Learn!

Resources for learning how to make things with polymer clay, plus information about the history and prominent figures in the medium.

Things I will eventually be adding to this page:

Links to polymer clay blogs
Links to useful YouTube Channels and specific tutorials
Information about preferred tools, brands, and their best uses, as well as a link to places to explore more information about that topic
Information about prominent artists
Who knows what else! I'm just gonna add stuff as it becomes relevant.

Getting Started

With all the information out there about clay, it's easy to get overwhelmed and feel like you need to have ALL THE TOOLS that clayers are using on their social media pages. Good news: you don't! You can get by with the basics for most techniques. Plus, there's probably plenty of items around your home just dying to be turned into tools. I try to mention a few ideas for that here!
Here's what I would start with if I was beginning now!

Polymer Clay: 2oz each of red, yellow, blue, black, and white. Preferred brands: Sculpey Premo or FIMO Professional for their consistent results, firmness, and longterm durability. Both of these lines can be used for making canes or sculpting, and show great durability compared to other options. If you don't want to try mixing your own colors yet, you can get sample packs of either of these brands. However, you get more bang for your buck if you grab the larger sizes down the line. I usually mix my colors from primaries, but there are some colors that are easier to buy pre-made because I love them the way they are (like "Wasabi" from Sculpey).

Work surface: Preferred: A smooth glass cutting board or a ceramic tile. I recommend avoiding plastic, wood, or other surfaces because clay can degrade on them or stain them! Additionally, cardboard or paper can leach the oil and plasticizer from clay, making it crumbly and brittle.

Storage container: Something you can put clay in! I use plastic bead storage tubs from a craft store for my canes, but I put parchment or wax paper on the bottom so that the plastic doesn't react with my canes. When I first started, I used a plastic takeout container! It just needs to be clean and keep dust out.

Knife: Preferred: Tissue blade - a thin, flexible blade with a very sharp edge! Makes cutting canes easy. These can be hard to find at craft stores, so I order mine online. In the meantime, a sharp chef's knife or paring knife, or an X-acto or box cutter can work just fine. If you want more precision, you can always order a tissue blade later.

Roller: Preferred: Acrylic cylinder roller. When I started out, I used a wooden kitchen roller, but these can pick up a lot of clay so I would recommend something else. A sturdy glass jar can work well if you're careful. Basically anything round and rollable will work, so be creative if you don't want to spend any extra money!

Here's what I would save for later (or maybe not get at all):

Clay roller/Pasta machine: Preferred: Atlas Marcato 180 Pasta Machine - this is a very pricy but reliable choice. I'd wait until you're confident you want to invest! I ordered a custom pink and purple one from Ed Street after a few years in the hobby + got myself a motor for it so I don't have to use my hands as much. Clay machines make it easier to do techniques like Skinner blends, and also can help condition clay more quickly so you don't wear out your hands. You can get a pasta machine secondhand online from eBay, just make sure it's one that you can clean! I used a Sculpey machine from Michaels for about 3 years, and it was okay, but very hard to clean and basically impossible to roll thinner sheets with. If you can get one on sale, it's a good way to test if a pasta machine is for you, but just know that upgrading is super worth it if you find that you like using a machine.

Acrylic blocks: You probably see a lot of popular polymer clay charm/figurine artists using these. They are helpful for things like rolling, squishing, or staging clay pieces, but they're totally not necessary for most things. I tend to just use whatever flat objects I have around for those same tasks. They are pretty though!

Bead rollers: I used a bead roller for my earlier beads, and I still have it around, but I find it's faster for me to hand-roll my spherical beads. I just use a round cutter to make them all the same amount of clay, and then roll them up. If you have a specific unique shape that you have in mind (a bicone, for example), a bead roller can be good for that. But if you're just doing spheres, just cut out the same amount of clay for each bead and make a ball on your work surface.

Bead racks: I made a DIY bead rack using a loaf pan with aluminum craft wire I had on hand laid over the top for years and the only reason I upgraded is because I saw a rack on sale for $6! Upgrading was worth it for me after years of making beads, but you can DIY a rack and it will last you forever. I might try and take a picture of the DIY method I used sometime.

Clay cutters: This really depends on what you're trying to do. I think circular or rectangular cutters can be helpful to have around. I have mixed feelings about shaped cutters! I used to use a butterfly cutter that I liked. But sometimes I find it's easier to use a template, and cutters are so expensive from that period when polymer clay was really trendy in 2020, so I usually skip the shapes unless I have a very specific use for them. These days, I sort of prefer to hand-form my shapes so that my pieces are more unique. It just depends on the goal you have in mind. Don't feel like you have to have cutters. Circle and rectangles, though, make it easier to measure out "servings" of clay for color recipes, and tend to come in handy for cane-making, so I like to have them around.