If you’ve been inspired to start working with polymer clay, you can save yourself a lot of time and frustration by ensuring you have these 10 essential polymer clay tools in your toolkit.
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I fell in love with polymer clay in August 2023. Earlier that year I started seeing videos of polymer clay artists on TikTok and YouTube. I was desperate to try it for myself. But I kept putting it off.
You know when you find a craft that looks interesting and ask yourself, “do I really need another hobby/project?” That’s what I was telling myself. So I resisted for several months.
And then, on a whim, I bought a multi-pack of Fimo clay. It was a good price (under $20), and it came with 12 colors of clay. The individual color packages were small but I thought it seemed like a good chance to jump on the bandwagon. Or, at least, see for myself whether I’d even like the bandwagon.
And you know what? I loved it!
Like all my hobbies, sometimes I go weeks without touching my ever-growing clay collection, and sometimes that’s all I want to work on for days at a time. But I love having it, and I love the creative outlet it has become for me.
If you stumbled across this post by accident, and don’t know what I’m talking about, let’s talk a little bit about polymer clay before we get to the list of must-have polymer clay tools. (Or keep scrolling if you already know everything you need to know and you’re ready to dive in!)
What is polymer clay?
Polymer clay is a type of modeling clay that can be baked in the oven to harden it. It is made from a plastic polymer base called polyvinyl chloride (PVC). Once hardened, polymer clay is far stronger and more durable than other types of naturally occurring clays.
What can I make with polymer clay?
Pretty much anything you can think of! Many artists use polymer clay to make beads, pendants, and other pieces of jewelry. You can use it to make magnets*, miniatures, bookmarks, pencil toppers, and more! I love making mini cakes, tea sets, and cookies out of polymer clay.
*Polymer clay itself is not magnetic. You can make the front part of the magnet, and then you’ll need to glue a magnet to the back.
Where do I get polymer clay?
You can get it almost anywhere you can buy craft supplies! I get my clay at Michaels, but you can also get it at Hobby Lobby, Amazon, and more! Dollar Tree even has a line of polymer clay out now, although I’ve never used it and have no idea what the quality is like. (It could be amazing! It doesn’t hurt to try it out!)
What kind of polymer clay should I get?
There are so many brands, it’s hard to know what to choose! The type you’ll want depends on what you’re making. As a general rule, I always buy Sculpey premo clay, because it works well for the miniatures that I make. Fimo is another good brand that I worked with a little bit when I started.
Michaels has their own brand of polymer clay (Craft Smart) which I didn’t personally enjoy working with, but some people love.
If you’re just getting started, I recommend buying a few different types and working with them to see which ones best suit your needs.
How do I cure polymer clay?
By baking it in the oven! Every package of clay will come with instructions on how to cure that particular clay. Different brands, and different lines between brands, bake at different temperatures and times. If you’re mixing more than one clay and they have different bake times, bake it for the higher temperature and the higher amount of time.
Polymer clay is difficult to burn, provided you bake it at the temperature that the package specifies.
Tip Learned from Personal Experience: Don’t bake your beautiful creations on a cookie sheet with nothing between it and the metal. The bottom of your clay project will get brown/discolored. Instead, bake your clay on a piece of parchment paper, a ceramic tile, or a make-and-bake mat. You can also bake it on a bed of cornstarch.
So now that you know a little bit about polymer clay and what you can do with it, let’s get on to some of the essential tools and supplies you’ll want.
10 Polymer Clay Tools Every Artist Needs in Their Toolkit
01. Polymer Clay Rolling Machine
If you’ve watched videos on TikTok or YouTube showing how clay artists make their pieces, you’ll undoubtedly have seen the clay rolling machine. (Which is basically just a pasta roller!) I had no idea until I got one what a game-changer it is! If you intend to work with clay on an even semi-regular basis, I can’t recommend a clay rolling machine enough. You won’t regret it!
02. Sculpey Clay Softener
You often don’t need a whole package of clay for any particular project—at least I’ve found that to be the case for myself! Although I store my leftover clay in sealed containers, sometimes the clay still gets hard. (And sometimes it’s tough to work with right out of the package!) This Sculpey clay softener has been a life-saver on more than one occasion. It’s great to have, just in case you need it!
03. White Ceramic Tiles
This might seem odd to have on this list, but hear me out. Working with your clay on these tiles is amazing—the clay doesn’t stick, and you can bake your projects right on the tile. They’ll pop right off without any trouble when they’re done baking! You can get a Sculpey make-and-bake mat that does the same thing, but ceramic tiles are so much cheaper, particularly if you want more than one to work on!
04. Polymer Clay Cutting Blades
Having a variety of blades makes getting the edges you want so much easier. While you can use knives to cut your clay, I don’t recommend using any knives you also use for food. This is another one of those things that you don’t realize you need until you need it. And a pack like this, with a variety of cutting edges, is absolutely worth getting.
05. Polymer Clay Circle Punch Cutters
This is another thing that I didn’t realize I’d use as much as I do. I love these little cutters. If you intend to make jewelry with your polymer clay, the littlest cutters are great for putting holes in your piece before you bake it.
06. Sculpey Oven Bake Adhesive
While you generally don’t need clay adhesive, like when you’re attaching two unbaked pieces, you’ll regret not having this amongst your clay supplies. When I’m making tiny pieces, it sometimes helps to bake parts individually and then use oven-bake clay adhesive to attach them and re-bake. I don’t have to worry about squishing any of the tiny pieces I’ve worked so hard to create. If you also make tiny things, you might find this method works great for you too!
07. Cutters in Basic Shapes
Did you know you can use cookie cutters as clay cutters? They’re more or less the same thing! (Although as I mentioned earlier, I don’t recommend using tools on clay that you’re also using on food!) Specialty “clay cutters” can be pricey, but if you’re just looking for basic shapes, go with mini cookie cutters!
08. Basic Clay Sculpting Tools
This is another collection that I didn’t realize I needed until I got it. It changed the game for me, allowing me to work with clay in a new way. These tools make it easier to add small details like lines and folds, along with adding pieces like eyes. I have this set, and while I don’t use all of the pieces in it, I do use most of them.
09. Corn Starch
Corn starch? Seems odd. But it’s not! Corn starch is great for keeping your cutters from sticking to your clay. You can also bake your pieces in/on cornstarch to keep them from rolling or burning.
10. Isopropyl Alcohol
This is another one that might seem like an odd choice, but hear me out! Isopropyl alcohol is great for cleaning up polymer clay. If you’ve ever tried to use soap and water to clean up clay stuck to your table, your tools, or your hands if you’ve applied too much clay thinner, you’ll know that’s no easy task. Isopropyl alcohol will break it down and make it so much easier to clean up. You’ll thank me later!
What are your must-have polymer clay tools?
You can get all of these polymer clay tools on Amazon, but you can also get many of them at your local craft store. Michaels, Hobby Lobby, and sometimes even Walmart and Dollar Tree!
There are, of course, other things you might want if you’re serious about working with polymer clay. Depending on what you want to make, you may want a variety of cutters, stamps, and rollers.
I’ve found that specialized clay cutters are incredibly difficult to find in stores. I’ve had to resort to getting the ones that I want 3D printed. (I’m lucky that my local library has a 3D printer that patrons can use for free!) My favorite place for 3D print files for clay cutters is either CraftuniCutters on Etsy or Creative Fabrica.
There are other supplies you might want, depending on where you are in your clay journey. These include but are not limited to, liquid polymer clay like this liquid Sculpey, clear clay rollers and acrylic base, and soft pastels that you can grate and mix into your liquid clay or brush onto the surface of clay with a paintbrush.
I’d love to see your polymer clay creations. Use the hashtags #theserialcreative #polymerclayDIY #polymerclaycrafts #polymerclaytools so I can admire your art.
Looking for more projects? Check out my archive of free resources for all sorts of patterns and tutorials!
As always, happy making!
