Although I’ve been making molds with silicone putty for quite some time I always thought that making two-part molds was difficult and scary. However, I learned there really are just two simple things that you need to do differently than one-part molds to get beautiful two-part molds.

First of all, you need to insert something in the first part in order to make registration marks in the second part. This is most important, otherwise you will not be able to get your molds to line up properly.

Second, you just need to find some way to keep the two halves of the mold from sticking to each other. With molds made of other materials it may be trickier but the silicone molds just need a simple coat of Vaseline. I’ve also seen people dust them with cornstarch or talcum powder.

I was really impressed with how well these seashell molds came out and how realistic they look when you use the correct color of clay and appropriate surface effects.

Don’t forget that you can always manipulate a a piece after molding to change the shape. For example, you could curl up the clam shell and make a different shape shell, or you could flare out the openings of the shells to make them wider or smaller. I’ve often seen face molds manipulated this same  way, where folks use the mold to get a start and then compress and elongate different parts of the face or build up & take down different areas and get something that looks quite unique.

So I hope learning how to make two-part molds will be just the beginning of your creativity.

Personally, I think it’s a wonderful way to take objects that you may only have a limited number of and re-create them as many times as you want!

Tools and Materials:

• Two-part silicone molding putty
• Toothpicks
• Petroleum jelly/Vaseline
• Q-tips/cotton swabs
• Items to mold such as small sculptures or seashells
• Polymer clay for making molds

Enjoy the video and happy creating!

Watch the Friday Findings-How to Make Two-Part Molds video at YouTube.

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