• About
  • Press
  • Advertise

Craft Test Dummies

The Crafting Blog for Crafters, By Crafters

  • Craft News
    • CHA Coverage
    • Crafting for a Cause
    • Giveaways
    • CTD on TV
    • Quilt Market
  • Craft Product Reviews
    • Apps & Sites
    • Art Supplies/Mixed Media
    • Beads/Jewelry Products
    • Books, Magazines, Events
    • Comparisons
    • Crafty Tools
    • Fabric, Needle, & Quilting Arts
    • Food Crafts
    • Paints, Inks & Dyes
    • Paper Crafts
    • Polymer Clay & Tools
  • Craft Storage and Tips
  • Crafty People & Places
    • Crafty Field Trips
  • Kids Stuff
    • Hands On Crafts For Kids-TV show
  • Winter/Christmas
  • Home Decor
  • Food Crafting/ Party Crafts
  • Valentine’s /Sweetest Day
  • Spring/Easter
  • Wedding & Shower Crafts
  • Father’s Day Crafts
  • Baby & Shower Crafts
  • Mother’s Day Crafts
  • Patriotic crafts
  • Summer Crafts
  • Fall Crafts
    • Halloween Crafts
  • Jenny Sez
    • Sponsored Posts
  • Periscope Superfans Page
Home / Craft Projects / How to Cut Polymer Clay with the Cricut

How to Cut Polymer Clay with the Cricut

August 12, 2011

A while ago my pal Lisa Pavelka was showing off her fabulous Pardo Jewellry Clay by Viva Decor at CHA Winter 2011- it’s so flexible after baking, you can actually use a paper punch to cut it! So I got to thinking- why not cut it with a Cricut? I played around a bit, and actually got it to work. Here’s how you do it.

Learn how to cut polymer clay with your Cricut die-cutting machine!

wp_ad_camp_4

Condition your clay well– I actually used scrap clay from various projects, so it’s a mish-mash of Pardo, Sculpey and Premo. (PS- I tried this later with straight-up Premo & it did not work as well as the mixed clay.) Roll it through a pasta machine (yes, you kinda need one for this) until it’s at it’s thinnest setting. Then place the clay on a sheet of deli-wrap and roll it through again. Do this carefully-make sure there are no bubbles or huge wrinkles- because you’ll bake the clay on this sheet.

wp_ad_camp_4
Bake your clay. Watch it carefully- it’s so thin it shouldn’t take more than 10 minutes or so! Remove the deli paper as quickly as you can. It likes to stick if it cools fully. (That’s not a problem, though- you can just use a scrubbie to remove the excess paper that has stuck on.)

wp_ad_camp_4

Fully cured, the sheet will be flexible.

wp_ad_camp_4

Get ready to cut. Using blue painter’s tape, secure your sheet of clay to the mat. Set your cutting guide to “heavy paper” if you have an E2, or use {speed:5 pressure:5 depth:2} if you don’t. And for both, I recommend the multi-cut feature and have it cut TWICE.

There she goes!

First Attempts

wp_ad_camp_4

You may need to go back over it a bit with a craft blade, but I’m still pretty impressed with the results!

Done with layers.

wp_ad_camp_4

I have also written a follow-up article on what brands of polymer clays are best for making the thin sheets of clay, or “veneers”, for using with punches and both manual and electric die-cutting machines. That may help you out, too.

Now to play with different ways to use it. Ideas, anyone? : )

wp_ad_camp_4

If you are considering purchasing a Cricut, I’d appreciate it if you used my affiliate links:

  • About the Author
  • Latest Posts

About Jenny

Chief Craft Test Dummy, Craft Evangelist, Founder, Editor, bottle-washer, trouble-maker, and creative whirlwind.
  • Spooky Spider Halloween Bookmark Craft - October 24, 2018
  • Review and Demo of LDRS Hybrid Ink Pads - October 15, 2018
  • Review and Demo of Nuvo Hybrid Inks - October 1, 2018
  • Craft Studio Tour and Organization Ideas - September 20, 2018
  • Wax Paper Resist Background Technique - March 20, 2018
  • Comparison of Liquid Watercolor Markers/Pens - March 16, 2018
  • SAI Japanese Traditional Watercolor Brush Markers- Review & Demo - February 23, 2018
  • Rinea Metallic Foil Paper & Ghost Ink Review - February 21, 2018
  • Jane Davenport debuts at Creativation 2018 & Watercolor Card - February 13, 2018
  • Creativation 2018: New Product Showcase - January 20, 2018

Posted in Craft Projects, Polymer & Air-Dry Clays | 25 Comments

Comments

  1. Jaleh says

    August 12, 2011 at 10:27

    That is really cool! I’ll have to keep that idea in mind if I ever buy a Cricut.

  2. Laura says

    August 12, 2011 at 10:58

    That looks like fun! Jewelry … embellishments … the possibilities are endless! Thanks for sharing!

  3. Caroline D. says

    August 12, 2011 at 12:23

    Wow! I am impressed!! Makes me want to get a cricut….

  4. Elaine Akers says

    August 13, 2011 at 09:58

    What number did you use on your Cricut to cut the clay?

  5. Jenny says

    August 13, 2011 at 10:02

    Elaine- Not sure which “number” you needed, but the Cricut settings are the body of the post. 🙂

  6. Elaine Akers says

    August 13, 2011 at 10:13

    Jenny..thanks, I scanned the article quickly and apparently I missed the settings info. I reread the article, and definately will be trying this. I mentioned this article on my blog. Hope others try this too..so many possibilities.

  7. Kelsey says

    August 13, 2011 at 10:49

    Would be great with the Doodlecharms cartridge.

  8. Jan says

    August 13, 2011 at 12:00

    Great minds think alike. I recently bought the smalle personalized cricuit and a blade made for heavier cutting with the same idea in mind. Haven’t had a chance to use it yet, but I have used the heavier punches on clay. This doesn’t always work, I think it depends on the clays thickness and hardness. I’ll keep trying and can’t wait to try the cricuit.

  9. mel mccarthy says

    August 13, 2011 at 13:40

    This is such a brilliant idea. Thanks for sharing it! I’ve had polymer clay on the brain lately…

  10. Jenny says

    August 13, 2011 at 14:04

    Late breaking news: I experimented with 3 brands of polymer clay today: Pardo, Premo, and Sculpey 3. The Sculpey by FAR worked the best with the Cricut. I’ll have a full post on that comparison coming soon, but I thought you all would want to know right now.

  11. MsJoyceG says

    August 13, 2011 at 15:27

    Yikes .. I like, I like .. yep I like. TFS

  12. Molly says

    August 14, 2011 at 02:26

    I wonder if this would work with my electric Sizzix machine.
    Maybe I will have to expermint.

  13. Jenny says

    August 14, 2011 at 12:26

    Molly- not sure what an “electric Sizzix” is, but YES, you can use with manual dies in a Cuttlebug/ Big Shot. Watch soon for my post on comparisons of clay in making veneers…. ; )

  14. Amyscats says

    August 15, 2011 at 06:00

    I’ve been wanting to try cutting polymer clay with my Cricut, figured they’d come out with one dedicated to it eventually, like the cake version. Wasn’t sure if I should bake it first or not – but it seemed to make sense to bake it first. You’ve saved me the experimentation! Can’t wait to try it.

  15. Linda says

    March 14, 2012 at 09:12

    You say that when using Pardo, Sculpey and Premo that you should bake it first before cutting. I wonder if Fimo should be baked first, as I know when putting it through paper punches you normally punch with Fimo in its unbaked state.
    I have tried fimo in the cuttlebug – unbaked – between two pieces of aluminum foil and using a cuttlebug die but it wasn’t all that successful.

  16. Jenny says

    March 14, 2012 at 11:09

    I would highly recommend curing ALL brands of clay before using them in an electric die cutting machine. Cured clay had the stiffness necessary to allow the blade to cut cleanly without “dragging” Worst-case scenario is that raw clay could crumble or goo up the innards, making a mess inside and rendering your machine unusable for paper-or anything else!

  17. Sabine Spiesser says

    November 30, 2013 at 23:28

    Don’t try this with a Silhouette, the blades would not last long if they even do one design. It has enough issues with transparency sheets. You would need a custom holder and blades.

  18. Guccigirl08723 says

    July 9, 2014 at 16:10

    I tried this and as I suspected…it didn’t even come close to cutting the clay! And yes I used a clay machine and yes it was the thinnest setting. I also followed the rest of the instructions.,using the strongest settings possible..but all it did was make a VERY light indention..I’m disappointed as I had hoped it would have worked, but again..didn’t really think it would.

  19. Jenny says

    July 9, 2014 at 16:27

    Two things to try- 1) roll your pasta through the machine with a layer of deli wrap to make the clay even thinner (not all pasta machines roll thin enough for this) and then, after it’s baked, 2) use the deep-cut blade that they have available. It worked for me, more than once, so it’s not a fluke. Good luck!

  20. Maureen says

    March 11, 2015 at 01:12

    Oh my! I have to try this with the Cricut Explore! Seriously Jenny, what would we all do without you!

  21. annebee says

    April 30, 2016 at 20:17

    cool, will have to try this…curious about the embossing blade…

  22. Jenny says

    May 9, 2016 at 13:38

    Since the clay is cured and hard, it really shouldn’t emboss.

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

ctd-headshot-round

Hi! I’m Jenny, the co-host of Hands On Crafts for Kids on PBS and the Head Dummy behind CraftTestDummies.com where you’ll find craft product reviews, tutorials, and craft industry news.

ctd-fb ctd-pin ctd-twitter cts-insta ctd-youtube ctd-g ctd-email

Search

ctd-subscribe
Want weekly craft projects delivered straight to your inbox?

YouTube

Disclosure

CraftTestDummies is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.

jenny-headshot-square

Jenny Barnett Rohrs is Head Dummy and Pied Piper behind CTD, which focuses on reviews, tutorials, and craft industry news. Jenny has appeared on HSN, Scrapbook Soup PBS series, and is currently the co-host of Hands On Crafts for Kids on PBS.

ctd-fb-30  ctd-pin-30  ctd-twitter-30  cts-insta-30  ctd-youtube-30  ctd-g-30  ctd-email-30  ctd-rss-30

Copyrighted Content Permission All images and tutorials on this blog are copyrighted material. Please contact me if you would like to borrow any media (photos, video or audio files), tutorials, or ideas from this blog. 99% of the time I would be happy to allow you to use one photo with appropriate credit and link back to CraftTestDummies.com (preferably to the same post it was borrowed from.)
clever-network  linqia  viglink

All content copyright © 2015 Craft Test Dummies | Privacy Policy | Disclosures | Site design by XO Sarah

MENU
  • Craft News
    • CHA Coverage
    • Crafting for a Cause
    • Giveaways
    • CTD on TV
    • Quilt Market
  • Craft Product Reviews
    • Apps & Sites
    • Art Supplies/Mixed Media
    • Beads/Jewelry Products
    • Books, Magazines, Events
    • Comparisons
    • Crafty Tools
    • Fabric, Needle, & Quilting Arts
    • Food Crafts
    • Paints, Inks & Dyes
    • Paper Crafts
    • Polymer Clay & Tools
  • Craft Storage and Tips
  • Crafty People & Places
    • Crafty Field Trips
  • Kids Stuff
    • Hands On Crafts For Kids-TV show
  • Winter/Christmas
  • Home Decor
  • Food Crafting/ Party Crafts
  • Valentine’s /Sweetest Day
  • Spring/Easter
  • Wedding & Shower Crafts
  • Father’s Day Crafts
  • Baby & Shower Crafts
  • Mother’s Day Crafts
  • Patriotic crafts
  • Summer Crafts
  • Fall Crafts
    • Halloween Crafts
  • Jenny Sez
    • Sponsored Posts
  • Periscope Superfans Page