What is Polymer Clay?

November 23, 2014

I have just ordered some supplies online in order to get started on polymer clay making. Now, I am just  hoping that they arrive quickly! Here is the list of some of the things I have purchased:

Polymer Clay Supply List

1. Polymer Clay: To begin with,  polymer clay is obviously needed. Polymer clay can be found in most art stores and the prices vary depending on the area you live in. Polymer clay can also be bought online (Amazon, eBay, online polymer clay sites, etc) which is what I did. Some popular brands of polymer clay include Sculpey, Fimo and Premo.

I purchased some red, yellow and blue clay for myself as I thought that these colors were the most basic to start with. Since these are primary colors, I can easily mix them together in order to obtain other colors that I might need later on. I also bought some brown, white, translucent and black clay as these are some necessary colors. In addition, I also purchased the Polyform Sculpey III Clay Molds Bright which consisted of 12 different polymer clay colors. If you need more colors later on, you can always purchase more and you can always test different brands to find out which ones you prefer.

2. Tools: Some tools are needed so that you can cut pieces of clay and to give texture to your clay creations so they seem more realistic. A blade is needed to cut the clay but you must be careful as blades are sharp.Texture tools aren't necessarily needed as you can always experiment with things you have at home. For instance, if you wrinkle aluminum foil, it can be used to texture the clay and bottle caps can also be used to cut a circular shape.

Some polymer clay tools

I simply bought a art tool set that contained blades for cutting and some other tools to create texture in my creations.

3. Glaze: After you finish baking some polymer clay, you might want to add some glaze to make your creation shinier. This is not exactly necessary but it does give the finished product a better look. The glaze does not actually protect the clay but it just simply makes the clay shinier.  

4. Paint brushes: Paint brushes can have many different jobs as it can be used to texture clay, add details to your creation and more. If you want to paint something on your creation, this is where paintbrushes come in handy. In addition, paint brushes can be used to put on an even coating of glaze on your creations.

5. Paint: I purchased some acrylic paint in order to paint details onto my creations. Once again, this isn't really necessary.

Additional Supplies

1. Work Surface: A clean work surface will be needed where you will feel comfortable while making your clay creations. This can from a table to a tile (polymer clay will not destroy, ruin or stain a tile). If you want, you can use wax paper in order to protect the surface you are working on as the clay can sometimes stain the your work surface.

2. Oven: A toaster oven will be needed to bake your creations as polymer clay does not air dry. As long as you don't bake it, polymer clay will not harden which is why an oven is needed.

Some Supplies You Might Want to Purchase

Basically, these are the supplies that I did not buy but you might want to.

1. Cookie cutters: Cookie cutters can be helpful when you need a round shape or when you want your clay to be a specific shape.

2. Rolling Pin or Pasta Machine: Rolling pins and pasta machines are not needed but simply help with turning the clay into the correct level of thickness in which you want it in.

3. Liquid Clay: Liquid polymer clay is good to use for making things like icing or sticking things together. Liquid clay can be used as a clay softener and is basically a bake-able glue.

This is just a picture some polymer clay and tools.