In recent years, the use of polymer clay has become popular, especially to create handmade earrings. This material is very versatile and easy to work with, but it requires having a minimum of essential tools to obtain good results.
In this article you will find a list of the 8 essential tools to get started with polymer clay, including links in case you want to get started.
1. Roller
Working the clay well is essential to obtain good results. If you are just starting out, you don't need to invest in a pasta machine, an acrylic roller will be enough.
2. Blades
The flexible blades will be used both to lift the piece from the work base and to cut the clay. There are different sizes, depending on the size of planks you make, one or the other will be better for you, although I recommend that it be long.
3. Work base
Like the roller, a good work base is essential to be able to condition the clay well. The base cannot be porous, therefore we discard all types of wooden bases. Ideally, it should be ceramic or glass. But another inexpensive option to start with is an acrylic sheet. In this link I leave you the base that I use (which is actually a board for cutting food)
For these first three tools I leave you a polymer clay kit that will be very useful to get started. It includes blades of different sizes and shapes, a roller and a small work base.
4. Guides
If you want your pieces to come out uniform and of the same thickness, some guides will be your best allies until you decide to buy a mixer. My way of doing it is a little cheesy, but effective! I use polo sticks, and depending on whether I want it thicker or thinner, I add more or less. Here I leave you a link so you can see what I'm talking about.
5. Sandpaper
Sanding the pieces will make the result much more polished and professional. You don't need to buy an electric one with a lot of accessories to start with. Sandpaper sheets will be enough to start practicing.
6. Oven
This material hardens in the oven, so of course this tool is essential to be able to work. You can use both a conventional kitchen oven and electric tabletop ovens.
7. Cutters
There is the option of designing your accessories freehand, but some cutters will make your work much easier. Nowadays there are many shapes, colors and sizes of cutters, but to start mastering clay I recommend basic shapes like these .
8. Polymer clay
And of course, our beloved clay. There are several brands such as Cernit, Sculpley or Fimo. I personally use the latter (in the soft version, which is softer to shape). There are many stores that sell clay, at first I started with packs of Fimo that I found on Amazon. But you also have smaller stores like Irexartesanía , Umami Clay or Cala Tools that sell polymer clay among other tools.
Bonus: Gloves
Working the clay with your hands can cause it to become impregnated with specks of dust, which, once baked, are very difficult to remove. It is also a good way to avoid fingerprints on our pieces. I leave you the link to a pack of gloves .
I hope this article has been useful to you. Good luck with your project!