Clay Stamp Design Ideas – Soil stamping is a relatively simple process, but there are some factors that contribute to its success or failure.
First of all, you need to consider the goal. The clay is usually stamped to get a design on the part to be stamped (eg a logo stamp), but can also be stamped over the entire wall to give variation on the other side (eg a chicken eye/socket design). These two goals are completely different.
Clay Stamp Design Ideas
The next problem is soil strength. This dramatically changes the deformability of the clay as well as the clarity of the stamped design. Different levels of dryness will produce completely different printed results (to be precise).
Celtic Symbol & Knot Stamps
A related point is the thickness of the soil. This changes the behavior of the soil and changes the results, especially if the soil is unsupported.
Then the size and shape of the design to be stamped as well as the material the stamp is made of.
A logo/maker’s mark is probably the most common type of clay stamp, but the concepts are very similar for any example where the goal is to get the actual design on the side being stamped.
Typically, this comes behind a stamped face with minimal/no distortion. The amount of deformation depends on the thickness and dryness of the soil, as well as whether the soil is supported or not.
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There is an acceptable range of clay dryness to produce a clean and crisp stamp. Too soft and the seal will be deep, but the edges will be dirty and the tool may stick. Too dry and the stamp has barely any visible depth (but with very crisp edges). I stamp my logo after I cut it, but unlike other potters, I cut from dry clay. If you want to cut earlier, you may have to do both processes at different times to allow the clay to harden before stamping.
Fine clay will naturally deform under the same pressure. This means that better stamps can be obtained from thicker clays with less design depth and overall distortion. Alternatively, the back support allows deep stamping into fine soil without much distortion. This means that you can get a good quality stamp on the opposite side of the bat face (such as the underside or the inside of the bowl).
This distortion can be a real problem for the clarity of the stamped design, as the already smooth surface will bend from the stamp, leaving a sharper mark area in the center than at the edges.
The design and size of the logo stamp is important. The larger the surface area to be stamped, the more difficult it is to achieve a good impression without distortion. Surface area is a product of both design and scale. These two factors are important when designing a logo stamp, as a logo stamp does not have to contain your entire logo. The design can be simplified, reduced or altered to increase its effectiveness as a stamp.
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To preserve all the details of the stamp, the clay must resist distortion in the area surrounding the stamp, including the negative space like the inverted example above. This is facilitated by a smaller stamping surface and more space between elements. Each point of stamping exerts pressure on the surrounding soil, which can be thought of as applying a Gaussian blur effect. The pressure is transferred from the hollow area to the soil around it:
The stamping process is also important. If you’re stamping on a support piece of clay (such as a coaster over a bat), you can simply press harder and it will probably work just fine. Stamp pressure is applied evenly over the entire surface and the soil beneath the stamp area is pushed out of the way.
If you are stamping an unsupported soil wall, things get a little more complicated. The clay directly below the stamp area (except for stamped designs) tends to come out of the way and bend the wall as a whole. The balance of the two depends on wall thickness, soil dryness, stamp design, and stamping process. You want to concentrate the pressure on a small area of the stamp to minimize the overall amount of distortion and also to get better definition of the stamped parts. This can be done by stamping from a slight angle and moving the pressure, rather than going straight down and applying even pressure. However, be careful not to allow the seal to move while doing this!
On the other side of the clay wall is a similar list of stamping ideas for variation, some of which are similar but need to be done in a different way for them to work effectively.
Leave A Lasting Impression
Clay is more plastic (can deform) when wet. If you try to bend clay that is too dry, cracks will form on the outside of the bend, and it won’t spread enough. This won’t happen if you bend soft clay. We need to make the overturned surface of the soil soft enough to bend without creating cracks.
However, the softer the soil, the more likely the entire wall will deform rather than compact the area. If the clay is soft, the stamp will stick to the surface.
This means that we prefer a gradation of dryness where the outside is drier than the inside. The good news is that this can easily be done by drying the pieces upside down, as the outside is able to dry while the inside retains moisture and stays soft. If necessary, you can spray water on the inner wall before applying the sealant to soften it.
Obviously, we don’t want to support the clay on the other side of the die with this process, but supporting the edge of the part helps keep the overall shape the same while allowing the wall to deform. I flipped my pieces onto a soft fabric surface (an old t-shirt) and pressed them down firmly as I covered the wall. This supports the frame and helps minimize the overall distortion.
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The overall shape of the wall helps determine how much the wall will deform, a convex convex shape creates a natural arch and provides significantly greater strength than a flat sided shape.
Here it is less important. I use a pebble sander for the pebble pieces and a rotary sander for the peacock eye pieces, but really you can do it with whatever you want. Round shapes have fewer problems with deep stamping, where shapes with sharp edges can put more pressure on the clay.
It’s similar to stamping a logo, but more so. You want to concentrate the pressure on a small area and move the stamper to gently bend the clay. Stamping slowly and with less pressure gives much better results, and stamping too fast will cause the entire wall of the part to bend.
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