Many of us who work in polymer clay use ceramic tiles as work surfaces. I personally have a whole arsenal of tiles ranging in sizes from 12”, 6” and 4” squares to long 4 x 8’s and even little 1 1/2” squares.
They work great as the clay easily sticks before curing and peels off cleanly after baking.
This video is an example of a project that uses quite a few ceramic tiles:
But I encountered a problem a few years ago when I got a new work table. The tiles slid around whenever I applied any pressure such as rolling with an acrylic rod, or sliding a blade under the clay.
A simple solution to this problem is to cut pieces of grippy shelf liner to just slightly under the size needed for your tile. I keep mine in a drawer next to my work table.
Whenever you grab a tile to work with, just grab a piece of liner to put the tile on top of. No more slipping and sliding. Yay!
The only drawback to be aware of is that because the tile is now slightly raised off the surface of the table, my clay blade and other thin tools like to hide underneath it.
It’s a small problem in exchange for a great deal more stability while working.
Hope you find this tip helpful.
What small adjustments help your creative work go more smoothly?
