Polymer Clay is an inexpensive and versatile medium that can be used for all kinds of crafting needs, and that, of course, includes jewelry. You can use it to make beads, pendants, cabochons, charms, and probably a lot more items if you take a little while to experiment and get creative with it.
I first started experimenting with polymer clay back in the 1980s. For the most part, this material then was like a brick.


It has come a long way over the years. You can find some types of polymer clay now that are super soft and take very little effort to condition. However, this has always been one sticking point when it comes to polymer clay, and that is the baking or curing process. You can be super wonderful at forming jewelry components with it, but if you do not bake polymer clay correctly, you end up disappointed. You can over bake the clay and even go so far as to burn it, which can create toxic fumes. You can under bake it and it ends up crumbling at some point or breaking easily with very little handling.

When you buy a package of polymer clay, the manufacturer of the clay has baking instructions on the package; however, these instructions are very brief. Obviously, this is the case because a typical package is wrapped in a clear wrapping material and only around two inches by two inches in size, so that means there is not much room to write detailed baking instructions. Usually, it will say something like this: "Do not microwave this product.

Bake at 275 degrees F (130 degree C) for 30 minutes for each 1/4 inch thickness of the clay piece." Yes, that is it. Those are your instructions. They actually seem pretty easy and basic, but the reality is much different. One main reason for this has to do with the fact that ovens are not always that accurate when it comes to reaching and keeping a specific temperature, especially toaster ovens which are popular and not that expensive if you want to dedicate one to baking your clay. For most regular cooking, it is not a big deal if the oven temperature is a little off, but for polymer clay, it is a big deal.

So given all of the information above, I have collected a few simple tips to help you when baking your polymer clay jewelry components.

If you are doing a one off baking test with you oven and never plan to use it again for baking polymer clay, then there is a good chance you are going to be fine as far as safety concerns go, and a regular kitchen oven will be much more accurate than a toaster oven will be. However, much of the safety information available, such as that from Sculptey.com suggests that, at the very least, you do not use the same baking dishes for baking clay that you then would use with food. Make sure that you read up on the manufacturer's web site about any safety issues before you decide to use your conventional oven.

A toaster oven is used by many polymer clay artists. Toaster ovens are portable, do not take up much room, and they are not too pricey either. In fact, you can often find them (used of course) at thrift stores. But these can be tricky to use because they are not that accurate. Before you make (and possible burn any clay, which will then create toxic fumes) use an oven thermometer to check the temperature of your toaster oven. For example, if you have to bake your clay at 275 degrees F (130 degree C), then you want to determine where on your oven's dial that really happens. If you get 275 degrees at the 150 degree mark on the oven dial, then either make a note of that to remember, or better yet, take a permanent marker and make a line or other mark on the dial so that you know in the future that you will need to set the dial at that rather than the 275 degree mark.

Consider using a kiln versus a toaster or conventional oven, especially if you really want to get into all that polymer clay has to offer. While some kilns can really vary in temperature just like regular ovens, there are some excellent kilns on the market now that are extremely accurate. Rio Grande, for example, has some high quality kilns that are pretty affordable. Plus, if you have a kiln, this means you can also fire metal clay and other types of materials for jewelry making. I realize some people with think using a kiln is over kill for baking polymer clay, but as I have said in this article numerous times already, an accurate temperature is critical to baking polymer clay correctly.

Finally, whatever your use to bake you clay, make sure to pre-heat your oven. Now I have read totally the opposite of this on other web sites, but I disagree, and again,Sculptey.com, the clay I use the most right now, backs me up on this. It make sense if you think about it this way: You need a to make sure the temperature is very accurate; you need to make sure the temperature stays at the right level for the specific length of time required to bake the clay; and you need to make sure you do not over or under bake the clay. If you put it in the kiln or oven and then turn it on, then you, right away, are not at the right temperature. If you keep it in there while the oven or kiln is off and is cooling down (something else I have read about), then you are continuing to fire it and could burn the clay.

Like any other jewelry making method or technique, baking polymer clay correctly is something you work on and experiment with as you work with this material, but hopefully, these basic tips will be helpful to you as you start learning this process.