How to Make Mica Shift Polymer Clay Technique

The mica shift polymer clay technique is an absolute favorite of mine. Here’s all you need to know to master the technique yourself.

Ever since I successfully mastered the mica shift polymer clay technique I’ve been mesmerized. The depth and dimension that can be created by simply texturing a sheet of metallic polymer clay and shaving off the raised bits is truly stunning.

Although the steps involved in this technique are relatively simple, it does take some practice to achieve success. Thankfully, the technique is forgiving in that if you mess up you simply start over again without having created any waste.

Let’s dive into the magic of the mica shift polymer clay technique.

Metallic and pearlescent polymer clays contain mica particles for shimmer and shine.

Mica particles are flat with a reflective surface. The sides of the particles are darker and don’t reflect as much light. 

When conditioning metallic polymer clay in preparation for mica shift the goal is to get all those mica particles into alignment. Keep feeding it into the pasta machine in the same direction each time. You’ll know when it’s ready when your sheet of clay is a uniform color without any darker streaks running through.

When choosing a texture I find a texture tool with at least a depth of 1mm works best. Textures with less depth could be used but shaving off the bits of a shallower texture would be more difficult. Texture mats and rollers, rubber stamps, DIY tools (as I’m using in this tutorial) or found objects around your home can all work. One of my favorite textures for mica shift is a piece of plastic canvas I picked up at a dollar store.

RELATED POST: HOW TO MAKE TEXTURE ROLLERS WITH SCRAP POLYMER CLAY

Pressing the texture into the polymer clay causes the mica particles to shift in their alignment. Rather than the shiny, flat surface, where the texture has been pressed into clay it causes the particles to stand on end, creating the darker lines. By shaving off the raised areas you’re left with a ghost image that is smooth to the touch.

To get the full effect and really make your piece dazzle, sanding and buffing are required to bring out the magic of mica shift. The few extra minutes spent on sanding and buffing your piece are absolutely worth it.

Tools & Materials

• Non-porous work surface—I work on either glazed tile or glass
• Metallic polymer clay—my favorite brand is Cernit but I’ve had success with Premo as well. I haven’t tried other brands for this technique. If you’re newer to the technique I’d suggest starting out with a single color while you get the feel for it before moving on to a skinner blend as I’ve done 
• Pasta machine dedicated to polymer clay use—I use an Atlas 180 and will refer to the settings I use on my machine. If you don’t have a pasta machine an acrylic roller and some playing cards will do in a pinch, it’ll just take a little more work
• Something to texture the clay with—I’m using a DIY polymer clay texture roller. Many texture mats work well for this technique as do rubber stamps. Or have a look around your house for something with a unique texture
• Polymer clay blade—for this technique it’s important your blade be very sharp and flexible
• Parchment paper
• Acrylic rod

For finishing your piece

• Wet/dry sandpaper (I use 600, 800, 1000 and 1500 grits)
• Renaissance Wax (I’ve read Vaseline works just as well but I’ve never tried it myself)
• A piece of denim or soft flannel for buffing—or a cotton buffing wheel on a Dremel

Directions for Mica Shift Polymer Clay Technique

Condition the metallic polymer clay well with the pasta machine. When conditioning metallic clay for this technique remember to always put it through the pasta machine in the same direction. Do not put in one way and then give it a turn the next time it goes through. You want the mica particles all going in the same direction

When the clay is conditioned, if desired, make a skinner blend. One color will work perfectly fine for mica shift but I like to use a blend sometimes. You may want to practice using a single color until you get the feel of the technique. If you mess up you can simply smoosh up that clay and try again

Sheet your clay on a medium setting (no.2) place it on your work surface and gently roll over it with an acrylic roller to make sure it sticks. Lightly dust the surface of the clay with cornstarch so it doesn’t stick to the texture tool

Texture the sheet of clay with your chosen texture tool. I went over my sheet a few times and in different directions with my DIY roller

Carefully shave off the raised parts from the textured sheet of clay. Keep your blade slightly flexed so you’re only taking a small bit off at a time. If you catch yourself starting to go too deep back the blade out, gently press the clay back in place, and try again. Wiping the blade off with a baby wipe between slices helps keep the clay from sticking to the blade.

For the best results take your time—don’t try rush the process.

Run a finger over the surface to make sure you’ve got all the raised parts. Once you’ve got them all, cover the sheet with a piece of parchment paper and burnish (I’m using a stainless steel soap but your acrylic rod will work just fine)

I put the sheet through my pasta machine again at this point. First I use the no.2 setting four times, giving the clay a quarter turn each time. I then repeat the same process on the no.3 setting

You can also just gently roll over the clay with an acrylic rod to smooth the surface. That way there is no worry about the pasta machine distorting the image

The mica shift veneer should now be completely smooth and ready to make something gorgeous

Finishing Your Mica Shift Polymer Clay Piece

After baking your piece it’s time to reveal the true magic of mica shift with a little sanding.

Add a couple drops of dish soap to a shallow container of warm water and dip in a piece the 600 grit sandpaper. Sand the entire surface of your piece. When it feels perfectly smooth to the touch, rinse the away the sanding residue and repeat with the 800 grit. When you’re happy with the feel, rinse again and move on to the next grit. Change the water when it becomes cloudy with sanding residue.

Once you’ve gone through all the grits of sandpaper and are happy with the look and feel of the piece thoroughly dry it and then smear on a little Renaissance Wax. Let the wax dry and then buff to a shine with the denim, flannel, or cotton wheel.

Notes

I find my preferred brand for metallic clays, Cernit, can often be either very soft, if it’s fresh, or quite crumbly. If it’s too soft, leach it by placing between two pieces of printer paper weighted with a heavy book. After an hour or so the excess plasticizers should have leached out and you’ll have a more workable clay. 

Too crumbly? You can add a couple drops of clay softener. I’ve found if I just keep passing it through the pasta machine enough times it eventually becomes workable without the softener.

One of the great things about this technique is if you mess up the first time, it’s not a big deal. Just smoosh the clay back together, sheet it through the pasta machine again, and give it another go. Keep practicing with a single color until you’ve mastered how much clay to shave off and then try it with a skinner blend

You now know how to do the mica shift polymer clay technique!

As always, if you have any questions or comments, I’m happy to hear from you.