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Writer's pictureHello Cutters

Opal Polymer Clay Tutorial


Supplies

- Black (or dark) polymer clay - Clay roller and posta machine - Any clay cutter

- Dotting tool

- Silicone brush

- Clear resin

- Gold pen/marker/paint

- UV lamp

- Tweezers

- Iridescent glitter



Supply Links

Step 1: Prepare Your Clay

After conditioning your polymer clay, lay it flat on your work surface. This step ensures that your clay is smooth and ready for shaping.


Step 2: Cut and Bake

Using your polymer clay cutter, carefully cut out your desired earring shapes. Follow the baking instructions for your specific clay type, note that we prefer to bake clay pieces on a square tile to maintain better control and allows them to cool directly on the tile after baking.




Step 3: Apply a Base Layer of Resin

Once your clay pieces have completely cooled, it's time to add some sparkle. Use a silicone brush to apply a thin layer of clear resin to the clay pieces. This layer will serve as the base for the glitter.

adding resin to polymer clay


Step 4: Add Glitter

With your tweezers, carefully pick up a few pieces of glitter, preferably in the "watermelon" color. Place the glitter onto the resin base. Use the silicone brush to separate any stuck pieces and ensure that all glitter is evenly distributed. If some pieces aren't fully saturated with resin, add a small amount to cover them. Once you're satisfied with the glitter placement, cure the base under a UV lamp for 60 seconds.


adding glitter to polymer clay


Step 5: Add Middle Layer of Glitter

Repeat the previous step for the middle layer of your earrings, but this time use white glitter to create a stunning contrast.


adding another layer glitter to resin polymer clay


Step 6: Seal with Resin

To seal all the glitter layers and create a glossy finish, add another layer of resin. Cure this layer under a UV lamp for 1-2 minutes.


Step 7: Sand for a Polished

After curing, sand all sides of your earrings to ensure they are smooth and polished.


Step 8: Attach Gold Trim

Now, it's time to add some extra flair. Using a gold marker, carefully add gold trim to your earrings. Do this slowly, section by section, as these markers take some time to dry. Be patient to achieve a neat and elegant look. Note: If you use the markers linked to our supply list, be sure to read the drying time. To speed up my production time, I use my tweezers to hold my clay pieces and slowly paint all sections at once without leaving any fingerprints smudges on the gold trimming.





Step 9: Secure Earring Posts

Depending on your preference, you can either use resin to secure your earring posts or drill an indent to make them sit flush with your pieces. In this tutorial, resin was used to secure the posts.



resin add to secure earring post
















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