tested re-baking something that has Ren Wax on it yet, so I can’t be positive… though it is usually put on so very thin that I doubt it would be an issue. To be safe though, you could remove the wax with some paint thinner or mineral spirits. Then you could re-add it after you have re-finished the piece.
Hi,
I have rebaked polymer clay beads with Ren wax quite a few times. Putting a textured back on some cufflinks for instance. It takes the shine right off in my experience, so you have to re apply it and buff again, but other than that, no problems.
It did funny things to an image transfer bead on Sculpey original, it kind of melted the image into the clay and turned it purple as the ink and wax ran.. . . But that was an unlikely combination and I won’t be doing that again ;-) Also I should have baked it the correct length of time to start with. But other poly clays have been fine under the very same treatment. So go for it.
Re gilders wax/paste and ren wax. Yes it takes it off, which is not ideal, but can be interesting as you can push the gilder’s wax into the crevices of your texture while polishing it off the raised bits.
I have found that if I polish the gilders wax/paste first, then carefully dab a thin layer of ren wax, (avoiding wiping or disturbing the surface too much) leave it for an hour or two to harden a bit, I can buff it up if I go carefully, but it’s a bit dicey. . Once the first layer of ren wax is on, buffed and hardened, more layers can be added with confidence and buff up very well.
Jon x
Thank you so much Jon for your insights! That is very helpful for both myself and everyone else here. Btw I checked out your Etsy store and you do very nice work!
(For those of you who are interested in seeing Jon’s work, just click on his name beside his comment and it will take you right there.)
The wax looks like a nice finish to use. Can you use it over a clay piece that has been painted with acrylics?
Hi Christine, yes this wax should be just fine putting over acrylic paints. It can pretty much go over anything I have tried except Gilder’s Paste, which it just removes… (Probably too similar of a product since they both contain waxes.)
I love ren wax. It can be used over gilders paste with care. I find that if you dab it on with your finger and don’t try to spread it about too much, then leave it to ‘dry’ for an hour or two (I haven’t tested what the optimum time is though) you can buff it successfully. You have to be gentle with it though. Then if you use a second coat you can shine it up a bit more. But then, I am going for an aged finish, so I find some of the side effects of using ren wax on gilders paste really useful ;-)
I’m not sure where to post some pics but I have a couple of pieces I’m pretty proud of and I know without Cindy’s tutelage I wouldn’t let anyone see them. Sand and sand and sand and sand and buff and then use Renaissance Wax and buff and buff. Makes all the difference in the world. I showed the one piece to hubs before I sanded and the first thing he said was, “And now your going to shine it up, right?” I guess he does listen,
hi Peg, Cindy has a Facebook site for all her pupils to post their pictures of what they make. Here is the link……. Polymer Clay Tutor Members Photo Gallery
OMG Miss Cindy! You are a clay goddess! I read you reply on YouTube you were right I was putting too much Renaissance wax on! I can’t believe it! I know you said put on a little, but I thought hmmm well if it shines with a little imagine how great it will shine with a lot! I was SCOOPING the wax up with my items and using that chunk of wax. You have saved me, my etsy shop and my life, well my creative life. I was giving up. And so embarrassed I was actually lying to people saying, oh this piece isn’t finished I still have to polish it, even though I spent hours doing so!
Thank you from the bottom of my heart! How wonderful you are to take your time out from your busy day to help a nobody like me!
Your biggest fan!
Maggie Bates
That is so awesome to hear Maggie! Sometimes it is just the simplest things… isn’t it? So often when it comes to using supplies of any kind, more isn’t always better.
Hi Cindy! How are you, my favorite person?! I’m having a serious problem, it’s so bad that I gave up on my clay for a little because I was so frustrated. I got it back after watching your technique with the beach scenes, absolutely genius I must say.
Anyway, lol my problem is I the finish on my beads or other creations I sand using my polishing papers I have all the way up to 25000 grit! After I sand I use my ren wax and polish, oh it shines but only until you touch it then it dulls right up the only way to get the shine back is to reapply the wax and start over, but it’s useless because it doesn’t stay.
I’m so embarrassed with my pens. I sell them. They look great for short while then they look awful that I fib and say oh this isn’t done I have to polish it. I can just cry Cindy! All that work. I have a store on Etsy and the whole family is into the whole thing, they are so excited that I have it! But I’m too upset. I HATE glazes because it takes so much away from the piece. I don’t know what to do. Please tell me there’s hope!
Thank you for all you do! Oh, ps, can we arrange a marriage with Fisher and my daughter! He’s Soooooo darling! Lol. She’s totally smitten with him!
Ok enough Maggie lol
Thanks Hun!
Maggie
Your polymerclay tutee.
Hi – I am a sculptor and have a question about the Renaissance wax polish . I’ve done some fairly large sculptures in foam which I’ve covered with a water based resin. In the event that I used the polish would the wax repel the liquid rubber I would use to make molds of the sculptures? I guess what I’m asking is could the polish be removed if it were necessary to do that?
Hi Richard Renaissance wax is used by museums to protect fine art paintings and other artifacts. In order for them to use a product on such precious items it must be easy to remove without damaging the surface below. To remove ren wax you can use White Spirits (petroleum distillate). Hope that answers your question.
I have watched many of your videos and love your ideas. I take them to heart. I don’t like to do A LOT of sanding so I took your recommendation and purchased some renaissance wax. I love it and will be buying a larger container. I will, when I can, sand my items lightly and then apply a couple layers of the wax. Thanks so much for your wonderful ideas… they work, are very useful, and I will continue watching your videos. I previously subscribed. I’m retired. So, try to be frugal.
Hi Jonita, thanks for your kind words! I am glad you are enjoying the Renaissance Wax for your polymer clay projects. Just so you know, the smoother and shinier a piece is before you wax, the better the shine will be. So although Ren Wax will boost the shine, it doesn’t eliminate the need for a proper sanding. Thanks for commenting!
I am going to order this right now!!! Thanks!
Thank you so much on your review of the renaissance wax. I’ve been struggling with the right finish the paint on gloss just looks so unprofessional the floor wax reminds me of dirty floors. How shiny will it get with the extra coats? Have you tried that? To see how shiny it can get? Thanks for all you do!!!
LOL! Too funny Maggie! I have more than once been guilty of putting on many coats of floor finish thinking it could only get shinier with more, only to be spending hours trying to strip it back off again because it got sticky and dirty. I agree with your opinion on the Floor wax. It’s OK… in fact I used to really like it, but now that the quality of my work has improved, I much prefer the look and feel of a well sanded and buffed piece and the added sheen of this wonderful wax. It not only feels great to the touch, looks fantastic, but is WAY easier for me to do. No more drips or brush marks and no more removing the finish, because I didn’t like how it turned out!
Thank you so much on your review of the renaissance wax. I’ve been struggling with the right finish the paint on gloss just looks so unprofessional the floor wax reminds me of dirty floors. How shiny will it get with the extra coats? Have you tried that? To see how shiny it can get? Thanks for all you do!!! I’d give anything to be able to afford to watch your videos. Thank you again for sharing!!!!
I have a problem with Ren wax. I put Ren Wax on two pieces and a spot of each is dull after buffing. I reapplied wax to those spots and buffed again. Didn’t help at all. Do you have any solution?
Hi Freda, it is not a problem with your Ren Wax, it is a problem with the finish you had on your piece before you added the wax.
Renaissance Wax magnifies whatever type of finish you have put on your polymer clay. For example, if your piece has a perfectly smooth and shiny finish before putting on the Ren Wax, then it will become even shinier and richer looking after putting it on. If your piece has more of a matte finish, then the wax will only bring it up to a soft sheen.
My guess is that you missed a few spots when sanding and the wax stayed dull in those spots. Or it is also possible that you could have a little glue or oil or something else blocking the wax from sticking in those spots.
If you think it could be the sanding, then re-sand your piece and try waxing it again. If you think it could be caused by something on the piece, I suggest you remove the wax by wiping it with rubbing alcohol, acetone or mineral spirits, then re-wax.
Good luck. Let us know how it goes!
PS- I was wondering where the tutorial is for turning your bead holder that you put in the oven more secure.
I would search for it but I don’t know what to call that contraption!! lol
(Folded metal thingie to hold beads to bake!)
Hi Janine – you made me smile – it’s called an Amaco Bead Rack – some say bead baking rack
up above on the top right you’ll see the search box – type in Sugru where Cindy tells how to hack your bead rack:)
Thanks for this tip! it is on my shopping list:) It solves sooo many problems for me.
This is really interesting. I also work with brass so this might be a good polish for that as well.
Thanks for all your video tips! They really helped me get back into polymer clay.
Just got delivery of my little pot of this wonderful stuff, haven’t used it yet and have just watched your tutorial on same. I bought it to put a finish on some metal and hadn’t even thought of it for clay finishes, so I’m particularly happy about that and thank you so much. Your tutorials are wonderful by the way, not too long and to the point.
Dear Cindy,
I am learning so much helpful information from your videos. I have my new rock tumbler going and will be opening up the first batch of small light colored river pebbles I picked up from around the house and barn. I insist that they should be smooth before they touch anything I have made.
My beads are so smooth when they come out of the oven that most of them only require the lightest sanding with 800 – 1500 grit and then a waxing and buffing. Even in a dry climate like Northern California the beads that I used Minwax gloss on feel tacky and they scratch easily. The waxing on the other hand allows the polymer bead to feel more like a lightly glazed ceramic piece.
I tried spraying with the minwax gloss. Good thing I used a surplus bead. It was nevertheless a bead that I had put through the sanding process so it was smooth when I sprayed it. YUK! It felt as if it had developed pimples when I took it out of my little portable spray booth. I tried another very smooth bead, thinking I had overdone the spray on the first one. But no, it too, even with a light mist of a spray, deteriorated in tactile quality through use of the gloss varnish spray.
The wax is perfect for my work. I am using the neutral (no pigmentation) Kiwi shoe polish as the wax. I had heard from other clay artists that they had used it with success. When my little box of Kiwi is gone, I will try the Renaissance Wax that you recommend, too.
Sorry to take up your time, Cindy. But I did want to report that I am heavily involved in learning as much as I can from your tutoring.
Anna
No need for apologies Anna… So glad to hear you re enjoying the tutorials and that you are experimenting with different finishes. The feel of your beads in many cases, can be just as important as the look.
Thanks, Joselyn, sorry about the wrong name before. :-)
Joyce, maybe we are talking about two different things. I don’t have to bake my bread clay. It is made with bread slices and glue and air dries to hardness, and there is no problem with mold at all. The glue keeps it all at bay. I make jewelry from it. I dry till it is hard, and then sand till smooth, then paint and glaze with Varathane. Just wondering about the wax, since it seems like an easier approach. It says it is a sealant and Cindy says it gets hard so just wondering. I have an Etsy store called RollinInTheDough, if you would like to see some of my pieces. Thanks for your comments.
Linda, lol, yep…wrong dough. I used the salt, flour, and water mixture and baked it. The bread and glue method is one I never tried, but, boy, after looking at the lovely items for sale at your etsy store, I might give it a go. Apologize for the inaccuracy.
Folks, go see her stuff, it’s beautiful!
.
Hello, Cindy, just have a question for you. I have made comments on finishes in the past and work with bread clay, so you may remember me. Just wondering if this wax would be waterproof like Varathane? Since I work with bread, water can re-hydrate it if the finish is not waterproof. This sounds like the perfect solution, since it obviously won’t yellow or the museums wouldn’t use it and it seems so easy, but the only thing for me would be the problem with it being waterproof or not. Thanks.
Hi Linda! My first love was bread dough, it kept me thoroughly occupied until the nieces discovered polymer clay. Christmas ornaments, Easter, family caricatures of my sister’s wedding party…you name it, I made it from bread dough. My mom’s mom declared my nativity interpretation “heresy.” She was very devout, and my figurines sagged a little too much for her taste, lol
Always found the secret to success was to slow bake and dry it thoroughly, then, varnish the bedevil out of both sides of it so it kept the mildew and softening at bay. My favorite was repeated dips in marine spar varnish. If you had a good clear day, and it dried properly, the stuff lasts forever.
From what I know of Rennaissance Wax, I don’t think it will give you the same level of protection from moisture that you would get from another total coating.
By all means though, be a mad scientist and experiment. If the wax works, come back and let us know, K?
Too bad about the Renaissance referral thru Amazon, Doug.
…we ALL THREE could have deferred the booty to our respective accounts. There goes the trip to Florence…sigh!
Okay, ya’ll convinced me to buy Renaissance Wax! Hey, are ya’ll paid for endorsements? LOL.
That is the plan… for the product manufacturers to start sponsoring the promotional activity we do for them here at the PcT community. At this stage, however, the cart is way ahead of the horse, so to speak.
Public comments like yours, Becky, do help a lot. The more everyone is able to help get the word out to the manufacturers, about how this site is influencing your buying activities… the better. So… Cindy and I thank you for the shout out :-)
Got it and will keep doing it.
Do you know if Reneissance gets feedback from Amazon that we bought it thru the link from PCT?
Hi Andrea… Amazon only passes along contact information for the product buyer to a vendor who sells the Renaissance Wax. So the answer is no, they would not know that we referred the sale (unfortunately).
That’s a great plan, Doug!
There are tons of manufacturers out there who should be aware that you are influencing bunches of folk to buy their goods, and for good reasons…you have done so much testing of the products and that leads to us all having confidence in a new product (or an “old” one we may never have heard of) and so much more willing to buy, and then go back and buy again when we see the results for ourselves!
Truly, the day I stumbled upon your website was pretty much the luckiest day of my life. I have learned so much, and Cindy and you demonstrate and record everything so well that it is hard to fail on any technique.
My thanks to you both, again!
Who gave you the number of my Swiss bank account?! Grrr!
You have a Swiss Bank Account too !!!??? LOL
Hey!!! You never told me you have a Swiss Bank Account Doug! Is there something you need to tell me? Hmmmm? ;)
Hi Cindy,
Thanks for the tutorial :-) I bought the wax but not yet arrived.
I have a question: I made beads: I cut about 4 circles from white polymer clay and colored each one with ink (from a permanent marker) and then I mixed them together a little bit, not much mixing and then I made beads (which are so beautiful), my question is about if I can sand them and buff without that the ink will be removed? I prefer to do it in the tumbler but I am afraid the color will be removed, do you know Cindy if the color will be removed? maybe it will be better to apply only the wax? I tried to look for information about it and didn’t find.
Thanks
Hila
Hi Hila, if the ink was mixed INTO the clay and is not ON Top of the clay, then you should be able to sand it no problem. If it is just on the outside then you will need to add a finish of some sort, or it will rub off. You would have to test the finish first. I am not sure if Ren Wax will go over Sharpie or not… I haven’t tried it yet. I do know that PYMII does though, so you could use that if you’re worried. Just type ‘pymii’ into the search box at the top of the page and several articles and tutorials will be listed for you, should you want to learn more. Do come back and let us know how it goes for you!
Thanks Cindy :-)
Its all good, iv tried it with the tumbler and its fine (by the way my husband made for me a homemade tumbler from a drill, I saw a video on youtube someone did something like that and iv asked my husband to do for me and so he did, so if any one dont have the money to invest in tumbler its great idea)
So the beads are fine, the ink is not coming off, iv asked you cause iv tried a bit and it looks like it coming off but it didnt.
Also I dont think I can find the pymii in Israel and cant order from USA cause its have a hazardous in it but I dont see any problem with the wax or I can be wrong.
:-) Thansk again
Hila
Hi, Ron!
So glad you are here! You are going to enjoy it!
I have done transfers to polymer in a very easy way. Take the photo to a printer and have them do it the size you need, but make sure it is done on a TONER printer. Then, sheet white or light colored clay at your thickest setting on your pasta machine. Lay the clay perfectly flat on whatever baking surface you will be curing it in. THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT! You do not want to be moving the clay around and shifting your image. Cut the copy of your photo however you want it to be transferred on the clay. Put the copy of the photo which you cut out face down on the white clay, making sure there are no air bubbles in between and that it lays perfectly flat against the clay. Then burnish the back of the paper VERY thoroughly using a burnishing tool or something similar, like a tongue depressor or the dull edge of a dinner knife. The point is to rub hard enough to make sure the paper stays on the clay but not gouge it or indent it in any way. This transfers the toner to the clay, so make sure your paper touches the clay at all spots otherwise you will not get the transfer where it is not touching the paper. DO NOT MOVE THE CLAY OR PAPER AROUND! Cure for 5 minutes, remove from the oven, carefully lift the paper from the clay and return the clay to the oven and continue curing it for the rest of the required time. That’s it!
The only drawback is that your photo will be reversed, so any writing will not be readable. But I know that some printers have the capability if you need it. Mine have come out excellently as long as I make sure not to move anything around and I burnish well. You will notice that the paper will get a greasy look as you burnish. This has always indicated to me that it is ready.
I am sure Cindy has tons of advice for you on this and all the wonderful other members, too. This is the only way I’ve ever done it and, as I said, it works very well and it is simple and not messy. But if something is unclear, please don’t hesitate to ask me.
However you decide to do it, good luck and looking forward to seeing your project.
Have fun!
Andrea
Hi Everyone,
I’m a beginner to use Polymer Clay. I enjoy working with polymer clay. I’ve done some things and I’m wanting to do a transfer of a photo to polymer clay. Do you or anyone have any suggestions on transferring the photo to polymer clay. Would it be best to just test with either store bought transfer paper or use parchment paper? What do you all suggest? I am open to any suggestions any one has.
If I use parchment paper, what side do I put the photo on when I run it through the inkjet printer?
Again,
Everyone comments to me are commended and thankful for the help and advice given to me.
Thanks you,
Ron :-)
Hi Ron, I’d also like to welcome you to our community! You made a good choice coming into polymer clay! It certainly is a fun medium to work in with endless possibilities for creativity.
I prefer to do my image transfers a little differently than Andrea does. Same toner copies (aka laser printer or photocopy not inkjet printed images) just a slightly different approach to transferring the image to the clay.
If you learn well through video, I have two different tutorials on image transfers that you may enjoy.
Image Transfer To Polymer Clay – Tutorial Using Toner Based Copies
and
Hand Tinted Photo Transfers | Polymer Clay Tutorial
Although I did test using parchment paper, it can be a little tricky to find the right paper and you may have some trouble with the printer jamming. Do a quick search at the top of the page for parchment paper transfers and you can read the article if you like.
Good luck!
PS: Thank you Andrea for sharing your method with Ron. I appreciate your help!
As expected -what glowing testimonials! Isn’t it exciting to find a REALLY GOOD product? Will have to look for Weimans! I HATE POLISHING silver and stuff. That was my major job as a child. And I hated it then! To dip and have all that gook go away would be wonderful. Sure hope I can find it!
Love that so many peeps have input here. Polymer Clayers ROCK!!!!!!!!!!
Yes, Pat, you are right!
Polymer Clayers Rock n’ Roll!!!
And you will love the Weiman’s.
Oh, Cindy!
I am laughing so hard because I just noticed your headline at the top of the page:
ANDREA P. TELLS ALL
That sounds like me…Miss Bigmouth.
How did you GUESS?
Absolutely love you!
LOLOLOLOL
Andrea P.
I know, isn’t Doug funny!! Its like he’s writing for a tabloid or something! LOL
Thanks again for all your wonderful comments! Love having you around… chatty and all! :)
Oh, so it’s Doug, is it? LOLOL
Well, tell him to watch out for the SUGRU. I’m almost ready to report.
I will play role of editor on myself and be brief (!).
Sounds like Rosalind Russel and Cary Grant in “His Girl Friday”
Love ya!
Hi, All!
This is my updated report on Renaissance Wax…aka the latest chapter on “Andrea and Ren’s Shiny New Love Affair”…
It has been a week since I told you guys that I cleaned my cast sterling/semi precious stone jewelry with the Weinman and polished it with the Ren Wax. I have been wearing my two tennis bracelets since then and have not taken them off at all (as I always used to do). The older of them was pitiful and I hadn’t worn it for years. It was grey/black, looking like you average piece of 600 grit sandpaper. If you’ve seen tennis bracelets, you know they are very pretty but have an awful lot of nooks and crannies. No matter what I did I could not get this one cleaned…not even a little. Believe me I have tried most everything, including toothpaste, which was actually my last favorite because at least it was inexpensive. I had looked into the sonic cleaners but you can’t use it with stones so what use is that to me? Anyway, the Weiman’s Tarnish Remover cleaned my bracelet in about 5-8 seconds. And I mean CLEAN. Every single nook and cranny that had been irritating me for years. After that, I polished it as best I could with the Ren Wax. Both bracelets look as beautiful today as last week when I cleaned them. And so does all the rest of the jewelry. I have done daily inspections of all subjects.
I have now moved on to my beaded necklaces, etc., which I use sterling and gold-filled findings on. I dip the entire necklaces in the Weiman’s and all the stones and findings/sterling beads come out beautiful in a few seconds. All those pesky little black rims that build up around the bead holes from the stringing wire are totally GONE. And I polish with the Ren Wax and it is DONE!!!
I was on the Ren Wax site and, as I told you, found it very interesting. They explain about marble and how it has a special finish on it but can be scratched very easily. It also stains very easily and won’t clean up. Since I use a 18″ x 24” marble pastry board for my polymer and it’s relatively new and has no stains on it yet, I decided to go ahead and protect that, too. My work table is a conference table with the standard light wood laminate finish. I always keep it clean but it shows the polymer fingerprints something awful. So I did that, too. Since I clean it off with alcohol to get the polymer off, it will protect it. And it shows not prints at all.
Sylvia, I looked up the Conservator’s and agree with Cindy. Maybe same thing with label for ‘The Masses’. Thanks for the great tip!
Couple things with the Ren Wax:
As Cindy said in the tutorial, it gives you UV protection, which is absolutely awesome.
On the site and the brochure it says that if you ever need to take it off, you can do so with white spirits. White spirits, folks, is TURPENTINE. Which means that if you’re worried about your work being protected…I guess so. And for a very long time.
Also, as Cindy said, basically you apply and polish. I noticed I was subconsciously letting it dry off a few minutes like some of the other waxes. That only made it harder to polish. If you wait a few SECONDS, all you have to do is wipe. No muscle needed. And as she mentioned, if you want higher shine, do a first coat, leave it five minutes or so, then do a second. The coats have to be LIGHT…really light. You do as many as you need til you get the shine you want.
As for the smell, I don’t much notice it. And other finishes have smells, too. So this is really a personal thing I guess everybody will have to decide on.
I have done all this and have used almost a fifth of the little container and half of an old dishcloth for wiping. I think that’s pretty economical. I will do my sculpts next.
Okay. I think that’s it. And I know…I’m one of those ALPHABET people…type-A or something?—about the cleaning and the neatness and everything else and I’ve heard it plenty so don’t even bother to think you’re being original by mentioning it. It’s a hard personality, but SOMEBODY has to be one. Otherwise where would the REST of the alphabet be? LOL
All I can tell you is everything looks AWESOME and I feel I have brand new items, all around. And I have saved myself tons of money and time and frustration AGAIN!
Thank you, CINDY! again!
And thanks to you All! You are pretty awesome yourselves…
Andrea
Have you tried Conservator’s Wax? It is made in Canada and sounds similiar to Renaissance Wax. It is “a highly refined blend of microcrystalline waxes (petrochemical based) used by museums, art galleries and conservators to protect against airborne pollutants & finger marks, & is moisture resistance.
“It is a clear, light wax used on finished woods, metals, ceramics, marble, leather, gilding, photographs and even paper. It will also gently remove grime and wax build-up.” Lee Valley Tools
Sounds like pretty much like the same product Sylvia. Maybe it is a copy cat product or something that they are repack aging for Ren Wax? Who knows. It might be worth trying out. If you do try it. Let us know, OK? Now you’ve got me curious!
I stopped by to comment about the Lee Valley brand wax, Cindy. I was pleased to see Sylvia noticed it as well. I’ve ordered a bottle ($12.50 CN for a big 125 ml size) as well as new MicroMesh pads. This time I am purchasing the 5″ round pads with loop backing; they are designed for a power sander, but I plan on designing a Velcro-covered surface and attaching them. I’ve had unsatisfactory results with the smaller pads, due mainly to weakness and poor circulation in my hands. I’ll let you know my results.
P.S. Lee Valley.com has a FREE SHIPPING EVENT finishing Monday, March 25, 2013.
I hope that Lee Valley still has the 5 inch round pads! I love the micromesh pads, but I just get going with the little guys and run out of room! I actually (yes, I know, I’m weird) find that sitting with those pads and sanding my way through them is a very Zen time for me. I LOVE feeling the surface getting smoother and smoother. Wet/dry sandpaper just drove me crazy/
Monique, did you ever come up with a Velcro surface to hold the 5 inch round pads? I’d love an explanation of what you did, if you did.
I\m going to go and stalk Lee Valley’s web site now, checking for those bigger pads.
Happy claying, all!
P.S.
The feeling of the sanded and polished polymer with the Ren wax is absolutely DELICIOUS!
Andrea you have no idea how happy I was to read this comment!
You know every once in a while you will come across a product that solves a whole bunch of problems in one fall swoop! And to think this one has been around the whole time and I didn’t know about it!! From now on I am going to tell everyone to pour their Future Floor Wax on the floor and use Ren Wax on their beads instead! LOL
I will have to keep an eye out for that Weiman’s Tarnish Remover. Sounds promising. I’m always adding tarnishes and patina’s so I wouldn’t need it too often, but I can see how it would take the effort out of having to clean metals the regular way.
Thanks again for your comment! You are such a great artist in your own right, and it is humbling to see that you find value in what I can show/teach you. It’s lovely to have you in our happy clay family!
Hi, Cindy and All!
I had this product on my “Maybe” list and when Cindy did the tutorial, I decided to go ahead and order it from Amazon. It was $16.95 for the little jar, $26 for the larger, and I decided to buy the little one first. As I have been doing major, major spring cleaning, I had already started to put order to my beading/clay inventories and my personal jewelry stash as well. I do this every 3 or 4 years. I clean everything, sort, repair, weed out, give away, reorganize. Since I have been collecting (hoarding!) since I was a wee little tot, the collection (hoard!) is considerable. I would say 95% of my personal jewelry, other than clay, is sterling with semi-precious stones and I use sterling and gold-filled findings for the polymer. There are items to be repaired, which I never get around to, and unrepairable items I’ve kept because I’m sure I’ll ‘do something’ with them someday. When I found polymer last year, I had high hopes of using some of these in my projects but then decided not to because of the tarnish problem. I could not see using harsh tarnish removers on the clay items without worrying about it. As you can see, this is a formidable project which I don’t generally relish doing but which needs to be done just like people had to polish their silverware once in a while when it used to be silver and not stainless.
While I was waiting for the Renaissance Wax, I went to the store and, on a whim, purchased a tarnish remover I had not seen before by a company named ‘Weiman’. It is indicated for silver and copper, has a consistency a little heavier than water, three ingredients the first of which is citric acid, and a very, very slight sulfuric scent. Cost is $6.95 for 16 oz.. Directions are to dip items for 3-5 seconds. My first thought was “Yeah, right…”. Well, it WAS indeed right! I was completely bowled over. The reaction was just like in the old TV commercials where the tarnish disappears right before your eyes. Only, this REALLY worked! I could not believe it! The directions say not to use on stones. But I got so enthused I thought “Let’s try!. The upshot is I tried it on EVERYTHING I own. I first used, small beads of semi-precious, etc.., but I grew so confident of it that I ended up doing it all, including brass. This included all the stones such as crystals, amber, fresh-water pearls, cultured pearls, ivory (three VERY old pieces), my bear’s claw (Native American and found in the wild), the rediculously built-up Mexican silver, the very intricate Bali silver, the infuriating wire-wrapped stones…I mean EVERYTHING! The only adverse reactions I had were on the malachite, malachite-azurite, and coral. They lost their shine but the Renaissance put it back with two coats.
After letting everything dry thoroughly for several hours, I applied the Renaissance and was bowled over yet again! It is all just as Cindy showed. It goes on and buffs practically by itself. There is no effort at all required. The shine reminds me of of the hand applied French polished used on furniture. If you have seen French polish you know it is a rich, warm, deep luster rather than a garish shine. Everything looks stupendous. You should see the amber! I even did the ear wires because the product is totally safe on skin and protects the metals from its acids and oils.
And on the polymer it is unbelievable! Lately, I have also gotten very enthusiastic at Cindy’s urging on the sanding and buffing of beads. But I also have not been very happy about sealing with the liquid sealers and so have not sealed at all, unless it’s a piece with mica powders, leaf, etc.. I am so incredibly happy this product does so many things. I urge you all to read the info on it because it is very enlightening. I especially enjoyed learning about how it is used to protect professional instruments.
As you can see, I am totally excited about both these products. In the past, I have spent enormous amounts of time, labor and money and at the end of the project not been very satisfied with the results. This time I spent a weekend not only cleaning and buffing but protecting and repairing items I thought I would never use and knowing that know I can use the non-repairable items for my clay work. I did it all with two little rectangles of old dishtowels (I use flour sack ones), half a bottle of Weiman’s and about a 1/8 INCH (!) of Renaissance Polish (it says to use sparingly and it means it.) Total of project at the high end—maybe $8.00! And my items will be protected from further tarnish so I will probably not have to do this again for some time. I feel like I have a totally new jewelry collection!
If you sell your polymer items and other jewelry besides, these items can prove to be invaluable. Your display will look absolutely gorgeous—fresh and pristine! It will also protect your items from the wear and tear of all the handling for shows, etc.. I strongly urge you all to try these two products. My only regret is that I did not come find them sooner!
Thank you, Cindy, as always for getting me over the fence on the Renaissance. I have definitely gotten my money’s worth from all your tutorials on this product alone!
Hope you are all well and love to all! Happy claying! I enjoy you all so much!
Andrea
Yeah, the smell is bad but when dry and buffed it has no odor.
I guess I like that smell….. sort of gets you high LOLOL
I really like it but I can´t find it here in México :(
I like the finish of the wax but the smell really gets me.