How long do I bake molding clay>?

First, I assume you're using a "polymer clay" since you're pretty sure it *needs* to be baked to harden it. There are lots of kinds of clay and "modeling clay," etc, but most of them are "air-dry" clays, not polymer clays, so I was concerned when you said "regular" clay. Also "modeling clay" often refers to the kid's heavy clay stuff sometimes called plasticine that never dries and cannot be baked--it'll melt.

If the clay you have is called Makins, Crayola, Model Magic, etc., though, it's an air-dry clay and doesn't need to be baked... it will just dry out (and shrink a bit) overnight or so, depending on its thickness.

Knowing the *brand* of polymer clay would be very helpful though! The most common brands of pre-colored polymer clay in the US are Fimo (Soft and Classic), Premo, Sculpey III, Kato Polyclay, and Cernit.

The curing temperature for those can vary depending on the brand and line you have, but you can always use a lower temperature then bake longer than normal. Polymer clay needs to "polymerize" or harden all the way to the center if you want the baked pieces to last.

So I'd say if you don't know which brand you have (and how old it is, which can matter because the formulas have recently changed for many of the brands), you can just bake at 250-265 F for about 15-20 minutes per quarter-inch of thickness (at the thickest area)... 30 minutes will usually be sufficient though if the temp is correct** and the item isn't too big. If the clay is pretty thin, stick with the lesser time if you're using Sculpey III.

Bake in a preheated oven, on a sheet of paper or a tissue which is sitting on a metal baking tray or in a glass baking dish, for example --the paper will keep the clay from developing a shiny spot any place it touched the smooth metal/glass.

**you really should use an oven thermometer though since many ovens don't heat to the temp you set on the dial... and polymer clays can darken, scorch or burn if they're baked hotter than required (you can buy a cheapie one at any grocery store for about $5-6)

There is LOADS of information about baking polymer clays (including the various brands and lines) on the Baking page of my polymer clay "encyclopedia" website though:

http://glassattic.com/polymer/baking.htm

As for the tie-dye shirts, are you wanting to make small, cutout shapes of clay where several colors have been "marbled" together, etc. to simulate tie-dye? ...like this perhaps:

http://family.go.com/entertainment/craft-ff-25307-...

Or are you wanting to make 3-D versions of tie-dye shirts?

If you're interested in making the cutout type and you have a shape-cutter of some kind or can make one, or just want to free cut with a blade or pin, you might want to check out this page at my site that deals with using (and making) cutters, purchased cutters, and using blades or pins instead for "free-cutting" sheets of clay:

http://glassattic.com/polymer/cutters-blades.htm

Lots of colors can be mixed from at least 2 other colors of polymer clay, if you didn't know that. For the "rules" of mixing and for recipes for various colors, check out this page at my site too:

http://glassattic.com/polymer/color.htm

...click on Individual Colors, under Recipes & Combos

There's also a category on the page called *Marbling* that you might be interested in.

Oh, and P.S.... this is the page at my site specifically for Kids & Beginners (it covers a lot of different kinds of techniques can polymer clay can use):

http://glassattic.com/polymer/kids_beginners.htm

HTH, and have fun,

Diane B.

Baking Clay

Molding Clay

well you are just going to have to keep your eye on it.. bake it at about 350, and i would check on it every 5 minutes.. if it came with no instructions you are just kind of out of luck, the only thing i found for you is this "Baking often for shorter periods works well. I will bake a something that is 1/4 thick for 30 min. Then I paint the details and bake it again. You can bake something many times without burning it as long as you let it cool between bakings."

what kind of clay is it?