Essential Polymer Clay Accessories

August 11, 2021

Every polymer clay artist has their own opinion on which tools are their own essential polymer clay accessories. There are so many tools and accessories to choose from, it’s hard to know where to start. We’re going to focus on the absolute basic and essential polymer clay accessories to help you take your polymer clay skills and enjoyment to the next level.

The following scenario will probably sound familiar to a lot of artists:

You found polymer clay recently and immediately fell in love. You bought all the clay and colors you could find. You spend your time watching polymer clay tutorials on YouTube and you admire all the amazing artists on Instagram. When you’re ready to craft, you clean off a spot on your table, bring out your clay, and get all set up. You’ve seen a ton of artists use all sorts of tools and have all these convenient ways of working with clay. You have repurposed some kitchen utensils for your new hobby, but you want more. You’ve been trying to figure out just what are the essential polymer clay accessories?

You’ve got your clay, you’ve got your work space, but what comes next? The available tools and accessories are overwhelming. You want to know what the essential polymer accessories are.

Although we have many different polymer clay tools and accessories, we believe these five tools are universal “must haves”. The more tools you purchase, the quicker you’ll be able to perform a number of different tasks, but these are the best polymer clay accessories for getting started.

Glass cutting mat

Having a clean work surface is mandatory for working with polymer clay. Polymer clay will pick up dust, dirt, and anything else that it touches. Not only that, it can sometimes leave traces of itself behind especially on porous surfaces. When you want to cut your clay, you definitely want to cut your clay and not your table. A glass cutting surface solves all these problems and that is why it is our first essential polymer clay accessory. Glass cutting surfaces are easy to transport and clean. The cutting mat will protect whatever you place them on top of. And, they have helpful measurements, guidelines, and angles so you can get the perfect cuts or sizes every time.

Good utility knife

Do you cut your cut, trim, or shape your clay? Do you need a sharp knife that is easy to handle and not too thick? Maybe you currently use a kitchen knife, but it’s probably time to invest in a utility knife as your next essential polymer clay accessory. A good utility knife with a sharp blade will be an invaluable tool that you’ll use for almost everything cutting related. Cheap knives are easy to find, but they are not very comfortable and they are easy to break, so do yourself a favor and get a comfortable precision utility knife that you will use every time you work with polymer clay.

Acrylic Roller

Everyone needs a slab of clay from time to time. Jewelry artists need them pretty much every time they make a new creation. Sculptors need them for clothes, patterns, and all other sorts of uses. It’s time to stop using your food roller and to buy an acrylic roller. Acrylic rollers are an essential polymer clay accessory because they make it so easy to make a nice, even slab of clay. They are easy to clean and clay does not stick to them. With this tool, you never have to worry about contaminating your kitchen accessories with your clay accessories.

Needle Tool

Sure you probably use your fingers to blend big pieces of clay, but what happens when you need to be really precise or need to get in a small space? If you are using a needle to help blend, you are probably making your fingers and hands super uncomfortable while holding on to a small needle. A sturdy needle tool is one of our essential polymer clay accessories because they are comfortable to hold, allow you to get into small spaces, and are perfect for making any type of detail.

Slicing blade

Sometimes you need to make some big slices and a utility blade is just not enough. This is another universal need felt by every type of polymer clay artist. In those situations, you need a super thin, super long, and super sharp slicing blade. And, that is why we consider a slicing blade one of our essential polymer clay accessories.

We are polymer clay artists and enthusiasts at Firefly Art Supplies. We created our business and our store to help provide other artists with our favorite polymer clay, oil based clay, and polymer clay accessories. Every order that we send out is packaged with care and love because we know that we are helping share the joys of polymer clay with the rest of the world. Please check out our other polymer clay accessories if you are looking to expand your tools beyond the essential ones.