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Using Water Soluble Paper on Clay
Water soluble paper is a fantastic tool for transferring detailed designs, images, logos, and text onto clay surfaces. Whether you're creating pottery, ceramic ornaments, jewelry, or decorative pieces, water soluble paper makes it easy to apply intricate artwork without hand-drawing every detail. In this guide, you'll learn what water soluble paper is, how to use it on clay, and where to buy high-quality sheets.
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Harmonee
10/29/20262 min read
Find high-quality custom water soluble paper transfers for ceramics, pottery, embroidery, and mixed media at Create Harmonee. Each transfer is custom made using the design, artwork, logo, or pattern of your choice, allowing you to create truly unique pieces with detailed, professional-looking results. Whether you're decorating clay, personalizing handmade gifts, or adding intricate designs to your craft projects, Create Harmonee makes it easy to bring your ideas to life.
What Is Water Soluble Paper?
Water soluble paper is a specialty paper that completely dissolves in water, leaving no fibers behind. It allows artists and ceramicists to easily transfer intricate line art, logos, text, and patterns onto leather-hard clay, pottery, mugs, tiles, and ornaments.
This innovative material works by holding printed or drawn designs using standard inks, underglazes, or oxide slips. Once the paper is pressed onto damp clay and moistened, the cellulose fibers liquefy and wash away, leaving only the pigment directly on the clay surface. This eliminates the need for tedious hand-tracing, making it a game-changer for batch production and highly detailed work.
How to Use Water Soluble Paper on Clay
Leaves zero residue: Dissolves away cleanly with plain water, leaving no leftover paper fibers, sticky film, or mess behind on your clay.
Perfect for fine details and curved surfaces: Conforms smoothly to rounded shapes like mugs, bowls, and beads, crisping up tiny lettering, delicate line art, and intricate graphics that are difficult to render by hand.
Faster than hand-drawing repeat designs: Speeds up production for studio collections, sets, or shop inventory by letting you quickly transfer identical, high-precision patterns onto multiple pieces.
Versatile across mediums: Works seamlessly with various decorative techniques—whether you're pairing it with underglazes, oxide washes, or using it as a precise carving guide.
Foolproof positioning: Allows you to adjust and align your placement accurately on leather-hard or greenware clay before applying moisture, reducing mistakes and wasted materials.
Why use it?
Print/Draw: Print your design onto the paper (mirroring text/logos if needed).
Trim & Position: Cut around the artwork and press the printed side directly onto the clay surface, smoothing out air bubbles.
Moisten & Dissolve: Lightly wet the back of the paper with a damp sponge. Gently rub away the dissolving paper with your fingers or sponge until only the image remains.
Finish: Let the clay dry completely before carving, underglazing, or bisque firing as usual.