Jewelry Techniques for Getting a Uniform Polymer Clay Bead Size

Two Methods for Making A Set of Beads That Are All Exactly The Same Size:

According to several recent comments, one common challenge you face is making polymer clay beads of a uniform shape and size. At first I was surprised by this… since one of the free videos you received when you first subscribed to my Polymer Clay Newsletter, addresses this very issue. Then I realized that many of you may not even be on the Polymer Clay Tutor Guest List. Or perhaps it's because you saw the video so long ago that you have forgotten the information in it.

So I thought I would do a quick review of how to make your polymer clay beads all the same size and point you in the right direction for more information on the subject.

First of all, the only way to make beads all the same size is to start with the same amount of clay. This is very tricky to do by eye as many of you have already figured out.

To easily and accurately measure out the same sized amounts of clay, I like to do it in two different ways.

The first method is to start with an evenly rolled log of polymer clay and divide it into equal sized lengths. A rubber flexible ruler with raised markings often used in schools, is a cheap and accurate way to get perfectly spaced markings on the clay log. Just press the raised measurement lines that are on the ruler, into the clay and use the little dents as guides for cutting. You might cut your pieces at every 1/4 inch mark or every 1/8th mark and so on, depending on the size you want your beads to be. Once these log slices are rolled into their bead shape, they will each be the same size.

Another way to measure out equal amount of clay is with a pasta machine and a cookie cutter. Roll out a sheet of clay and use a cookie cutter to cut out pieces of equal sized clay. You can vary the amount of clay you get by either changing the thickness of the sheet of clay, or the size of the cutter. The cutter shape doesn't matter since the clay will be formed into whatever bead you are making. Just use the same cutter at the same thickness and the beads will be all the same size.

As with all the polymer clay techniques I teach you, they are often much easier to understand when they are seen in a video. For that reason I have been putting together a library of polymer clay tutorial videos that will really help you with the learning process.

If you would like to see the video I created of the technique I just described you will need to make sure and get signed up on the Polymer Clay Tutor Guest List. You can also watch a introduction preview video here: Making Polymer Clay Beads All the Same Size

I hope this helps you guys out. If you have any more questions on how to make even sized polymer clay beads, make sure to ask below… I am here to help!