{"id":2982,"date":"2019-05-01T15:40:38","date_gmt":"2019-05-01T14:40:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/silverclayschool.co.uk\/?p=2982"},"modified":"2020-12-18T16:17:06","modified_gmt":"2020-12-18T16:17:06","slug":"5-top-tips-for-a-high-shine-polish","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/silverclayschool.co.uk\/newsite\/5-top-tips-for-a-high-shine-polish\/","title":{"rendered":"5 Top Tips for a high shine polish"},"content":{"rendered":"

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How to achieve a high shine polish by hand on Silver Clay<\/span><\/h1>\n

I am often asked by my students how to achieve a high shine polish on a piece of silver clay. Now for many people, it comes as a surprise that a mirror finish is possible on a piece of silver clay, but it is.<\/p>\n

And for the people who want to achieve this or want to achieve a better finish on their silver clay work,\u00a0 I have some tips for you and you can have a look at the wee video I made to accompany this blog too. Watch it here.<\/span><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

Tip 1. Clean your work area thoroughly<\/span><\/h3>\n

\"Clean<\/a>Now I know that this might sound really obvious \u2013 but do you do it? I have to be honest and say that I don\u2019t always clean the work mats I use \u2013 at least not every time I sit down to work. But I do clean up regularly and there\u2019s a good reason for this. When you sand, carve and work with silver clay there is often a lot of dust and particles that lodge on your work area. And quite often, it\u2019s not very noticeable. However, if you are looking for a really good finish on your work and don\u2019t clean the work area, these little particles can easily be transferred to your clay before you start moulding, cutting or texturing.
I use baby wipes and dry off with some kitchen roll afterwards.<\/p>\n

Tip 2. Clean your tools regularly<\/span><\/h3>\n

As with Tip 1 \u2013 the same can be said for your tools \u2013 especially your roller and slats and anything else that you might lay your clay onto \u2013 such as textures and shape templates.<\/p>\n

Tip 3. Use fresh clay whenever possible<\/span><\/h3>\n

Fresh clay is the easiest to get a high polish on. It\u2019s in better condition and it\u2019s cleaner. That\u2019s not to say that it\u2019s not possible to get a high shine polish on reconstituted clay because it is, I\u2019ve done it. I\u2019m just saying that it\u2019s a lot easier and quicker (especially for the newbie) to get a high polish on a piece of clay that\u2019s straight out of the packet.<\/p>\n

Tip 4. Work through the grits<\/span><\/h3>\n

\"Work<\/a>Getting a shine on any piece of silver clay (or metal for that matter) is a matter of patience. You need to start with the coarsest sandpaper and work through the grits until you get to the finest. I use sanding pads and polishing papers, both made by 3M if I decide to manually polish something. The principles are the same for polishing with a rotary tool.<\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0I\u2019d recommend getting some 3M sanding sponges in:<\/p>\n