Must Have Polymer Clay Tool – Cutting Blades
Video #508: Slicing your polymer clay canes and flat sheets requires the right tools… here are some options and ideas for you.
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IN THIS POST: — tools — knives — blades — tissue blades — super slicers — amaco — sculpey — cutting tools — supplies — cane slicing — cutting — clay blades — starter tools — (Topics marked with an asterisk* are discussed in the Comments Section below).
Topics Covered In This Video:
- Polymer clay cutting blades.
- A sharp kitchen knife can work, but the top edge of the steel blade makes it more difficult for cutting canes.
- Exacto knives are good for cutting and carving intricate pieces, but not so good for slicing canes. Most Xacto blades are too short.
- Polymer Clay Blades are best suited for working with clay. Go figure.
- Amaco Clay Blade: Available at craft stores like Michaels. Inexpensive. Fairly sharp. Stiff. Good for cutting canes. Great for removing sheets of clay from work surfaces.
- Sculpey Super Slicer Set. Readily available. Reasonable priced. Very thin, fairly sharp blades. Several blades in set (stiff, flexible, large ripple, small ripple). Two interchangeable snap on handles. Good for cutting canes and curved pendants. Great for removing sheets of clay from work surfaces.
- PVClay Blade (polymer clay product from Brazil). Must order from Brazil. Plastic/metal type material. Won’t cut skin. Very thin blade, so it cuts clay and canes nicely. Best choice for kids to use.
- Tissue Blades (medical grade). Incredibly sharp – not for kids! Not readily available. Steal blade can rust. Many professional clayers swear by them.
00:00:03 –> 00:00:07 Hi guys, its Cindy Lietz, your Polymer Clay Tutor, and today’s Studio Tip, I’m talking
00:00:07 –> 00:00:13 about Polymer clay blades, which I consider to be a must have Polymer clay tool.
00:00:13 –> 00:00:18 Now, when you’re working with Polymer clay, you need to cut it, so what kind of tools
00:00:18 –> 00:00:24 you use will depend on what you’re doing.Now, a lot of people will just use like a kitchen
00:00:24 –> 00:00:31 knife or something like that, they work fine, but I don’t really like them, they tend
00:00:31 –> 00:00:36 to be really wide at the top, and when you cut through, it can kinda distort…especially
00:00:36 –> 00:00:40 when you’re cutting canes and that kind of thing, it can…I just don’t like the
00:00:40 –> 00:00:46 width of the blade, but they work if that’s where you need to start.
00:00:46 –> 00:00:50 Another thing that a lot of people use is an Exacto knife, now, exacto knives are good
00:00:50 –> 00:00:56 for little details, or if you have to cutout a particular shape, but they’re not very
00:00:56 –> 00:01:03 good for cutting out things like a cane, they’re just not wide enough, they’re not big enough
00:01:03 –> 00:01:11 and I find I rarely use the Exacto knife.But one thing that I go to everyday is a clay
00:01:11 –> 00:01:19 blade, now here I’ve got few different kinds of clay blades, this is just kind of a cheap
00:01:19 –> 00:01:24 brand…ignore the little red things, those are pieces of Sugru that I’ve put little
00:01:24 –> 00:01:31 handles on there, but the clay blade…this is like from Amaco, I believe and it was just
00:01:31 –> 00:01:37 in a kit at Michaels, and it’s a nice stiff blade, it doesn’t bend…it bends a little
00:01:37 –> 00:01:43 bit but not too much, so it’s really good for cutting something like a cane where you
00:01:43 –> 00:01:49 want it to not bend too much when you’re cutting through something…you want it to
00:01:49 –> 00:01:55 stay straight, it’s good for that.But then there’s another set that you can also get
00:01:55 –> 00:02:00 easily at somewhere like Michaels or a craft store or online or wherever, and it’s made
00:02:00 –> 00:02:06 by Sculpey, it’s called the super slicer and they’ve got quite a few blades to it,
00:02:06 –> 00:02:13 it actually comes with two handles, but you can see I put one handle on this longer stiffer
00:02:13 –> 00:02:22 blade and one handle on this shorter, flexible blade.I don’t ever cut with… really too
00:02:22 –> 00:02:28 much with the handles at the end, but I do like to cut… sometimes I like to draw my
00:02:28 –> 00:02:32 knife through and if you’ve got a handle on the other end, it’s not gonna cut through
00:02:32 –> 00:02:42 as easily.But I just wanna show you that the flexible blades are a little bit harder to
00:02:42 –> 00:02:48 keep really, really straight, but they still work for slicing, the little bit stiffer is
00:02:48 –> 00:02:56 a little bit better for cutting a nice even slice from a cane.Now they also carry, in
00:02:56 –> 00:03:02 the set some… this is like a ripple blade, this is the larger ripple…I’m going to
00:03:02 –> 00:03:07 cut something that is not a cane with that, and you can see, you’re gonna get kind of
00:03:07 –> 00:03:15 like a ripple like a ripple chip, and they have a finer one that has an even finer cut
00:03:15 –> 00:03:20 to it, I think they’re neat, they have their place, you can use them for certain things,
00:03:20 –> 00:03:27 I just don’t often grab them, I really mostly just use the stiffer blade or the flexible
00:03:27 –> 00:03:28 blade.
00:03:28 –> 00:03:32 Now, when you’re doing larger sheets, or you wanna cut out something…let’s see,
00:03:32 –> 00:03:37 I’ll run a little piece through here, the nice thing about a flexible blade is that
00:03:37 –> 00:03:46 you can really curve it, and cut out something with a curve to it, or you can, you know,
00:03:46 –> 00:03:51 bend it whatever way you want to, and it really is nice for cutting out pendants and that
00:03:51 –> 00:03:56 type of thing…oh I have something here, I’ll just grab it, something like this pendant
00:03:56 –> 00:04:02 here, this Faux Abalone pendant, I had a flexible blade, and I could cut it how I wanted to
00:04:02 –> 00:04:08 in whatever direction, so that is really helpful to have a flexible blade in certain situations.
00:04:08 –> 00:04:15 Now, I just wanted to mention, I think… there’s a company that I’ve got to know…
00:04:15 –> 00:04:23 a guy from Brazil who has a Polymer clay brand that used to be called Bozzi, now it’s called
00:04:23 –> 00:04:31 PV Clay and…but he had sent me a few samples… and I’ll show them to you some time, but
00:04:31 –> 00:04:36 in his pack of samples, he had this Polymer clay blade in there.
00:04:36 –> 00:04:40 This is very, very interesting, I think that North American brands should think about something
00:04:40 –> 00:04:47 like this, it’s almost like a plastic, it’s super, super thin, but the blade itself actually
00:04:47 –> 00:04:52 won’t cut you, I don’t know if you could… you may be able to cut yourself if you really
00:04:52 –> 00:05:00 worked at it, but it’s not sharp, but it’s so thin that it cuts through… like a cane,
00:05:00 –> 00:05:07 really nicely, so it would be a perfect solution for children or people that you were worried
00:05:07 –> 00:05:10 about getting cut, ‘cause you’re just not gonna cut yourself with something like
00:05:10 –> 00:05:16 this, where some of these other blades are really…can be very, very sharp, and if you
00:05:16 –> 00:05:19 pick them up the wrong direction, you could end up cutting yourself.
00:05:19 –> 00:05:23 So I just thought this is an interesting product, I don’t know, he may have a patent on it,
00:05:23 –> 00:05:27 and I don’t know how easy it is for you to get them since he’s in Brazil, but it
00:05:27 –> 00:05:31 was an interesting idea that I thought I’d share with you.
00:05:31 –> 00:05:35 So, I hope that was helpful for you, that you understand a little bit more about Polymer
00:05:35 –> 00:05:38 clay blades.
00:05:38 –> 00:05:46 There are some artists that love to use something called a Tissue blade which is a steel blade
00:05:46 –> 00:05:49 that is used in the medical industry, but you kinda have to special order those, and
00:05:49 –> 00:05:55 they’re extremely sharp, but they are good, but I found that any of these ones are good
00:05:55 –> 00:05:57 enough to work with Polymer clay.
00:05:57 –> 00:06:02 So, I hope you found that helpful, if you liked it, make sure to let us know.
00:06:02 –> 00:06:08 And if you have any products or ideas or problems that you’d like me to do a video on in the
00:06:08 –> 00:06:13 future leave those in the comment section below, we love to hear from you.
00:06:13 –> 00:06:15 Alright, so we’ll see you next time and bye for now.
Our goal is to translate these videos into as many languages as possible. If you are interested in helping with this initiative, then please do contact us and we will figure out a way to make it worth your while :)
Resource Links:
- Related Video: How To Slice Round Polymer Canes Without Distortion
- Related Video: Sugru Hack for the Amaco Bead Rack
- Amazon: Polymer Clay Blades **
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Can you confirm that the PVClay blade you showed was not metal?
Hi Janie, all I can confirm is that it looks like metal and seems like plastic. I don’t know if it is a super thin piece of metal with a plastic coating of some sort, or a plastic that looks like metal. Edinho has never confirmed this to me. It is just a guess.
Cindy,
Thanks for the information. However, I am not sure it is the blade you showed on your video. The blade on that Web site is steel with a warning about injuries. Didn’t you say the one you showed was a plastic material?
Thanks for your dedication to helping me find a safe blade for my students.
Janie
Hmmm, I thought that was the right blade. Maybe you better see if you can ask Edinho yourself? He should have some contact info there somewhere. I am afraid that if I try and get in the middle of the conversation, something might get ‘lost in translation’. Good luck! Let us know how it goes!
Cindy,
I recently viewed your video on clay blades. The PVClay blade looks perfect for a special needs group (Advocates for the Rights of the Challenged*) that I volunteer with. I have been teaching them to make beaded jewelry, which they sell to raise money for their programs. Yesterday for the first time they saw some of my polymer clay pieces I asked me to teach them some of those techniques.
Do you have any additional information on buying the flexible blades from Bozzi/PVClay? I have searched online but can’t find a vendor for them.
Thanks,
Janie
Hi Janie, I heard from Edinho Juliotti. This is what he said:
“Hi Cindy Lietz, you already know that I’m big fan of yours. I greatly admire your work and your ability to explain issues that apparently are difficult, and you make them so easy to understand. Of course, I can not forget the support of your husband Doug. I will always recommend your videos. In the fanpage PVClay-Polymer Clay exists “Estimate” tab, which should be used by people who are interested in buying the product PVClay. For this, they should fill out the form to then be informed by email.”
Let me know how it all turns out.
Cindy, Thanks for the information. But, I had a problem with Facebook and I closed my account. Do you have any method other than FB to contact Edinho about the cutter?
Hi Janie, here is a link that goes directly to his website where he is selling the flex blades. It looks like he has it up and running again.
Hi Cindy
I have lately seen almost all of your 400 videos and I couldnt find one that would tell me what type of gold should we use with polymeric clay. Has it got to be 12 k or 24 k or can we use the fake gold leaves.
I am writing from Argentina .
Tanks for all your information in the net
Love
Ainka
Hi Ainka, thank you for your comment. Hello to Argentina from Canada! I am happy that you have watched so many videos!! You can use fake gold leaf. It looks just as pretty and is not as expensive. Use the 12K or 24K when you become a professional selling very high priced jewelry! ;)
Hi Paula,
Welcome! A good starting point for questions is the search box under the menu bar above. This blog goes back years and just about everything has been discussed at least once.
I can give you some suggestions for warming up your canes. First try using body heat. Try tucking the cane against a warm spot on your body (usually while sitting :-) ). Some people use other sources of warm (but not too hot!) heat but I am always afraid of partially cooking the clay. If my body heat goes above 100 degrees I’m probably feeling too awful to clay anyway!
Once a little warm, try “moving” the clay. Gently pound it against your table, turning as you go. Hold both ends and gently twist and shake. Run your fingers along the clay as if reducing but gently enough that you don’t actually start reducing. If the clay has been sitting a while you may have to be very patient to get the results you want. Good thing to do while watching TV.
Not all wraps and plastics are created equal. Some brands contain plasticizers that can react with the clay. I use a plastic cling film that I got at a natural foods store, and I believe the important feature with it is that it does not contain polyethylene. I also use a type of paper called deli wrap. It’s the type of wrap that they use use at delis and butchers to separate meats and cheese. Usually found at restaurant supply retailers, my local clay guild buys it in bulk to sell to members. And I have used baking parchment paper as that is also useful sometimes as a temporary work surface. (I wonder from the time you posted if you are outside the US? That’s why I described the materials rather than gave brand names.)
Also, if you use the Type 5 recyclable plastics box, you can store the canes without having to wrap them individually. (Look for the number 5 in a triangle or circle on the bottom of the box. I think several countries use the same numbering system for plastic recycling.) You can just put a small piece of cling wrap, deli wrap or parchment paper between the canes.
Hope this helps.
Oops I answered Paula without reading further… You did a much better job at helping her out Bertha! Thank you so much for steeping in to help. I am getting swamped with questions these days, and love getting the support from you and the other kind people who step in when I am slow to respond. Thanks again for all your support!
Hi Cindy, glad to help when it’s a question I can answer. I see how many questions you get here and on YouTube and I am amazed you even have time to test ideas, techniques, and tools and still make videos! Thanks for the great work you do!
Sorry, I realized belatedly that I need to make a correction. Polyethylene is not the worst plastic: polyvinylchloride (PVC) is often the culprit in plastics that are bad for polymer clay. It is recycling #3, found in some food containers and plastic wraps. It usually contains plasticizers, which is the stuff some clayers mix into hard unworkable unbaked polymer clay to soften it up, so of course good clay would get too soft if in contact with them.
So the plastics to definitely avoid are PVC and others that leech plasticizers. Again, the safest containers are recycling code #5, i.e. polypropylene. For example, Cindy suggests using sheet protectors to store sheets of clay blends and the ones I have are all polypropylene. If unsure, test the plastic as she describes in other posts/videos.
(This is why I shouldn’t try to help when my brain is feeling the combined effects of pollen season with the disorientation from lots of business travel! ;-) )
I work full-time. And I also am trying to start a jewelry business. I like to make up Skinner blends or sheets with my canes on them. I do this one day and then use them later. My question is how do you warm up the clay so you can use it to wraparound something and the clay does not crack. Also how do you store them so they do not leech. I have tried Wax paper, I’ve tried cellophane and I always seem to issue there
Hi Paula, the answer to these questions can be found by using the search box at the top of the blog. Use words like ‘storing clay sheets’ and ‘cellophane’ or ‘plastic wrap’ and you will find some interesting videos, posts and comments that will help you greatly!