Texturizers & Stamps

Polymer clay readily takes on whatever texture is applied to it. This characteristic makes the texturing possibilities endless!

Stamps

Stamping and scrapbooking are such hot hobbies these days that there is a wealth of unique stamps available in almost any craft store. There are also places on-line that not only sell pre-made stamps, but that also allow you to purchase stamps of your own design. It is also possible to carve your own blocks or stamps-either out of products made specifically for that purpose or out of blocks of polymer clay.

Texture Sheets

There are a variety of texture sheets made especially for polymer clay. Many of these are designed to fit a pasta machine for quick and easy texturing of sheets of clay. These sheets can be made of rubber or plastic and come in a wide array of styles-everything from abstract shapes and fabric textures to imitations of natural surfaces and ethnic motifs.

You can also make your own texture sheet from clay, using whatever you find around the house or yard to create patterned or random texture. If you make a thin mold from Sculpey Super Flex (aka "Bake & Bend"), you can run it through the pasta machine just like the store-bought sheets.

Leatherworking Tools

Tools and stamps made for crafting with leather work for polymer clay, as well.

Things Around the House

Though things like leatherworking tools are not usually cheap, some people may already have them, relics from an earlier interest in leatherwork. Look over the supplies you've purchased for other hobbies-take a look in your toolbox or your "junk drawer"-you might discover the perfect texturizer.

To get you started, here's a list of possibilities:

Combs (press to make a line or dots, or gently drag to create straight or wavy lines)
Toothbrushes (the bristles can make a stippled effect or be brushed gently across the clay to create lines)
Sandpaper (all different grits)
Tools (files, screwdrivers, etc.)
Screws (either the heads or the treads)
Paperclips (as they are, or folded into new shapes)
Pens (caps and bottoms often have interesting shapes for texturing, or use an empty ballpoint pen as a freebie stylus)
Baskets (nice woven patterns)
Highly-textured fabric remnants
Lace
Buttons (plain or fancy)
Keys
Textured beads
Pendants (or other jewelry components, such as bracelet slides or rings)
Pressed glass (glasses, plates, votive holders, etc.)
Silverware (the patterns on the handles)
Chains (jewelry chains or larger ones from the garage)
Shoe treads
Wire mesh (of differing sizes)
Table salt
Intentionally placed fingerprints
Dragon Skin (steel sandpaper-used by polymer clay artist Victoria Hughes for its unique texture)

Of course, any time you use an item from around the house to texturize polymer clay, you'll want to carefully clean it afterwards. Some surfaces may be more difficult than others to clean completely. Remember that raw polymer clay can damage wood and certain plastics, so consider the possible after-effects before putting the clay on anything valuable.

Natural Items

Just as there's an unexpected treasure trove of textures around the house and garage, nature is full of surprising textures, if you take the time to notice them.

For example, consider the textures you can obtain from the following items:

Leaves (all types, all shapes, all sizes!)
Bark (also differs from tree to tree)
Stones (can be rough and dramatic or smoother and subtle)
Feathers
Seeds / seedpods
Flowers (some may be fleshy enough to provide texture, others not)
Nutshells (acorns, walnuts, peanuts and so on)
Sea shells (and coral)
Seaweed
Driftwood
Small sticks or twigs
Pinecones

Carving Tools / Dental Tools

You can also texturize polymer clay either randomly or in patterns with tools used for carving or cutting clay, such as wood-carving tools or dental tools. Specialty tools aren't the only things you can use this way, either. Different sized drinking straws, skewers, chopsticks, needles, and so on will create impressions in uncured clay. Repeat a pattern with a single tool or combine tools for a more complicated design.