Tips on How to Make Polymer Clay Beads – Piercing the Bead Hole
So you're learning all about polymer clay. That's Super! Making holes in beads is an important part of the process:
This article will provide you with 10 easy tips for polymer clay bead piercing…
1) Coat bead pins with water or cornstarch before insertion.
2) Twist bead pin as you are push it into the bead.
3) Push bead pin into clay lightly to avoid distortion.
4) Sand your bead pins every once in awhile between uses, to remove rust and drips of finish from the pin. A smooth pin goes into the bead a lot easier than a rough pin.
5) Wear gloves or coat fingers with cornstarch to avoid putting finger prints on bead while piercing. This is especially important when holding awkward shapes like the bi-cone bead and lentil beads.
6) Let beads cool down or rest before piercing them. A warm bead will distort easily.
7) Pierce a bead relatively soon after letting it rest. If you wait too long like a day or two, then the bead may crack when you try and pierce it.
8) Wipe down bead pins with rubbing alcohol to make sure they are really clean.
9) If you use a bamboo skewer for a bead pin make sure to coat with cornstarch to avoid having the bead stick to the skewer.
10) For large hole beads like tube beads, or beads for hemp jewelry, etc. try using a knitting needle.
I hope this info on how to make polymer clay beads was helpful. If you need to make beads with large holes, then the article at this link will be helpful too: Drilling Holes in Beads for Polymer Clay Jewelry Projects
And here's one other article on piercing bead holes.
Filed Under: 02: Tools, 05: Techniques, 06: Bead Shapes by Comment. 
Leave a Comment
Comments on Tips on How to Make Polymer Clay Beads – Piercing the Bead Hole
10:15 am
Cindy, Thanks for the great tip about piercing bead holes! I’ll give it a shot
3:59 pm
You're welcome Bretta! Let me know how it goes!
Cindy Lietz's last blog post..Tips on How to Make Polymer Clay Beads
9:30 pm
OK, now I get why I have so many wonky beads – I've been piercing the holes before baking the beads. My perfect little spheres become elliptical with an off -kilter axis! I've been enjoying their individual personalities, but what a long way from the professional look I keep hoping for! I guess it's time to close the wonky bead factory and try the proper method!!!
Thanks for another insightful lesson!
SP
2:57 pm
No Sue you can still pierce your beads while they are raw, you just have to let them rest a bit after rolling so they can firm up a little. This way they won't get so wonky!
Cindy Lietz's last blog post..Slicing Fimo Nail Art Canes | Sculpey Polymer Clay Cake Toppers
3:06 am
Im confused…i thought the clay will harden after baking. Can it still be pierced?
1:43 pm
Well Ratch, not really pierced after it's baked, but drilled with a drill bit. I wrote about how to drill holes in beads in a post awhile back. If you want to read that article click on the "Bead Holes" link beside my name above. Thank you for commenting!
1:50 pm
I want to make a hemp braclet but the clay beads i bought have to small of a hole… how do you make the holes in the beads bigger?
7:05 pm
If they are made from polymer clay it is easy. There is lots of info on drilling beads if you type 'bead holes' into the search box at the top of the page.
If they are made of ceramic clay you may need a bead reamer.
2:09 pm
I was having a terrible time trying to pierce holes in my beads, even after following your tips. The pin never seemed to come out where it was supposed to! Practice does help though. For the past few days, I've been making lentil beads to practice my piercing skills. Poor little beads, they were poked and prodded over and over! I'd pierce each one 3 and 4 times, just for practice. And it's paying off! I managed to pierce a half dozen good beads this afternoon, and the holes came out pretty much where I wanted them! Yay!
I also took your advice and bought the bead baking rack so I'd have the pins. That helped a lot, too. I was using a needle, but it wasn't long enough. Those pins really work well.
I'll send some pix of my successes, once I get some beads baked and sanded.
Thanks for all the tips! I LOVE this site! I've done more with my clay since I found this site than I did in the entire two years before this.
4:45 pm
I'm so glad to hear you are having success with the techniques you are learning here, Darlene. Thanks for sharing your thoughts. And I look forward to seeing your pictures.