The Best Way To Add Earring Posts To Polymer Clay Studs

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Chances are, if you make polymer clay earrings, the question ‘what is the best way to add earring posts to my polymer clay earrings?’ will have crossed your mind. It did mine when I began making polymer clay jewellery.

And you would think that the answer was simple – grab some glue and stick your flat back earring posts on…… Only this really doesn’t work. The posts may seemingly be stuck firm, you may even get a few days wear out of your new earrings, but then one evening as you go to remove them and find yourself with your polymer clay earring in your hand and the earring post still in your ear.

However many glues I have tried they always fail, and I don’t know about you, but I simply don’t have the money or energy to keep buying glue. Also, whilst on the subject of gluing on earring posts, I am allergic to some of the glues I tried which made for a very unpleasant few days after wearing. So, while this post may seem a little boring and redundant to some, it will show exactly how I embed earring posts in my polymer clay earrings for ensure a secure, hard wearing, bond.

Before we get started though you are going to need to make your top of your studs and harden them in the oven. They will need a flat back to it and make sure it is bigger than the flat back earring stud that you wish to attach.

The Best Way To Add Earring Posts To Polymer Clay Earrings

Condition some clay in the same colour as your already hardened studs. This needs to be soft enough to roll through your clay machine on a thin setting (or easy enough to roll thin by hand). I roll mine down to a number 8 on my clay machine. Rolling the clay thin is really important as thicker clay will only add bulk to the earring and leave less length on the earring posts to go through your ear and to add the earring back.

Once your clay is rolled out cut two small circles – make sure the cutter size you chose is bigger that the flat back stud attachment but smaller than your pre-made stud. Take a pointed tool and poke two holes, one in each centre. I find that taking the time now to make these two holes makes it easier to add to the earring posts with less distortion of the circle.

Picking up your pre-made, hardened earring stud, add a small drop of liquid clay. This will act like a glue between the earring posts and the hard and raw polymer clay.

Use your finger to spread the liquid clay all over the earring and put your earring back on. The liquid clay will hold the stud back on but you will be able to move it around easily to position it accurately.

Pick up your circle of raw clay and push the earring posts through the hole that was made in step 2. Push the cirlce all the way down.

Make sure your cirlce of clay is completely pushed down onto the stud and earring post. If it needs moving just gently slide it around on the surface. If needs be use some sort of flat tool to push the clay down right around the earring post but other than that your earring is ready to head back into the oven. If you are using liquid Fimo as I am then use the oven temperature as indicated on the liquid clay and not the block of clay as the liquid clay needs a hotter oven temperature. The raw clay will be fine as long as you only leave it in the oven for half an hour and that the temperature is accurate – if you would like to see which oven thermometer I use and why then see my post My Top 5 Tools For Polymer Clay.

Once your earrings have cooled down you can finish your studs as normal and enjoy wearing them time after time without any risk of those earring posts popping off the back!

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If you would like to see some polymer clay slabs for inspiration for your next stud earrings then have a look through my polymer clay slab tutorials.

Thanks for reading,

Hannah x