Glazed Earrings: The Final Stage!

Included in this post will be examples of finished earrings I made along with a short How-To on glazing a finished product similar the Koalas in my previous post! Hope everyone finds it helpful!

These slimes are a project I completed for a friend and I wanted to use them as an example, not only because I think they're cute, but also because they show how a glaze makes a sculpture look more finished and more professional. It will be evident in the mushroom pictures further down the page that before glazing things just look unfinished, which is fine if that is the look one is going for, but for me I like the shine!

How-To Glaze Baked Earrings Cheshire Cat Inspired Purple Swirl Mushrooms

I completed these earrings after making some pretty purple swirls inspired by the Cheshire Cat from Alice in Wonderland. I just love how crazy he is and i love the purple swirls!

This first picture is of the gills of these purple swirl mushroom earrings after the ear rings have been baked. It has an unfinished matte look to it, which is nice but it could be better. The second pic is of the top of the mushroom earring before it has been glazed. They still have an unfinished look and you can very clearly see the finger prints in the from making them. Once they have been glazed this will be much less noticeable.

Here is where i begin painting on the polymer clay glaze. This glaze is a shiny one but one can also get the non glossy finish glazes for polymer clay. This glaze is painted on and then as it sits the glaze cures, this takes 30 minutes. Then it can either be work or re-baked to add to it's sturdiness. I usually re-bake them because they can be put back in with another set of earrings to bake and save electricity. The earrings must be re-baked at 275 degrees F, for 30 minutes. So they dry for 30 minutes then bake for 30 minutes then they are cooled, and ready to wear or sell!

 In these last three pictures one can see really see the difference between the glazed and unglazed parts of this mushroom!

Now we have the finished products, which look much more finished and professional than they did in the first pictures. The Glaze adds shine and protection from dirt and use. Hope you all found this guide helpful!

Don't forget to look for these ear rings and many more for sale at my Etsy Shop SaucerfullofSecrets

http://www.etsy.com/shop/SaucerfullofSecrets?ref=seller_info