How to Make Oval Polymer Clay Beads

The most common way of making oval polymer clay beads is by hand. There are tools available at your local craft store that might make your beads more uniform, but if you're looking to make your beads the old fashioned way, you will get the job done manually in no time at all.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

1. Work on a clean surface free of debris. Cut a piece of polymer into the size you want your bead to be from either your mixed clay or your solid clay. Cut out a piece in the shape of a cube or a cylinder. This will make it easier to form the clay.

2. Roll the bead between your hand and the surface you are working on. Make sure your hand is flat and the surface doesn't move. Move your hand and the bead in a circular motion to roll the polymer clay. This will form your bead into a round ball.

3. Apply light pressure to the bead instead of going in a circular motion. Move the ball of polymer up and down along the surface you are working on a few times to gently shape your ball into an oval.

4. Repeat for each of your beads. An easy way to make sure your beads are the same size is to cut the same amount of polymer clay each time you are going to make a bead, this will prevent you from having to go back and add or remove clay to your bead later.

5. Set your beads side by side to compare sizes. If you are looking for a more uniform appearance, you can use a ruler to gage width and length of your beads to aid in uniformity.