How I Got Started With Polymer Clay (And My Must-Have Tools for Beginners)

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The very first project I ever made as a beginner with polymer clay were some trinket dishes. I made them as a Christmas present for a few family members and then promptly forgot I had any polymer clay for years.

Fast forward to February of 2024. Two things happened:

1. I attended a mini convention and the booth I admired the most was a polymer clay artist who made tiny food. She made onions you could actually cut into and looked real on the inside and tiny oranges you could actually peel! Obsessed!
2. My stepdaughter got married and I wanted to make her a present. I wanted to make “Player One” and “Player Two” necklaces. She and her new husband are gamers and I thought that would be the perfect gift. I tried buying little plastic game controllers from Amazon but they just didn’t look that great… and I decided to see if I could make my own.

I was pretty happy with the way the little polymer clay game controllers turned out! (Looking back I can see all the things I could improve on... but hey it was pretty good at the time!) These two events helped launch my interest in polymer clay.

What really got me SUPER into polymer clay was doing the 100 Day Project back in February of this year. You work on a creative project every day for 100 days - and this really helped me to hone my skills, practice, and learn what I did and didn’t like.

I stumbled into making polymer clay jewelry - pendants at first, and then polymer clay earrings. Here are the first two pieces of polymer clay jewelry I made - both using the extruder cane technique.

Wearing my first pendant

The first pair of polymer clay earrings I made, matching the pendant

I was reluctant to make polymer clay earrings because I couldn’t wear them - but then I figured it was good practice. I ended up making polymer clay earrings that I couldn’t wear myself (ugh)! But hey, I got my ears re-pierced and now I can wear my own stuff (yay).

After months of experimenting, I realized there are a handful of polymer clay tools for beginners that I reach for every single time I sit down to make something. If you’re just starting out with polymer clay, these tools will make your life so much easier.

The Most Needed Polymer Clay Tools for Beginners

This is all of the super basic tools I found useful when I first started creating with polymer clay.

• Acrylic Roller. The first roller I bought was hollow and plastic. It was terrible, it didn't have enough weight to it. An acrylic roller is heavier, and evenly rolls out the polymer clay.
• Tissue Blade Cutter. Having multiple tissue blade cutters is very useful. Great for chopping up clay. I also use it to pick up items and it's great for cleaning my tile after polymer clay has stuck to it.
• 12x12 Ceramic Tile - Go to Home Depot or another similar store to get a ceramic tile to work off of. Make sure it's completely smooth with no texture on it. I have multiple tiles so I can move pieces in progress around my craft table.
• 6x6 Ceramic Tiles - I have 4 of these that I use for sliding into my oven. I make smaller batches, so choose a tile size that fits into your oven. Again, be sure to use a tile that has a completely smooth surface. Ceramic tiles are usually available loose so you don't have to buy a whole case.
• Scupley Bake & Bond - This is great for gluing pieces together. With this stuff, you can adhere baked and unbaked pieces and give extra support to your creations.
• Clay Softener - If you have hard or crumbly clay, this is a life saver.
• Exacto Knife - Great for cutting, picking up stuff, etc.
• Circle Cutters - A good basic cutter tool. Helps you to measure out and use the same amount of clay for pieces. Also good for making circles, like small eyes.
• Acetone - Use it for cleaning up baked pieces.
• 91% or 99% Rubbing Alcohol - Use it for cleaning up unbaked pieces (useful for getting lint off).
• Lint Free Nail Wipes - Use these to apply the two above without getting stray pieces of cotton everywhere.
• Dotting Tools & Silicone Shaping Tools - having a variety of dotting tools is great for making shapes. Can also be used to pick up small items. The shaping tools are good for blending and you can even paint with them.

Extra Polymer Clay Tools That Are Useful, But Not Needed Right Away

I would get comfortable conditioning and making simple things first and seeing if you like the craft before getting these tools. You may or may not need them, depending on what you craft.

• Soft Pastel Set - Great for coloring/shading polymer clay, especially mini food items.
• Clay Extruder - I made my first canes with an extruder. If you can get a star tip, it's great to make "whipped cream" for mini pies and cakes. Great for making long lines of clay that are the same size.
• Texture tool - This is great for creating texture. I also use an old toothbrush./li>

Other Great Polymer Clay Tools (Intermediate)

I got these tools after I was sure that I was serious about making.

• Atlas 150 Pasta Machine - I originally got a cheap pasta machine for $5 from my local polymer clay guild. I upgraded to this one which is still going strong. Great for conditioning your polymer clay.
• Hardell Rotary Tool - It took me awhile to learn this but so glad that I have it. Makes drilling holes very easy and great for cleaning up edges.

Tools I Regret Buying

• Too many clay cutters - I bought so many polymer clay cutters that I don't even use now. I had no idea what my style was and just bought things I thought were cute!
• Bunch of sanding stuff because I don’t like to sand - I thought I would do it, but nope, I don't like doing it.
• Cheap cutters that didn’t have sharp edges (like random clay cutters off Amazon that have no handles and are hard to use)
• Scupley III and Scupley Bake Shop clay - these polymer clays are very brittle after baking - stick with Scupley Premo, Scupley Souffle, Fimo Soft, or Fimo Professional. My personal favorites are Premo and Souffle.

If you’re curious about trying polymer clay yourself, I hope this gave you some inspiration! And if you’d rather shop than sculpt, check out my Sweet & Quirky earrings here!

Some of the links in this post may be affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission if you click through and make a purchase—at no extra cost to you. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. I only recommend products and tools I personally use and love, and your support helps me keep creating and sharing more polymer clay projects. Thank you!