What is the best polymer clay for earrings?

As the arts and crafts industry becomes popular because of the Covid19 pandemic, a variety of different brands of polymer clay were listed on the market. You may be wondering if what is the best polymer clay can I use for jewelry and earrings? If so, you are not alone! Many people are asking the same question. Just keep on reading and let us find the answer.

Polymer clay is a modeling clay based on polymer polyvinyl chloride (PVC). Because it is versatile, flexible, and can be baked in a regular oven, artists love using it, especially in jewelry making.

There is no one brand of polymer clay that is best. Rather, the best polymer clay is the one that has qualities well-suited to your specific project. There are many brands and types of polymer clay, and each has its own strengths and weaknesses.

Some are stronger, some are more flexible, some are softer and easier to manipulate. When you consider these qualities, you can see how types of clay are well-suited for jewelry making, while other types are better for sculpting or kid’s crafts. In making polymer earrings, choose a brand of polymer clay that has flexibility, strength, and is easy to work with.

What Is The Strongest Polymer Clay?

Kato Polyclay is a polymer clay that is one of the strongest on the market. If you need something to be stiff after baking, this clay is the one to choose. It is also wonderful for very finely detailed sculpting.

Donna Kato developed and marketed a brand of polymer clay called Kato Polyclay. It comes in 2-ounce blocks and large 12.5-ounce bricks and comes in a range of bright colors, neutrals, and metallic. The colors of Kato Polyclay are designed to be close to the artist’s primaries, so you can readily mix any color that you would need.

Kato clay has a reputation for being difficult to condition and stiff to work with, but it’s arguably the best polymer clay brand for caning. The colors remain crisp and well defined, the clay is not at all sticky, and is easy to re-position during the caning, too. The unbaked clay has a waxy and plastic feeling to it, and the baked clay has a slight sheen.

What Polymer Clay Should I Buy For Earrings?

A lot of time we choose the best polymer clay based on our preference. However, when it comes to the best polymer clay for earrings and other jewelry, the weight of the earring itself is a factor. You don’t want one which is too hard and will break if it’s dropped, nor do you want one that is too soft and will not hold up to wear. It needs a bit.

Although various clays are on the market, this question boils down to FIMO vs Sculpey? Although FIMO seems to be firmer and a lot of people like the number of details you can put in it, you can put a large amount of detail into Sculpey as well.

Sculpey has a larger range of colors and ‘Accents’ available. FIMO has all the primary colors available to mix together and a decent range of ‘Effects’. In strength after baking, FIMO seems to be stronger and more durable in tests. But testing hardened clay and wearing it are two different things.

As I mentioned, this is down to personal preference. I would say Sculpey Primo and Accents range would take the top spot on this list. And that’s down to the number of colors which are readily available for this product. It’s strong enough for its intended purposes, and in this case, that would be earrings or jewelry. I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve knocked a baked piece off a table onto a hard floor and not even had a scratch on it.

Not only this but rather than spending time mixing up colors, I get to just craft with the clay itself.

FIMO Professional and Effects clays are a close second. Sculpey, in my view, takes the top spot, but FIMO is a very close second. I find that if I need a wafer-thin piece of clay, FIMO seems to be a lot more resilient. Occasionally I do mix the clays up a bit and have a part Sculpey part FIMO.

Both have a baking temperature of 130’C and a baking time of around 15 – 30 minutes. Both can be used effectively for jewelry of all kinds. And in the end, you can mix them together and have the best of both worlds!

Which Polymer Clay Is Best For Jewelry?

Premo Sculpey polymer clay is a favorite molding compound in the jewelry-making industry, especially for sculpting. Incredibly soft and supple, you won’t find an easier clay to work with than Premo Sculpey for all your creative endeavors. Manufactured in the United States by Polyform Products Company, Premo Sculpey polymer clay is non – toxic and comprised of polyvinyl chloride polymers, plasticizers, coloring agents, and fillers. When properly stored, the shelf life of Premo Sculpey clay is quite long, lasting up to a few years.

After conditioning Premo Polymer clay, you can mix colors and techniques while expertly displaying delicate details. A huge assortment of rich pigments creates a vivid color palette including rainbow brights, saturated neutrals, translucent, metallic, and even pearlescent effects. All Premo Sculpey colors can be blended for the color mixture of your choice too, even including other types of clays; just make sure to blend it thoroughly.

Because Premo Sculpey colors have heavy pigments, there is a chance of color “bleeding” on your hands while working. Simply clean hands with a baby wipe when switching to the next color and keep tools, such as your pasta machine, clean between color changes. When working with multiple colors of clay, it’s always a good idea to work from light to dark.

Premo Sculpey clay retains flexibility after curing, ensuring a strong adhesion, and added durability to designs. Because of this resilience, Premo Sculpey is a favorite material for a huge list of applications including jewelry, home décor, scrapbooking, recreating semiprecious stones, sculpting, and more. Because the colors are so intense, techniques including millefiori, caning, mica shift, mokume gane and others can be reduced to tiny proportions while maintaining vibrancy and precision.

Premo! polymer clay is not an air-dry clay, and you can extend your working time. Once a piece is ready to cure, follow the manufacturer’s instructions and bake finished pieces in a craft oven (not a microwave) at 275° F (130° C) for 30 minutes per 1/4 inch, or 6mm, thickness. After baking, colors may appear to become even more saturated, but the colors won’t shift or lighten, so you know your piece will come out exactly how you want.