Where do you bake your Polymer Clay?

Sheila H wrote

on May 13, 2009 12:15 PM

I am trying to work on some ploymer clay free form pieces. My first attempt was not pretty. I have a little toaster oven that I bought for this but the pieces actually burnt ( if the smoke  and the black of the teal color pieces were any indication LOL ). 

So I was thinking about just using my regular oven. It was suggested on another site to use a lower temp and just bake it a little longer. But someone posted that they thought there was an issue with using your regular oven but that could have been old info since they had not done clay for a few years. 

Anyone got good information on this? Should I use my regular oven or just try to small one again on a lesser temp? The directions say 275 degrees for 30 mins. 

Thanks for any suggestions and thoughts!

butterfly@14 wrote

on May 13, 2009 1:10 PM

I haven't been using polymer clay for a long time, but I used my kitchen oven to bake. The temperature on Fimo is 230 F, 110 C. for 30 mins

I later read that if it burns, the fumes are unhealthy.  It is better to give it a lower temperature and bake for longer.

Maybe someone who knows more about it than me, can give you a better answer.

Hugs

Kokopelli wrote

on May 14, 2009 2:56 AM

I also use my kitchen oven, but read that many people are worried about the fumes, no matter if the pieces are burnt or not.

Sheila H wrote

on May 14, 2009 6:30 AM

I baked it in my regular oven for about 45 minutes on 225 degrees. Then I just turned the oven off and let it cool with the pieces in it for about another 15-20 minutes. They seem to be okay. I never smelled any fumes at all even when I opened it to check them about midway through. 

Someone on Artfire said "I read that when you take them out of the oven that you should put them in ice cold water right away , it make vibrant colors more vibrant."

I did not try that but the baking seemed to go okay. I'll find out tonight when I get home and can really check them. 

CrystalCubeBead. wrote

on May 14, 2009 8:49 AM

I would be concerned about fractures and breakage with an ice water bath for hot pieces.

Stan B.

Sheila H wrote

on May 14, 2009 9:03 AM

Stan - I had not thought of that. I actually stuck them in the freeze instead ( in my mind that is what I had remembered the thought as being ). When I checked them this morning, they looked fine. I don't think it will be worth it though. 

I figure I will just let them cool normally in the future. Thanks for the thought though! I can just see me having to explain to hubby why there are broken pieces of clay in his french fries! LOL!

Ronna3 wrote

on May 14, 2009 12:39 PM

Hi all. Fabulous questions!  Ideally, you would use a dedicated convection toaster oven to bake your clay. Sometimes if you use a small toaster oven, the polymer clay is so close to the heating element that it gets much hotter than the temperature you set. In other words, you may set it to the manufacturer's instruction (about 265 degrees, but it varies by brand) but the temperature an inch from the heating element is much hotter. Since oven temperatures vary, I recommend buying an oven thermometer and keeping it in the oven.

If you don't have a dedicated convection oven, it's okay to use your home oven, but you don't want the gasses/vapors/oils/whatever from the polymer clay settling into the same place you prepare food. You can fix this by covering whatever you're baking tightly with aluminum foil or a tight-fitting lid. I don't recommend putting the foil right against it, but rather put the item to be cured (baked) into a large enough container that you can cover it with foil or a lid and it still has air circulating around it.

I put polymer clay pieces into ice water straight from the oven, and I've never had any cracking ... ever. However, I do not notice any brightening of colors. It does, however, make translucent clay much more transparent, so I do it when I'm using translucent clay.

Hope this helps. Give a holler if you want any more information!  All the best, Ronna Sarvas Weltman

CrystalCubeBead. wrote

on May 14, 2009 6:48 PM

Thanks Ronna, those are exactly the kinds of things we need to know.

Stan B.

Ronna3 wrote

on May 14, 2009 9:04 PM

One more thing I should have addressed: Curing/baking it at a lower temperature will NOT work. The polymer clay will not become completely hardened, and in time it will get sticky. You know how if you leave cookies in the oven too long they'll burn? Polymer clay doesn't work that way. As long as you have your oven set to the correct temperature, your polymer clay pieces will only get stronger with longer baking. They won't burn unless the temperature is too high. You can also cure/bake the same piece multiple times. If you visit my website you'll see some fairly wild rings. They've been cured multiple times -- first I'll make the ring shank (band) and cure it, and then I'll add another element and cure it, and often a third element. Sometimes even a fourth. It gets stronger with each curing. Happy claying, everyone!

LitaC2 wrote

on May 15, 2009 6:00 AM

Sheila:

Others have commented, and I'll apologize in advance if I'm repeating anything.  I started this last night, and fell asleep before finishing it.

1 - Polymer clay needs to be baked at the temps and for the times specified by the manufacturer.  Underbaking will result in sticky and/or crumbly clay (depending on the type).

2 - It is best to use a dedicated oven.  Although polymer clay is non-toxic when unbaked and after baked, it's still a plastic that is not food-safe.  It gives off microparticulates during the baking process.  These particulates can resettle onto your food, and over time, can become toxic.

3 - The best thing you can buy for your polymer clay work is a $5 oven thermometer.  Most ovens, whether convention or conventional, toaster ovens or wall ovens have significant variations between the dial setting and the actual temp.  I bought a convection toaster oven ($50 at Target), and there is almost a 25 degree difference between the setting temp and the actual temp registering on the thermometer.  This can make a huge difference in the baking process, needless to say.

Hope this helps.

Lita

cbreul wrote

on May 18, 2009 11:41 AM

Sheila H:

I did not try that but the baking seemed to go okay. I'll find out tonight when I get home and can really check them. 

 Sheila,

I would love to know how they turned out.

Courtney

Sheila H wrote

on May 18, 2009 12:26 PM

These were free form thicker hearts, probably about 1/2 inch thick. They turned out okay. I still need to get the right color of clay. While they turned out okay, they did not scream "AWESOME!" at me. 

So I will continue to try. Probably need to try mixing the colors a little to get a marbled look but I don't know if I am that talented! LOL!

Billy Z wrote

on May 18, 2009 8:13 PM

 I have an old 110VAC camper oven that a friend gave to me just to use for polymer clay, BUT(big but!) I have yet to use it. I have 2 lbs of white and 2 packs of multicolor but it would seem that one would also need a pasta machine and I'll be damned if i can find one locally. I'll get to it one day. Maybe.

 Billy ;o)

CarolynF@28 wrote

on May 18, 2009 9:03 PM

 I do the absolute NO NO.  I bake in my kitchen oven BUT before you tell me what I already know, let me tell you that I have an old dutch oven that I use and it has a tight fitting lid which I have been told is ok.  So before you rule out your kitchen oven, try this.  The old camper oven is a good idea if you have access to cheap propane or can use natural gas. 

Oregon Coyote 

butterfly@14 wrote

on May 19, 2009 12:09 AM

 After reading this, I am a bit scared to bake polymner clay in my kitchen oven .

If I bake in a dish, and cover it with foil, is it ok?? I have a gas oven. I have no idea what a Dutch oven is :(