What Material To Use Sculpey On?

[Ayla of Duluth]

So I've recently opened an Etsy shop (http://www.etsy.com/shop/TwinkleTailEmporium) to sell all my crafts, (shameless self advertisement inbound) (http://mernetwork.com/index/showthread.php?4534-Mermaid-Tail-Charms!!!) and I've been making my pendants on a plastic dish. That seemed to work fine for a while, but recently after I'm done sculpting the pendant and I try to pull it off the plate, it sticks to it and tears. If it doesn't tear, then chunks of clay are ripped out of the bottom of the pendant and stick to the plate. I've tried washing the plate, because sculpey is like play dough, it leaves a residue that's really hard to get rid of. But no luck. The clay still sticks. Does anyone have any suggestions for things I can use to work with my sculpey on? It has to be able to withstand a boxcutter, because I cut the shapes out with it. It can be a one time use material, but in that case I prefer it be a cheap resource. Cardboard maybe? I don't even think I have any...

[Mermaidmechanic]

I'm a fan of mineral oil. When I make a sculpture, I take a cotton ball and rub a very thin layer of mineral oil on my crafting surface. So long as you dont move it around a lot, it comes right off.

[Mermaid Tula]

I use a mirror with my sculpey/fimo stuff. It doesn't stick as long as I keep the mirror clean

[Ayla of Duluth]

A mirror? that's an interesting choice of work space. I don't think i have a mirror, but I might have some mineral oil to rub my plate down with. At first I thought that since the plate is plastic and I use a box cutter to cut out all the pendants, the scratches in the plate acted as grip on the clay. I don't think thats the issue though, maybe the plate just isn't getting clean enough.

[MerAnthony]

Ayla try teflon place matt on a hard surface. Teflon is nonstick.

[Mertara]

I have been using polymer clays for years, and I always use a ceramic floor tile. Just go buy a 1 square foot regular old cheap ceramic tile in the flooring section at the hardware store. You can sculpt right on it and then stick the whole tile directly in the oven, and nothing sticks to it. Buy white, bc it helps polymer clay bake more evenly without burning or discoloring (like dark surfaces do). ^_^.

[Ayla of Duluth]

I have been using polymer clays for years, and I always use a ceramic floor tile. Just go buy a 1 square foot regular old cheap ceramic tile in the flooring section at the hardware store. You can sculpt right on it and then stick the whole tile directly in the oven, and nothing sticks to it. Buy white, bc it helps polymer clay bake more evenly without burning or discoloring (like dark surfaces do). ^_^.
You...ARE A GENIUS. <3 I'm gonna go do that on Monday when I go back to hobby lobby. Hopefully they have some sort of flat ceramic thing I can bake on if they don't have specifically floor tiles.

[Mertara]

yeah any flat ceramic thing will do ^_^ A floor tile is nice bc it offers the most space on it.

[Ayla of Duluth]

To be honest, I'm kind of nervous about working on a ceramic tile. What if I apply too much pressure to the clay to flatten it out and I break the tile? :O END OF THE WORLD

[Mertara]

You will not break a floor tile simply from pushing on it. ;) I have used the same 1 square foot ceramic floor tile for over 10 years and it has never broken ;). Anyways I am sure your tile would be on a table and not just hovering in the air. Tiles do not break when we walk on them right? It's not going to break from your hand.

[Talise]

I've sculpted on a small dinner plate, and I used dental floss or a very thin wire to get my sculpts off its surface; just slide it under the sculpt, and it cuts a thin bottom layer off the back, giving a clean edge and a flat back :)

[Mermaid_Aurora]

I just sculpt directly onto a cookie sheet and bake it without ever having to move it, then just pop it off with a spatula when its cool. I've never had any issues with the unbaked clay sticking, leaving residue, or damaging the cookie sheet in any way. Any residue left usually comes off in the wash. I know it's not a good idea to use sculpy on anything plastic though, I tried that and eventually if I left the clay to sit on it for too long it started melting into the plastic.

I also sometimes use wax paper over one of those cheap fold-out personal wooden tables. That tends to work fine too, don't always need the wax paper either. The table may get gunky over time but it doesn't seem to effect whatever I'm working on and I use it as a craft table anyway so I don't really care if the shine goes away or it gets stained.