Friday, February 17, 2012

Styrofoam Texture Plates (4PAM_7)

I usually sit down once or twice a year, draw up a bunch of designs, then make photopolymer or rubber texture plates. All in all it's a pretty laborious, time consuming process, and I end up trying to plan out a whole year's worth of work all at once. Now, with this Styrofoam texture medium I can now go from drawing to texture plate in no time. The rings above were all created using this medium!

A few months ago a came across Alisa Burke's blog posting about using Scratch-Foam® for printing on fabrics. "What is this Scratch-Foam® you speak of?" you may ask... although you probably sound a little less like a character out of a Jane Austen novel... It's basically glorified styrofoam, that same stuff they send your leftovers home in when you eat out. If you're anything like me, there aren't any leftovers so I had to order the actual product. I did find the density of Scratch Foam® a little better then the styrofoam plate I tried this process with.

What's so great about it? Well, you can literally sit down with nothing more than a ball point pen and start creating texture plates. The possibilities of using this in a class setting in particular are really exciting, and imagine what you could do with enameling! As always I have more ideas then time, so I introduce this  hoping to see lots of new uses implemented.

If you're interested in more about this medium, I will be demonstrating how to make this book locket cover design in my upcoming CRAFTCAST™ class and introduce how to vary the texture depth. If you make it to my workshop at Mid Cornwall School of Jewellery you'll learn the full arsenal of techniques and be guided in the process of creating your own styrofoam texture plates. Until then here's a simple pair of earrings you can make using just a ball point pen and Scratch Foam®!


**FOR FULL TUTORIAL CLICK HERE** 

Posted by at 9:38 PM
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19 comments:

  1. I'm always looking for easy ways to create my own textures, I can't wait to try this. Thank you for sharing!

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  2. I've also been looking for easier ways to create very detailed textures. This looks very promising! Thanks Wanaree!

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    1. Yay!! Looking forward to seeing what gets made with it!

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    1. Right??? So much to try, so little time!

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  4. Wanaree, thanks so much for sharing this! I just ordered some and I can't wait to get my hands on them. The possibilities are endless! I'm hoping to take your class on craftcast in a few weeks. I am eager to learn how you make your gorgeous little locket. Thanks again for sharing your talents!

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  5. Great article! I can't wait to get this product and make some new designs. Thanks!

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  6. Thanks for sharing! I was thinking how to transfer my paintings' lines to metal clay and here you come with this perfect solution:o)have found some Styrofoam plates in picnic bag, hope it would work:o)))

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    1. Cool! I really love playing with these textures, the possibilities are endless!!

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  7. Thanks for this Wanarree. I have had a quick go and think that it will be great for helping student to produce their own textures quickly in class. As always, very generous of you to share all this information, Lynne

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    1. My pleasure! Definitely a great tool for teaching studios and workshops!!

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  8. Wanaree,

    The question I have about using the scratch foam is: Do you decrease the card thickness after you place your rolled clay onto the scratch foam and then roll again? Sometimes I'm not able to get deep enough textures.

    Thank you very much,

    Carol

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    1. Carol,

      Yes I do, although often I just roll without measuring, doing one continuos roll in one direction only (I also use a plastic barrier to keep the clay from sticking to the roller, something like a cut up heavy duty zip freezer bag.) I then flip the whole sandwich with foam in place over and the foam into the clay a little more. So long as the clay doesn't slip you won't get texture ghosting, the plastic barrier help keep it in place and proven that from happening. You may need to work the lines into the foam al little deeper too, try putting some packing tape or contact paper on the back of the foam, and go over your lines again. I do use a small (tiny really!) ball burnisher as well as tiny knitting needles :)

      -W

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  9. Also, what have you been using to create the finer details on the scratch foam? A small stylus with ball ends?

    Thanks again!

    Carol

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  10. I'd love to see your tutorial, if it's still available! I keep getting a Google page - https://drive.google.com/start?authuser=0#home. Maybe it's been taken off now?
    Hopefully -

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  11. I absolutely love this tutorial! I wouldn't even thought of styrofoam, now it sounds so perfect!! Cannot wait to get started...(and I just threw away foam containers last night arrghhh!)


    .Peace.

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