Fimo paste earrings for beginners

Using your stiffest smooth blade (two levels of flexibility), cut one or two bars (or more depending on the quantity of pieces desired) of your pink (raspberry color to be exact) dough if you are duplicating this tutorial.

Knead your dough between your hands in order to heat it (it is the heat that allows it to be more malleable). You understand that depending on the ambient temperature, your dough will naturally be softer or harder (when it is cold). You must take this into account. A dough that is too hard and rigid risks crumbling, a dough that is too soft is difficult to work with (sticks, deforms too easily...)

Now you have to roll out the dough. There are two solutions: the dough machine (often abbreviated to MAP) or a roller. The dough machine is recommended when you want to have a perfect regularity of your dough sheet but it represents a certain cost. To start with polymer, a simple roller can be enough. In this case, to obtain a regularity, we will place two guides on both sides of your dough to determine the maximum thickness at which the dough will flatten. You can do this with what you have on hand (here wooden cutlery but ideally skewers) and find something to make different thicknesses if needed.

Once your dough sheet is ready, all you have to do is cut out your shapes. These are oval and round cookie cutters of various diameters. Take as many as you need to make your projects. In this tutorial, it is necessary to have at least: 2 rounds and 2 ovals. The sizes can also be adapted.

To create a variation and still in the colorblock spirit intended in this tutorial, you can create a shade of pink from the raspberry paste. To do this, add a touch of white paste. Cut with your blade, knead and add your white paste to the pink until you get a new uniform color with the roller. This will give you a paler pink. Accentuate the shade by adding less paste (lighter or darker depending on the contrast you want).

If you have chosen to create a shade, pick up shapes again. You can either make a new plain pair, or consider mixing your shapes with those previously made. Also, you can, as in this tutorial, texture your clay very simply with tools you have on hand. Here, for example, the lighter pieces have been marked with the teeth of the wooden knife used as a guide.

Place your shapes flat (to prevent them from curling up during baking) on baking paper and on your baking sheet. Bake according to the manufacturer's instructions on the package: here, the pieces were placed in a hot oven at 110° for 30 minutes. When they come out of the oven, your pieces are still soft, this is normal. Let them cool down so that they become rigid.

Drill your pieces using the hand chuck on which you will have previously fixed a drill of about 1mm diameter. Think about the location of your holes on the rounds and ovals in order to assemble them later (generally, the hole is located in the upper or lower middle of your pieces). Gently turn with the chuck while applying pressure until you pierce your pieces.

Meanwhile, glue the round shapes onto your disc ear studs using the jewelry glue and let dry for several hours (up to 24 hours for complete drying). Once dry, assemble your rounds (studs) to your ovals using an open ring and your pliers. To do this step, find out how to open a ring correctly.

Once dry, assemble your rounds (ear studs) to your ovals using an open ring and your pliers. To do this step, find out how to open a ring properly.