WHAT TOOLS DO I NEED TO GET STARTED?

If you’re a metal clay beginner, you will need:
- a non-stick work surface such as our teflon sheets, acrylic underlay or Art Clay
worksheet.
- a plastic roller like our economy roller or clear acrylic roller.
- playing cards, spacer bars, or rolling frames.
- a non-stick solution such as badger balm or a little olive oil.
- a couple of small pots for water
- a paintbrush
- a scalpel or cutting tool
- some sanding pads
- some metal clay
- firing equipment; either a kiln, a blow torch & fibre brick or a stainless steel mesh
to place on top of a hob.
We recommend purchasing our Art Clay Basic Kit which includes all the essential tools
to get started

A few of our other favourites tools:

Clay shapers are perfect for using with your Art Clay. They come with differently
shaped and sized silicone tips. We use them all the time - to even out edges, smooth
out joints and surfaces, poke stones in place and for all sorts of stuff!
Texture tiles and mats are ideal for creating surface patterns, shapes to cut out and to
decorate your pieces with. Spray the texture with a little Cool Slip or olive oil to stop
the clay from sticking.
As beautiful as they are, you don’t have to just use commercial textures and stamps;
have a look around you and you'll start finding loads of interesting surfaces, textures,
patterns and shapes you can use with your clay. Look at leaves, fabric, paper, lace,
bark, shells, corals, tools, cutlery, combs - once you start looking you'll find some
fabulous things for free!

You can also easily create your own textures with a V-shaped carving tool
and the Flexi-Carve Silicone Carving Sheets or rubber sheet.
Get a metal clay work surface or a piece of acrylic, glass or stone to work on. Teflon
and TUFF cards and sheets are excellent but check that they won't give your work a
slight pattern - there are super smooth ones available. Good quality baking papers
with teflon coating also work, but they can crinkle when they get wet. Make sure your
works surface is non-absorbent.

If you are going to use a roller, you can cover your piece with another sheet of baking paper before rolling it, to stop the clay from
sticking. Much easier than using olive oil on your tools! It will also help to stop the
clay from drying out too fast.
To roll out flat sheets of clay you need a roller and spacers. This ensures you get an
even thickness across the sheet, and that it isn't too thin. You simply place the
spacers on each side of the clay, and use the roller like a normal rolling pin. You can
make do with stacks of playing cards as spacers when you start up. You want your
clay to be a minimum of 1mm.
If your hands are very dry or hot, rinse them in cool water and rub in a few drops of
olive oil, a little Badger Balm, Slik, or a similar product, whilst your hands are still a
little wet. This will stop your dry skin from drying out the clay.

We think a sharp scalpel, craft knife, or needle tool is vital! Check out this surgical
version with replaceable blades. We use this to cut out little shapes, tidy up edges on
dry clay, cut out fretwork, carve designs on dry clay, and so on. Make sure the blade is
sharp, and change it if you notice that it starts to 'pull' the clay.

Needle files are perfect for re-shaping and adjusting your pieces before (and after)
firing. Do take the time to finish your piece carefully before firing. This is much easier
than doing it when the Art Clay has changed into its metal form, and it creates a
much more professional looking finish.
Start with files, and finish off with sanding sponges or fine abrasive paper.

Sanding sponges are a MUST in your tool kit! Be careful and gentle as the clay is fragile in its
plaster-like state. Use a rubber block to support your piece and stop it slipping.
After firing you need to polish up your silver. You can do this in many different ways,
depending on the finish you're after.
To start with, you need a brass or stainless steel brush. Just brush over the surface to
smooth it down. A brass brush gives you a lovely satin sheen, whilst a steel brush
gives a more scratched look.
For a higher shine on small areas, go over them with a burnisher. Just rub firmly over
the surface, this compresses the silver and gives it a nice sparkle. It is great fun, but
only use it on smaller areas. If you use this technique on a large un-textured surface,
it will leave little tell-tale lines and marks. For larger areas, use polishing papers or
sanding sponges for a mirror finish.

OK, I HAVE MY TOOLS READY, NOW WHAT? 

Cut off as much clay as you need, and wrap the rest up carefully in cling film and in a sealed pot or bag. The Art Clay Moisturising Pot is a great tool for both storing and rehydrating dry clay. Silver clay is air drying so it's important that you wrap any clay you're not working with up tightly straight away to keep it from drying out.

Put the clay you are going to use in some cling film and squeeze it gently for a few seconds, just to soften it a little before you start working. 

If you are rolling out your clay, do so on a non-stick surface.

Use a damp finger or brush to smooth out and moisten the clay every now and then, if you are working with it for a long time. Don’t add too much water or it might get a bit sticky.

If you are using cutters or textures, coat them slightly with a non-stick (Cool Slip, Badger Balm, or olive oil) before use to stop them sticking to the clay.

SO, HOW DOES SILVER CLAY WORK? 

Step 1 - Roll out the clay Unwrap a little bit of clay and place on your non-stick surface. Use spacers and roller to roll out the clay into a sheet of even thickness. Lift it up and turn it over halfway through rolling to ensure it is even. Don't stretch the clay when lifting or moving it. When working with fine silver clay you want to keep the clay a minimum of 1mm thick. Add a texture if you wish. A texture tile or stamp is a quick and easy way, but you can use lace, the back of a leaf, grass from the garden, cutlery handles, a fingerprint - once you start looking round you'll spot textures in the strangest of places! Take into account the depth of your texture imprint, even if the sheet of clay is rolled out 1mm thick - if you have a 0.8mm deep "valley" from a texture imprint in the middle of the piece, you're creating a very thin spot in the clay which will be a weak part. Remember - keep the thinnest part of your clay no less than 1mm. Of course, you can also use textures especially designed for clay work - we sell a huge range

Step 2 - Create the shape   Shape and refine your design. You can use a cookie cutter or a shape template and needle tool.  Use a drinking straw to cut out a hole to hang your piece on a chain.

Step 3 - Fire and polish   Fire your piece. This can be done in 5-10 minutes using a gas stove, a kitchen torch, or in a kiln.   Read the firing instructions carefully. We recommend you fire silver clay for as long and as hot as possible.   The manufacturers firing times are the minimum recommended. If you have access to a kiln our standard firing schedule would be 800C for 30-45 mins.    Bring up a shine with a soft brass brush and polish further if you wish.

Ta-da, you're finished!  Hang the piece on a chain or leather cord using a jump ring. Now wear (or give away) with pride!

Metal clay is a wonderful, almost magical material. It's made from extremely fine particles of metal, mixed with organic binders and water. You shape it like modelling clay, leave it to dry, and then fire to burn off the binder - you're left with real fine silver!