Polymer Clay Surface Effect Tutorials

Polymer clay surface effects include everything to do with manipulating the surface of your clay. Tutorials will  cover everything from silk screening to Swellegant, antiquing to Pebeo paints.

I'll show a broad range of fun techniques that involve lots of experimenting and messing around with mixed media. The techniques are constantly evolving as new products find their way into our polymer clay supplies. So much to do, so little time!

Be sure to check back often, as I will be adding my twist on many old favorites, as well as, some wonderful new polymer clay techniques that I have been messing around with. If you want to stay up to date you can Like my Facebook page. All of my new tutorials are posted there.

In the meantime, make yourself a nice cup of coffee, and get claying...

Polymer clay tribal veneer tutorial

This is a fun and easy polymer clay surface effect tutorial where I'll be showing you how to make a pretty tribal polymer clay veneer using an alcohol ink tinted Skinner Blend.

You can vary the design in endless ways by using different stamps and colors to create a polymer clay sheet that can be used in many different projects and designs.

Lisa Pavelka Peel Polymer Clay Tutorial

In this polymer clay tutorial I'll be demonstrating the Lisa Pavelka Peel using the Lisa Pavelka Love Letter stamp and silver metal leaf.

This is a wonderful, easy technique that allows you to highlight the indents in your clay. You can use any texture stamp and any color of metal leaf or foil to create lots of different effects.

How to Make a Sutton Slice

The Sutton Slice is a cool polymer clay technique developed by Lisa Pavelka. You can create some really wonderful effects with it, and the variations are endless.

In this tutorial I will show you the basic Sutton Slice , as well as a Skinner Blend version.

Using a polymer clay stencil with paints and powders

Polymer clay stencils are less detailed than silkscreens, but far less expensive. They also allow a much longer working time.

In this tutorial I'll show you a few tips for using stencils with paints and powders on polymer clay.

Polymer clay mica frills technique with marbled skinner blend

Polymer clay mica frills are an easy and effective way to add an extra element to any polymer clay design.

In this mica frill tutorial, I'll be showing you how to make a marbled Skinner Blend and then use Kor rollers to create a deep indented pattern that we'll shave off and use as mica frills in a design.

Polymer Clay Mica Smash Tutorial

In this tutorial I'll show two variations of the Polymer Clay Mica Smash Technique. One with plain colors and another with a Skinner Blend.

The Mica Smash is a fun combination of Maggie Maggio's Watercolor Technique and the Dragon Scale Mica Shift. Have fun with it. It's addictive!

Pills and Coffee Polymer Clay Silkscreen Veneer Tutorial

In this tutorial I'll be showing you how to make a polymer clay silkscreen veneer using alcohol inks, Swellegant and Helen Breil's Pills and Coffee silkscreen.

I'll also show you a second veneer using different colors and patterns to give you some ideas of what you may be able to come up with yourself using this fun and very versatile polymer clay technique.

This has been one of my most fun polymer clay surface effect tutorials to make, so I hope you enjoy it!

Alcohol Ink Tinted Skinner Blend Mica Shift Tutorial

In this tutorial I'll show you how to create a beautiful Skinner Blend Mica Shift and a Mica Smash using alcohol ink tinted polymer clay.

Tinting your metallic clays with alcohol inks opens up a huge range of vibrant color options for your mica shifts, without reducing the mica content of the clay. It's a simple technique that can be used to add your own favorite color combinations to any project.

Silk and Bubbles Alcohol Ink Veneer Tutorial

In this tutorial I'll be showing you how to make two different alcohol ink veneers, using cling wrap and bubble wrap.

This is a fun and surprisingly easy technique that can yield stunning results, so it's a great one to have in your repertoire.

Alcohol Polymer Clay Crackle Sheet Tutorial

This is one of my favorite polymer clay surface effect tutorials. I'll be showing you how to make three different alcohol ink polymer clay crackle sheets. 

I'll be using it in other tutorials in the future to produce some other effects. It's a really useful, versatile technique.

Waterfall Crackle Polymer Clay Veneer Tutorial

In this Waterfall Crackle polymer clay tutorial I’ll teach you how to use a cool new product I’ve been playing around with. It’s got its challenges, but it creates a super cool veneer.

It looks almost like dragon scales, but it also has a cool river, or waterfall effect so that’s what I decided to call it.

Watercolor Polymer Clay Surface Effect Tutorials

Painted Polymer Clay Watercolor tutorial

In this polymer clay tutorial I'll be showing you Maggie Maggio's much loved polymer clay watercolor or torn paper technique.

There are endless ways that this technique can be adapted to achieve different effects. Your imagination is your only limit, so have fun, and see what you can come up with.

Dragon scale polymer clay mica shift tutorial

This polymer clay technique is a variation on the watercolor or torn paper technique.

This time I have used the mica shift effect of metallic clay to create something that looks like dragon scales.

The dragon scale polymer clay mica shift is a fun technique that can be used with any metallic clay colors or blends.

Crackled Skinner Blend Polymer Clay watercolor tutorial

This tutorial is a cool variation on the basic watercolor technique.

I'll show you how to make a Crackled Skinner Blend Polymer Clay Watercolor, using Skinner blends, paints and texture stamps.

Polymer Clay Oyster Watercolor Technique

The Watercolor or Torn Paper polymer clay technique, developed by Maggie Maggio, is one of my favorite polymer clay surface effects. It is just such a versatile and fun way to create new designs.

So I was messing around with it again the other day and stumbled across this version of the technique. I like to call it the Polymer Clay Oyster Watercolor Technique as it looks almost like shell. I hope you like it.

Faux polymer clay watercolor tutorial

In this polymer clay tutorial I’ll be showing you how to make a faux polymer clay watercolor painting.

I like to use this effect on metallic polymer clays because the mica particles shine through the translucent alcohol inks and give a beautiful shimmer.

Polymer Clay Paintdrip Watercolor Tutorial

In this polymer clay tutorial I'm going to be showing you a polymer clay paintdrip watercolor and a fish scale watercolor. Two really cool ways to use up the scraps from any sheets you may have left over from previous Watercolor tutorials.

These two techniques are both really easy and create beautiful effects from your leftovers.

Mica Shift Oyster Polymer Clay Tutorial

This polymer clay technique is another variation on the watercolor or torn paper technique.

This tutorial combines the Dragonscale mica shift and oyster watercolor techniques. Using the mica shift effect of metallic clay we will create an mica shift oyster effect.

I'll be adding many more polymer clay surface effect tutorials to this page over the coming months. If you would like to stay up to date with new articles and tutorials as they are released, please join my Facebook Group, and don't forget to like and share with your friends.

The group is the best place to keep up with all the latest news, product releases and tutorials, and you will have early access to new material before it is released on YouTube or the website. There are also exclusive giveaways and a discount coupon for my shop, JessamaDesign on Etsy.

We have a fabulous group of members already. It's a great place to share, be encouraged and ask all of your polymer clay questions.

If you are looking for complete project ideas, or something a little more complex, I have some cool polymer clay tutorials on my Etsy shop. Alternatively, take a look at my Patreon page.  For a small monthly membership fee, you will have access to all sorts of tip and tutorial videos reserved especially for my members, as well as, some of the Etsy ones. Our community is steadily growing over there, and we would love for you to join us.