Making earrings with polymer clay!
You’ve probably seen polymer clay earrings all over the place lately. They have been trending on sites like Etsy for quite some time now and have even made their way into many retail stores. Their look is unique and distinctive. In a quick search, you’ll find a broad range of clay earrings out there ranging from quirky bunny earrings for Easter to elegant lace-imprinted earrings for a wedding. There are studs of every shape and size along with countless dangling multi-piece shape combinations connected by jump rings. The possibilities are endless and I’m truly amazed by all of the creativity I’ve seen in this little crafting niche.
I have always loved working with clay and have sold many clay crafts online – pendants, charms, keychains, wedding cake toppers – to name a few. When I started seeing polymer clay earrings gaining popularity, I was immediately interested and wanted to try it myself. It seemed easy enough – the clay projects I’d made in the past seemed far more tedious and time-consuming. However, upon joining some online clay earring communities (as one does), I realized that this venture was a different beast altogether! Within days, I was researching pasta machines, marbling techniques, cutters, cernit translucent, and polymer clay color recipes. It’s a rabbit hole. So if you’re just poking around at the idea of getting started making polymer clay earrings – buckle up.
There are many different techniques for making polymer clay earrings. I love the marbled look and I’ve been trying to perfect this technique lately. For the purposes of this tutorial, we’re going to focus on just the basics of making a set of polymer clay earrings. You can find a lot of amazing tutorials for different techniques on Tiktok. So without further ado, let’s dive in.
Best Polymer Clay for Earrings
Perhaps the most common question from beginners is, “Which polymer clay should I use to make earrings?” This is an important question because each brand of polymer clay behaves differently. The answer to this question depends heavily on the kind of earrings you are making and how you’d like them to look and feel once they are baked. I encourage anyone to experiment with different clays to determine which one suits their needs.
A few of my personal favorites include:
- Sculpey Souffle – It’s soft and easy to condition, especially suitable for beginners.
- Kato Polyclay – Extremely durable but very firm and some find it difficult to condition. This is an amazing clay for detailed pieces that require lots of strength from tiny pieces.
- Fimo – I’m a big fan of the color selection and I find it easy to work with.
- Cernit Translucent – If you’re looking to make stone-inspired earrings, this one is a must.
Getting Started: Conditioning the Clay
To get started, you’ll need to condition the clay that you plan to use. This just means kneading it with your hands or running it through a pasta machine until it is soft and workable. You should be able to roll the clay without cracks appearing. If you’re having difficulty conditioning your clay, remember that clay responds to heat so you may want to try warming your hands up a little. This is especially necessary if you’re working with a very firm clay like Kato Polyclay.
Once your clay is conditioned, you can mix colors if you desire. I like to experiment with mixing colors, but if you’re not into wasting clay, there are tons of actual clay color recipes on Etsy. These can be very helpful if you have a specific vision in mind for the project you’re making.
Rolling the Clay
The next step in making basic polymer clay earrings is rolling out the clay into an even, flat layer. I have a clay roller for this step but you could also use a drinking glass, marble rolling pin, etc. I don’t like to use a wooden rolling pin to roll out the clay because it tends to leave a texture imprinted and sometimes the clay gets stuck to the rolling pin.
Make sure that your layer of clay is free of air bubbles. If you see specks or hairs, carefully remove them using rubbing alcohol. Try to get your clay as even as possible because you don’t want your earrings to have different thicknesses.
Cutting Shapes
In the next step, it’s time to use your clay or cookie cutters to define the shapes of your earrings. Make sure that the cutter goes all the way through the clay when cutting – I like to wiggle it just a little to make sure the shape detaches.
Once your shapes are cut, remove the excess clay very carefully. At this point, I use an exacto pin tool to make the holes where the jump rings will be inserted. Some people wait until their earrings have baked to make holes, but I prefer doing it beforehand due to many experiences of cracking my earrings by adding the holes to hardened pieces. Don’t worry about the holes having ugly edges – you’ll be sanding those later.
Add Embellishments
At this point, I add any clay embellishments (ie. flowers) to the shapes. This is also the time to add any textures you want. Recently, I imprinted lace on the surface of some earrings and I loved how it turned out. It’s so much fun to experiment with different textures!
Bake
Follow the instructions on your chosen polymer clay to bake your earrings at the correct temperature and for the correct length of time. Make sure that you preheat your oven and do not add your earrings for baking until the oven is fully preheated. Some people like to use a toaster oven for baking their clay, but I prefer a regular oven. Some people also recommend using an oven thermometer to ensure accuracy, but I’m yet to try this.
Sand, Sand, Sand.
Once your earrings have baked and cooled, pry them gently from the pan. (They will stick most of the time! Don’t panic.) It’s now time to sand away all of the imperfections and rough spots. The difference between a good pair of earrings and a great pair is sanding! I have a micro Dremel that I use to sand earrings and it works like a charm. If you don’t have a Dremel, sandpaper will work just fine but will require a little more elbow grease.
Add Findings & Enjoy!
Once you’re happy with your sanding job, it’s time to add the findings of your choice. This may mean hot gluing studs to their backs or attaching pieces with jump rings. (Have some jewelry pliers on hand for prying apart the jump rings) I think this step is the most fun because you get to watch your earrings come to life!
I hope you enjoy making polymer clay earrings as much as I have! Don’t be afraid to put your own spin on the techniques and have fun! Feel free to show off your creations in the comments 🙂