There are lots of great sculpting tools around for polymer clay.
I'm absolutely addicted to getting new sculpting tools, both buying and making them. If you need some help deciding on what tools you need to get started or want to make some of your own keep reading.
Just Getting Started?
If you need a general overview of sculpting with polymer clay and how to get started check out this lens. Written for beginners but useful regardless of your skill level.-
Introduction to Sculpting in Polymer Clay
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I have many lenses here on Squidoo about sculpting in polymer clay but none that really give a good overview of what you need to get started. This lens is about the essential information you need to get started sculpting in polymer clay, then you can...
Polymer Clay Safety
Safety First
Sculpting tools should be dedicated to clay work and should never be used for food afterwards. That includes rolling pins, baking sheets, and knives.
Clean your oven thoroughly after baking polymer clay unless it is dedicated to polymer clay use or if clay was baked in a sealed container like a roasting bag.
- Polymer Clay Cyclopedia- Polymer Clay Safety
- An excellent treatise on the safety concerns of using polymer clay.
- Artrepreneur; The Collision of Art and Business: Fear and Hysteria in the Studio
- Nearly every time I do a show, I have someone come up to me and ask me if I know about how dangerous polymer clay is. What is interesting about these encounters is that there is very little fact presented, just fear, and a sense that if I do not take what they are saying seriously, I am being irresponsible.
- Polymer Clay FAQ | Safety & Cleanup
- How to work safely with polymer clay.
- ACMI (Art & Creative Materials Institute, Inc.)
- The Art & Creative Materials Institute, Inc. (ACMI) is an international association, composed of a diverse and involved membership, and is recognized as the leading authority on art and creative materials. Founded in 1936, ACMI was organized to assist its members in providing the public with art and creative materials for children and artists that are non-toxic.
The Bare Essentials
Tools every sculptor should have.
X-acto or similar craft knife
Rolling Pin
Set of wooden modeling tools
Loop tools
Needle tool
Tool box or similar for storing your tools
Smooth work surface such as a sheet of glass, baking sheet, silicone craft mat, or smooth ceramic tile
Basic Sculpting Tools
Good starter sets.
Mini Ribbon Clay Sculpting Set
*I am an affiliate of Dick Blick Art Materials. I promote their products on my pages because I'm also a customer who appreciates their customer service.
Making Your Own Tools
Sooner or later you're going to need a tool that you either can't find or can't afford to buy. Making your own tools can be intimidating at first but it's very rewarding.Most of the tools I make are carved from hardwood dowels. I use guitar strings to make my loop tools because music wire is extremely tough and springy.
Common Materials for Making Sculpting Tools
Hardwood Dowels
Music Wire
Tapestry Needles
Brass or Steel Tubing
Polymer Clay
Sculpting Epoxy (such as Aves Apoxie)
Hardened Spring Steel
Homemade Sculpting Tool Links
- Polymer Clay Stamps
- Use polymer clay to create your own custom stamps!
- Stamp Tools
- Stamps are not only easy to make, they're kind'a fun too! I made the below for certain things I needed done, and some were just learning what I was doing. It's not a learning process as in how do I make it, it's what do I make stamps from that's the learning process. You have to train your mind to look for the everyday things around you.
- Making Sculpture Tools - ConceptArt.org Forums
- Making Sculpture Tools 3D & SCULPTURE
- HowTo Make a Better Dremel Mandrel
- This page describes how I made a customized buffing Dremel spindle to hold more than one cloth buffing wheel.
- HowTo Make a Better Polishing Wheel
- A fuzzy polyester felt buffing wheel.
- Alan's Texture Tool
- This tool is designed to decorate clay, or any impressionable surface, with a pattern which builds into a finish which resembles fish, snake or dragon scales, feathers or even, with small adjustment, roof tiles.
- Clay Application to Refinement-Wires
- The wire tool in its various shapes and sizes is extremely useful when intricate detailing is involved.
- Make your Own Sculpting Tools
- Sculpting tools can be expensive to buy and hard to find (especially if you work in smaller scales). One solution is to make your own sculpting tools.
- iSculpt.org - Sculptor, Make Thine Own Tools
- I love tools. I spent the first two years after I started sculpting buying up just about every sculpting tool I could find, as well as looking in dollar stores, hardware stores, automotive stores, and just about anywhere else for items that could be used as sculpting tools.
- Hello And Welcome to My Chibis from Kiki Valley Blog: Coool Toool!
- Sometimes I just get all tickled with me-self when I come up with a silly little idea that works so well...LOL Well, today's one of those days. Here's a picture of my new Coool Toool.
- Textures in Metal Clay (Precious Metal Clay / PMC and Art Clay Silver and Gold)
- One of the things that makes metal clay (Precious Metal Clay / PMC and Art Clay Silver and Gold such an exciting medium is its ability to be textured easily. Everything from rubber stamps to found objects can be used to impress wonderful details into your designs, which become pure silver / fine sil
Found Sculpting Tools
Knitting Needles
Dental Picks - Ask your dentist, sometimes they'll give you old ones.
Paint Brushes
Embossing Stylus - Usually a double ended tool with different sized metal ball on each end.
Tooth Picks - Especially good to applying glue.
Cookie Cutters - The smaller basic shapes (round, square, teardrop) are very useful.
Razor Blades
Desktop Magnifier - Help see fine details
Makeup Sponges - Use to create soft textures for skin or fabric.
Found Tool Links
- Polymer Clay Project Tutorials - » Fun Texture
- This tutorial shows you how to make fun textures and designs on your clay projects using things you have around the house. I'm using lace leftovers that most people would normally throw away. Don't! There is plenty of use for them!
- CraftyGoat's Notes: Unconventional Polymer Clay Tools 1: The Pumice Stone
- Using a pumice stone on polymer clay.
- CraftyGoat's Notes: Unconventional Polymer Clay Tools 2: The Herb Mincer
- What It's Good For: Its original purpose is cutting up leafy herbs, but I think it works even better for slicing fixed-width strips of polymer clay.
Pasta Machines
Tips for Using a Pasta Machine
Work from the thickest setting down the thinness you want.
Run damp paper towel or baby wipes through the pasta machine rollers to clean them.
If the the handle of your machine comes out easily wrap the end with a little electrical tape.
Pasta Machine Links
- Pasta Machines
- All about Pasta Machines on Glass Attic.
- PoLEIGH Talking - Cleaning the Pasta Machine
- Finally, a way to clean those Atlas Pasta Machines! The easy way and the thorough way, with lots of pictures!
- HowTo Pasta Queen and Atlas Pasta Machine Maintenance
- How to reduce discoloration of your clay caused by your pasta machine, lubricate your machine and strip it down to the essentials.
- HowTo - Advanced Pasta Machine Maintenance
- Pasta Machine - Extreme Care. Have you reached the end of your rope with your Altas or Pasta Queen pasta machine?
- Using a Pasta Machine with Polymer Clay - Basic Information - Associated Content
- Working with polymer clay by hand can be a lot of fun. Rolling the clay between your palms, squishing it with your fingers, and making shapes can be rewarding and actually a kind of stress reducer. But this process is slow and can be hard on your hands. If that's the case, consider getting a pasta machine.
Pasta Machine from Amaco
I have this pasta machine and it's stood up to a a good deal of abuse.
Amaco Pasta Machine
Rolling clay through a pasta machine makes techniques like marbling or slabworking easier and faster. Crafted of durable stainless steel, this model is ideal for use with polymer clays. It features seven thickness settings, a removable crank, and a clamp that secures it to your work surface. Use it to create flat, even sheets, to knead two colors together, or to soften your clay.
Using a Toaster Ovens and Heat Guns for Polymer Clay
Toaster ovens are the preferred method for baking small polymer clay pieces because they use less electricity and with concerns over chemicals in polymer clay it's easier to dedicate a toaster oven to polymer clay than a full sized oven (unless you never cook in yours).
Tips for Using a Toaster Oven
You must use a toaster oven with an adjustable temperature control. Those without temperature control are much too hot.
Use an oven thermometer to double check the temperature in your oven.
To keep the temperature from spiking too much use ceramic tiles or broken ceramic pieces in the bottom on the oven to absorb and radiate heat evenly.
Heat Guns
Heat Guns are designed either for craft embossing or removing paint but they also work on polymer clay. A heat gun is not for final curing of polymer clay, it's impossible to tell if the heat gun has cured the clay all the way through. What they are useful for is to partially set an area of clay so you don't damage it while working on other areas.
Lens on Curing Polymer Clay
More on using a toaster oven and a heat gun.
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Techniques for Curing Polymer Clay
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No subject in polymer clay has more controversy than how to best cure polymer clay. This lens gives an over view of the main techniques used.
Toaster Oven Links
- Polymer Clay Cyclopedia- Baking Tips
- This is an ever growing INTERACTIVE collection of tips and information directed at the Polymer Clay Beginner, compiled by all the friends and members of Polymer Clay Central.
- How To Clean Your Toaster Oven - Toasters.com
- Simple steps in care and maintenance will keep your toaster oven running
Hamilton Beach Toaster Oven
This is the toaster oven I own for baking polymer clay and I love it.
Hamilton Beach 6-slice Toaster Oven and Broiler, Black and Stainless Steel
Toast, broil and bake using one, compact-sized oven. The Hamilton Beach toaster oven has a handsome black and stainless exterior and is roomy enough to toast up to six slices of bread. It comes with a 15-minute timer and includes a "continous on" and auto shutoff. The interior continuously cleans itself so you don't have to spend your time scrubbing-up any spills. Comes with a metal baking pan, broiling grid and removable crumb tray.
Silicone Tipped Tools
- CLBcreations: The Clay Shaper Tool
- Always looking for the latest and greatest claying tools in the claying world, I was briefly introduced to clay shapers in an instructional booklet. It was listed as one of those , "when you become really involved in it" kind of tools.
Clay Shapers
I love my set of these little silicone tipped tools, they are wonderful for smoothing areas my fingers can't reach.
Colour Shaper Mini Sets
Just like their larger counterparts but these are only 1/8" wide, size 0. Colour Shaper Mini Sets are packaged in sets of 5 with one of each shape. Just like their larger counterparts but these are only 1/8" wide, size 0.
Clay Extruders Links
- Polymer Clay Cyclopedia- Clayguns
- Tips for using polymer clay extruders.
- Clay Gun & extruders
- All about clay extruders from Glass Attic.
Clay Extruder from Kemper
This tool makes creating long ribbons of clay very easy.
Kemper Klay Gun
Kemper's Klay Gun is used to force clay, bread dough, or jewelry clay through various shaped openings in an assortment of interchangeable discs. Use it for decorative effects. Each disc measures ½" (13 mm) in diameter.
Polymer Clay and Sculpting Books
Or check out Noadi's Art Sculpting Books for the full list of clay books I recommend.
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Sculpture
Dachshund pack above
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Baby Rat in Altoid T...
Twin Boy Baby Shower...
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Go ahead and and leave any comment or questions you have. If you like this lens please rate it up at the top of the page!
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- 3c86a4 3c86a4 Feb 6, 2009 @ 1:20 pm
- Great lens. I love buying new tools for my polymer clay projects. 5 stars!
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- 3c86a4 3c86a4 Feb 6, 2009 @ 1:20 pm
- Great lens. I love buying new tools for my polymer clay projects. 5 stars!
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- Aug 22, 2008 @ 8:54 pm
- Thank you so much for the time and effort you put into the piece on the 'dangers' of clay! I've yet to find such a wealth of sound reason and research as yours!
Besides my 'mini missionaries' I also make animals to jewelry! They're all created in polymer clay!
There are too many things in the world that can bring us down, so my site is all about lifting us up and reminding us that the world is full of precious treasures waiting to be discovered!
Take a magical trip to the land of 'Latter-Day Creations' today and see if you don't walk away smiling!
click here to see all of my work
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Reply
- lou16 lou16 Jul 18, 2008 @ 1:46 am
- I've just 'discovered' polymer clay, although I'm only using it to make unusual pendants for my jewellry.
This lens is really helpful, I can't wait to see your other ones on polymer clay.
Thanks
Lou
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Reply
- gods_grace_notes gods_grace_notes Jun 25, 2008 @ 8:16 pm
- Sounds like your toolbox is as full as mine! Thanks for the great tool tips,
Connie
: )
Polymer Clay Tools on eBay
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Continue Learning
My other polymer clay tutorial lenses.
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Polymer Clay Sculpting Tips and Tutorials
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Polymer clay is a wonderful medium for sculpture. You can create one of a kind sculptures without the need for an expensive kiln or messy mold materials. You can create everything from very simple animals made from basic shapes to detailed, complex,...
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Building Armatures for Polymer Clay Sculpture
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Armatures are vital to strong sculptures. Learn about different methods for building strong armatures. A strong armature can hold polymer clay in virtually any complicated or precarious position, even look like it's floating in air.
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Using Liquid Polymer Clay
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Liquid Polymer Clay is a fairly new medium, only being around for a few years now. However in a few short years artists and crafters have found hundreds of ways to use this new medium.
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Painting Polymer Clay Sculptures
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Polymer clay comes in a rainbow of colors but some projects can be greatly improved by a little paint or other surface treatment. Popular techniques for painting sculpture include brushing on acrylic, airbrushing, and using powdered pigments to crea...
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Making Molds of Polymer Clay Sculpture
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The wonderful thing about polymer clay is that you can create one of a kind sculpture with it but sometimes you might want to make copies of a sculpture. For that you need to make a mold and then cast in a material like resin, plaster, or porcelain....
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