TUTORIAL / How to attach earring posts to polymer clay

We are commonly asked by makers how they should adhere their earring posts to polymer clay. In this blog post, we provide you with lots of different techniques you can follow, test and trial yourself so you can determine which technique works best for you.

I am going to break this down into three segments.

1. Glue - Some makers swear by it, others couldn’t run fast enough away from it. There are lots of different glues on the market, but you will want to steer towards super glue for polymer clay earrings. Common ones used include Loctite super glue, Gorilla super glue gel & Zap super glue. These can commonly be found in local hardwares.

2. Resin - Makers enjoy doming the front of their earrings as well as securing their earring posts with it. They do this by embedding the post with resin, applying it to the entire surface of the back of the polymer clay. Once the resin has been applied, the clay can not cure in the oven again [unlike liquid Sculpey, which we discuss in the next point].

Please note that resin is toxic and requires full PPE gear. Working in a ventilated room is extremely important too. Some people choose to not work with resin simply due to the health concerns associated with it, which is completely understandable, but plenty of makers still enjoy using it as it’s an incredible medium to play with!

3. Liquid Sculpey is becoming increasingly popular. Similar to resin, makers embed their earring posts with liquid Sculpey and then bake it in the oven.

4. Embedding earring posts in the clay is about as secure as an earring can get. If done correctly, there is absolutely no way the earring will separate from the clay. This can be a little more difficult, especially if you are looking for a very clean finish, but like all things, practice makes perfect.

Happy making!