All about molds for foamiran

What is it: molds for foamiran, how to use them and what can be replaced - these questions often arise among novice craftsmen. In fact, everything is simple - this is the name for the forms, with the help of which the petals and other elements of artificial flowers are given a realistic relief. Plastic and other types of molds for foamiran products are quite diverse. A detailed overview will help you understand their features and benefits.

Once upon a time, special forms were used only in ceramics. Today, there are molds for foamiran in the arsenal of every experienced craftsman. These ready-made texture prints greatly simplify the process of converting smooth porous material to embossed material. Sometimes you can find them under other names: molds, stencils, weiners. With the help of molds, the plastic base acquires all the characteristics that make natural flowers unique.

There is no one-size-fits-all solution here. Molds for foamiran differ in shape: it has its own for each type of product. Both in size and material of manufacture. They have fundamentally different requirements than, for example, those that are used in the manufacture of ceramic products. There should be no protruding elements, protrusions or dents, holes and tears.

All types of molds for working with foamiran can be divided into categories according to the material of their manufacture. The most common options for these products are:

• Silicone. Soft shapes used when working with polymer clay and other materials.They are characterized by a less noticeable texture, which creates big problems when working with foamiran. It is almost impossible to get a clear and high-quality impression with a silicone veiner. But they are well suited for the confectionery business, since they meet all safety requirements.

• Plastic. Solid molds, molded from polymeric materials. They are characterized by a rough texture and relief, since it is more difficult to get a clear print on a plastic material. These molds are a versatile solution, well suited to work with materials of different thicknesses. Plastic molds are produced in various size ranges, most often the base is transparent or matt acrylic, polyurethane.

• Ceramic. They are single-sided and double-sided, characterized by ease of use and high-definition prints. However, due to excessive pressure on the material, it can easily tear and deform. This creates certain difficulties when working with thin foamiran.

At home, industrial molds are often replaced by man-made ones. They are cast from sealants, epoxy resin or polymer clay to form a finished mold with the desired print pattern.

It is quite simple to use molds for foamiran. In the manufacture of flowers, acrylic polymer forms of the one-sided type are most often used - it is easy and convenient to work with them. In this case, the procedure is always the same.

• The workpiece heats up on the soleplate of the iron. Its dimensions should be slightly larger than the planned print.
• The heated foamiran is embedded in the mold.
• It is pressed with fingers for a few seconds over the entire area of ​​the embossed impression.
• After cooling, the workpiece is cut out. The embossed petal is ready to use.

For leaves, a double-sided ceramic mold is most often used, since the material is always thicker here, it is not so easy to get a clear impression on it. The heated foamiran sheet is inserted into the stencil, covered with the second part and pressed. With this approach, the impression is immediately clear and embossed.

At home, foamiran molds are often cast from gypsum or made from improvised materials - sealant, floral sponge. For work, a much more convenient solution is forms based on polymer clay. To make them yourself, it is enough to follow the recommendations of a simple step-by-step master class.

1. Prepare materials. You will need fresh and plastic polymer clay and a leaf of the plant that will be copied (good: rose hips, blackberries, begonia, grapes). In addition, a rolling pin and a stationery knife, as well as large-format ceramic tiles or caramogranite as a working surface, a baking sheet, and a sharp needle, will come in handy.
2. The clay is rolled out on a prepared substrate. A fairly thick layer of material (3-5 mm) will be required so that the form can withstand the load during further use.
3. A sheet is applied to the surface of the clay blank and pressed tightly. To improve the quality of the print, ironing it with a rolling pin over the natural stencil will help.
4. The sheet is pushed off with a needle, carefully removed from the mold.
5. A prototype of the future mold is cut out of polymer clay along the resulting contour. A clerical knife is used, you can replace it with a razor blade.
6. The workpiece is placed on a baking sheet and baked in the oven. The duration of exposure depends solely on the type of material used. It is better to clarify it in the instructions for the polymer clay that is used. The finished print must be cooled.
7. A second layer of clay of the same thickness is rolled out.The "negative" moistened with water is laid on top of it with the embossed side, pressed in and ironed with a rolling pin. Upon completion of the procedure, the stencil is removed. Excess polymer clay is cut from the workpiece.
8. The resulting mold remains only to bake in the oven and cool. A blank for creating relief products from foamiran can be used for its intended purpose.

If there is no polymer clay, but a silicone sealant is available, it is easy to create the desired shape using it. You will need the simplest set of materials: the sealant itself in the package, a mini-spatula, transparent polyethylene (it is better to take the one that is used in the sheets for stationery folders), natural material as a stencil, a sheet of paper and scissors.

The order of creating a mold in this case will look like this.

1. Attach the sheet from which the print is made to A4 paper. Circle it.
2. A transparent polyethylene sheet is applied to the pattern.
3. The silicone sealant is squeezed out into a small cuvette, gently transferred with a spatula to the surface of the stencil so that its edges do not protrude beyond the outlined silhouette.
4. When everything is ready, the surface of the print sheet is oiled and placed on silicone.
5. The sealant structure dries from 48 to 96 hours. More precise terms are specified on the package.
6. After complete hardening of the material with a needle, remove the sheet from the mold.

You can finally shape the product with scissors.

All fans of foam floristry know what can be used to replace molds for foamiran. The simplest solution is to manually create the relief using a needle or toothpick. This is a laborious process, especially when creating a large number of petals. To simplify the work, similarities of simple molds are created. But there are even more interesting solutions. For example, using a floral sponge or passing petals in two layers of corrugated paper through a paste machine.

Any of these methods quite successfully leaves impressions on the surface of foamiran sheets. But at a relatively low cost and a long service life of forms, craftsmen most often use finished ceramic or plastic products.

For how to make molds for foamiran with your own hands, see the next video.