How to Start
Working with Polymer Clay (continued)

Shape Cutters

There are two main types of shape cutters. The first ones look like cookie cutters. They come in various shapes and sizes and may be found in the polymer clay section in most craft stores. These shape cutters are sold in sets, and the price varies a lot. Expect to pay about $5.00 for a set of this type of cutters.

The other type is called Shapelets and is available in sets of different stencils that need to be used with an X-acto knife. Some people like them better than the cookie-cutter type. Shapelets are available in sets for about $3.00 or $4.00 each. They also come in Stamplets kits (together with a few blocks of clay, some stamps, and an instruction booklet), for a little under $20.00.

The way Murphy's laws work for these cutters is that any two shapes you need at the moment are usually packed in two different sets. So, be prepared – you may have to buy more then one set.

Alternatively some shape cutters may be substituted with cookie cutters from your kitchen. The smallest round ones can be made out of plastic straws. Some shapes may be cut out with a knife or even with scissors.

An X-acto Knife

The cheapest X-acto knife I saw was about $2.00. It is a pretty useful tool, but you may want to substitute it with a regular knife from your kitchen for now.

Blade(s)

Blades for polymer clay are available for about $5.00 per pair in craft stores, but for some projects they may be substituted with a disposable cutter from a home improvement store for about $0.50 (if there is a handyman in your house, check with him first – I bet he has a few of those already).

For safety, I suggest marking the dull side of the blade with some nail polish. Trust me – these things are very sharp, and grasping a wrong end of them is not a good thing.

A Ripple Blade

Sorry, no substitute for this one. Either find another project or spend $2.00 on this blade. By the way, it is one of those special tools that are only needed for one type of a task. The results are beautiful, though.

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