What is the best polymer clay for earrings and jewlry?
When it comes to working with polymer clay, the sheer variety of brands can feel overwhelming and leave you wondering where to start and what to buy. Whether you're a beginner or an experienced crafter, choosing the right clay is essential to achieving the results you want. With different brands offering varying degrees of strength, flexibility, and durability, it can be tricky to know which is the best fit for your project.
Having worked with many of these brands ourselves, we've explored the nuances of each one. In this guide, we’ll walk you through the most popular polymer clay brands and share insights on which clays are best suited for different purposes. Whether you're sculpting detailed figures, creating earrings or designing your own jewelry, there's a perfect clay for every job. Let’s explore the options!
Choosing the right polymer clay for your projects
Before diving into specific brands, it’s important to consider the kind of project you’re working on. Here are some factors to think about:
Strength and Durability: Do you need the clay to be flexible or strong after baking?
Flexibility: Will your finished piece need to bend without breaking?
Detail Work: Does your project require intricate details, or are you working on something larger and simpler?
Colour Options: Are you looking for a wide variety of colours or specific effects like translucents or metallics?
Ease of Use: Are you a beginner or do you prefer a softer, easier-to-handle clay?
Once you know what you’re aiming for, it’s much easier to choose the right polymer clay brand. Now, let’s get into the specifics of the most popular brands available.
Polymer clay brands overview
Sculpey: A Popular Choice
Sculpey is one of the most recognised polymer clay brands, offering a range of clays for different uses. From children's crafts to professional-level sculptures, Sculpey has something for everyone.
Sculpey Original is incredibly soft and easy to work with, making it a great choice for beginners and young crafters. However, it’s not very strong after baking, so it’s best used for larger, sturdier projects like bowls or plaques. Avoid using it for delicate or detailed work, as it’s prone to breaking.
Designed for sculpting, Super Sculpey is stronger than the Original and comes in a flesh-toned colour. It’s perfect for figurines that won’t be handled too much. For those needing a firmer option, Super Sculpey Firm is available in grey, providing more rigidity for detailed work.
Sculpey III is a beginner favourite, thanks to its range of vibrant colours and soft texture. However, it tends to be brittle once baked, so it’s best for projects that won’t undergo much wear and tear. Avoid using it for jewellery or thin sculptures. It’s great for large beads, basic figures, and children’s dioramas.
Sculpey Premo: Versatile for All-Purpose Projects
Sculpey Premo is a well-balanced clay that's suitable for a wide range of projects. It’s soft enough to condition easily but strong enough to hold detail after baking. Sculpey Premo offers a full spectrum of bright colours, as well as translucent and metallic options. It’s ideal for polymer clay earrings, jewellery, caning, and general crafting. However, make sure to purchase fresh blocks as older clay can become crumbly.
Sculpey Bake Shop is the softest and weakest clay in the Sculpey line. While it's budget-friendly and great for toddlers, it’s not ideal for more advanced projects, as it doesn’t hold detail well and breaks easily.
Souffle: Soft and Flexible
Souffle is loved for its softness and flexibility, making it great for projects that require bending or movement, such as bracelets. It’s also a fantastic choice for those with weak hands or arthritis, as it’s very easy to condition. Souffle has a matte finish, making it harder to achieve a high gloss, but it’s perfect for techniques like mokume gane, where flexibility is key.
Kato Polyclay: Best for Caning
Kato Polyclay is a favourite among professional artists, especially for caning. It’s stiffer and firmer than many other clays, which makes it a bit harder to condition but excellent for holding fine details. Kato is also one of the strongest clays once baked, making it ideal for sculptures and jewellery that need durability. Be aware that it does have a strong vinyl smell, which some people love, and others dislike.
Fimo: A home favourite for Europe!
Fimo is a popular polymer clay in Europe and is known for its quality and versatility.
Fimo Professional is ideal for caning and detailed work, thanks to its firm yet workable consistency. It holds its shape well and doesn’t get too sticky, making it a great option for intricate projects and a popular go-to for polymer clay earring makers!
As the name suggests, Fimo Soft is easier to work with than the Professional line, making it better for beginners. However, it can be a bit gummy, and some colours don’t have a long shelf life so make sure you buy them as and when you plan to use them to maximise their shelf life!
Fimo Leather is a unique clay that has a texture that mimics leather when baked. It’s flexible enough to be sewn after baking, making it perfect for creating faux leather goods or textured effects.
Cernit: Translucent and Strong
Cernit polymer clay is highly regarded for its translucent varieties, making it perfect for creating faux glass effects - perfect for creating unique polymer clay earrings. It also offers strong metallics and regular opaque options. Cernit is a bit softer than other clays, so it might need to be leached before use if it becomes too sticky, but it bakes to a strong and durable finish.
Pardo: Best for Faux Glass and Translucent Effects
Pardo by Viva Decor is the top choice for anyone looking to create faux glass or other highly translucent effects. Its translucent clay is the clearest on the market, and it’s also great for caning. Though it can be a bit tricky to condition at first, it responds well to heat and holds its shape well after baking which is perfect for fine detailed clay earrings designs.
Speciality Polymer Clays
Beyond the general-purpose clays, there are also several niche polymer clays designed for specific uses:
Ultralight: Extremely lightweight, perfect for large pieces that need to stay light.
Eraser Clay: Makes functional erasers when baked.
Glow in the Dark: Does exactly what it says – perfect for fun, novelty projects.
Mold Maker: A softer clay used to create reusable molds.
These clays are fun for specific projects but aren’t usually suitable for detailed sculpting or jewellery making.
Which polymer clay should I use?
Now that we’ve covered the main brands, here is a quick summary of recommendations based on everything we have discussed so far:
For toddlers and young children: Sculpey Original or Bake Shop.
For beginners or older children: Sculpey III or CiaraQ.
For clay earrings and jewelery makers: Premo, Cernit, Fimo Professional, or Pardo.
For caning: Kato Polyclay or Fimo Professional.
For detailed sculptures: Kato Polyclay.
For soft, flexible projects: Souffle or Cernit Translucent.
Brands to use when making polymer clay earrings
For those of you specifically looking to make polymer clay earrings, we would recommend Premo, Fimo Professional, or Pardo Polymer Clay. Here’s why in a bit more detail:
Known for its excellent balance of strength and flexibility, Sculpey Premo holds its shape well after baking and is available in a wide range of vibrant colors and finishes. It’s ideal for creating detailed designs and intricate patterns - perfect for earring makers of all skill levels.
Fimo Professional is strong and durable, making it suitable for earrings that need to withstand everyday wear. It holds detail well and comes in a variety of colors that can easily be mixed together to create the perfect shade for your creation.
Especially if you’re interested in translucent or gemstone-like effects, Pardo is a great choice. Its translucents are very clear, and its colors can add a unique touch to your earring designs.
Brands to avoid when making polymer clay earrings
It’s crucial to choose a brand that ensures durability, flexibility, and a smooth finish. Some brands, while they may have their merits in other areas, might not be the best choice for earring projects. Here are a few brands to avoid if you're focusing specifically on creating polymer clay earrings:
Original Sculpey
Original Sculpey is known for its softness and ease of manipulation, but it lacks the strength and durability required for earrings. Its mushy consistency makes it challenging to achieve fine details, and its weak structure means that earrings made from this clay are prone to breaking, especially if they are thin or detailed.
Sculpey III
While Sculpey III is popular among beginners due to its soft texture and range of colors, it is not ideal for earrings. Its brittleness after baking can lead to easily broken pieces. For detailed and delicate earrings, this clay’s tendency to crumble and its softness can be a significant disadvantage.
Bake Shop
Bake Shop polymer clay is very soft and often too mushy to hold its shape well. This can result in earrings that lose their form or break easily. Though it might be budget-friendly, its lack of strength makes it unsuitable for durable jewelry pieces.
Fimo Kids
Fimo Kids is designed for young children and is excellent for their craft projects, but it’s not intended for adult earring and jewelry making. The clay is soft and can be overly gummy, which can make creating precise and resilient earrings challenging.
Additionally, the color intensity and finish may not meet the expectations for more refined earring designs.
Souffle
While Souffle has its strengths, including flexibility and a matte finish, it may not always be the best choice for earrings. Its matte finish can be difficult to polish to a high shine, and its softer texture might not hold up well for intricate earring designs that require a stiffer clay.
Final thoughts on selecting the best polymer clays
There is no single "best" polymer clay – it all depends on your project, your preferences, and your skill level. The good news is that experimenting with different brands is half the fun! Try out a few different clays, see how they handle, and find the one that feels right for you. Whether you’re making clay earrings, jewellery, detailed sculptures, or fun crafts with the kids, there’s a perfect polymer clay out there for you and your project!
We'd recommend checking out our other blog if you are looking for fun and creative ideas to keep your children entertained over the holidays!
We've mapped out and planned everything to keep your little ones busy so you can relax and enjoy some bonding time over crafts!
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