Mica Shift Colors to Dye For

These are some new floral buttons in rich sorbet colors I made using the mica shift technique with Kato clay and alcohol inks.  They were made for a special order to fill for one of the local stores that sell our beads and buttons.   In case you are wondering, mica shift is an amazing technique that creates a three dimensional affect in a smooth or flat piece of clay by manipulating the mica particles.

I first mixed in different inks with small amounts of pearl clay for samples and then baked the sample chips and attached them to cards.  I recommend doing this first as some of the inks can change their color drastically after mixed in with the clay or you might end up with a batch of clay in a color you might not like.

I wanted to be able to use my new clay colors for a mica shift to make the floral buttons so I measured out 3 parts of Kato pearl clay and 1 part Kato transluscent.  I laid out my clay squares and put several drops of ink onto each square and spread the ink all over with a metal spatula so it would dry quicker.

Just for a measurement comparison, my clay squares were 2" and I used about 7 drops of ink per square.


I allowed the inks to dry completely before mixing in.  I then created my flowers from the dyed clay.  You can see how this mixture made an excellent mica shift.