Can You Bake Polymer Clay and Food In The Same Oven? | Easy Explanation

Polymer clay is a great means of creative entertainment. You can make handmade jewelry, beads, charms, figurines, and anything you want. You can also decorate other things with this synthetic clay. The benefit of this clay is that you can make whatever you want without making any mess.

At first, you have to give the clay any shape you want then bake it to give it a permanent state. The plus point is you can bake it in your kitchen oven, so you don’t have to spend any extra money on this. Though, you have to be careful while baking the polymer clay in your oven.

Is It Possible to Bake Polymer Clay and Food in the Same Oven

The answer is yes. But it needs some explanation. To harden the polymer clay and give it a permanent state you will need to bake the clay at 275F. For a perfect polymer clay structure, the heat needs to be distributed evenly. However, this accuracy and even flow of heat can only be provided by an oven. But you won’t need an oven for only polymer clay. You can use the oven you have because the polymer clay is not harmful.

Although, you’ll need to keep the oven clean. After baking the polymer clay keep the oven door open for passing air. You have to wipe the inside of the oven with a wet sponge before putting any food in it. You need to be careful about the temperature and time too. Because if the clay is baked more than required then it’ll release toxic fume.

Can You Bake Polymer Clay In a Toaster Oven

If you want then you can find various brands of polymer clay ovens available on the market. These ovens are smaller than regular ovens but not tiny. Because if you bake polymer clay in a tiny space there is a high chance of burning. You can have a separate oven for polymer clay if you want to work with it commercially.

On the contrary, if you’re working with polymer clay as a hobby then you can use the oven you have in the kitchen. In case it is a toaster oven then it’s better. Because the structure of a polymer clay oven and a toaster oven is almost the same. Though its space and size can be disadvantageous it is better than baking in any other oven.

What To Do If Polymer Clay Burn-In Oven

While working with polymer clay you need to bake the clay at 275 degrees F. The temperature is fixed for baking fixing the time is hard. You have to bake it for 30 minutes for every ¼ inch thickness. Now, knowing the accurate time is complicated so you may be baking for more or less than the required time.

If you bake for less than the required time then you can put it back in the oven for a few more minutes. But if you overbake it then the clay will burn and you won’t get the desired shape and color of the clay. To fix this you can paint or cover the burnt area with a layer of polymer clay. 

However, this isn’t the matter you should be worried about. As you need to focus on cleaning the oven after such a disaster. At first, you need to keep the oven door open and ventilate. Then spray oven cleaner on the burnt spill and cover it with aluminum foil for some time. You should throw away the foil before rubbing the area with a sponge or scrub. Mop the area with a damp cloth or sponge 2-3 times to get a clean oven.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is It Bad To Bake Polymer Clay In a Kitchen Oven?

In case you’re baking polymer clay for a hobby then you can bake it in your kitchen oven. You just need to be careful about the baking time and ventilation of the oven after baking. But if you’re doing it for a commercial purpose you should probably buy a polymer clay oven.

Do I Need A Separate Oven For Polymer Clay?

Polymer clay is safe until it’s burnt. Even if it burns it’s not a complete red flag. You just need to clean the oven thoroughly. So you don’t need a separate oven for polymer clay. You can bake it in your home oven. But you can’t bake food and polymer clay at the same time. You need to bake them separately and after baking the clay you have to ventilate the oven.

Is Polymer Clay Safe To Eat Off Of?

Polymer clay is certified to not contain any toxic material yet you can’t take any risk. So, clean your hand with sanitizer and soap water after working with polymer clay. Don’t let kids play with it. Don’t take any chance of getting it mixed with food, cause you can’t eat it.

Is Sculpey Oven Bake Clay Food Safe?

Even though Sculpey is assured to be safe for every use, you can’t eat it or use it to eat. Eating a bit by accident may not cause any health issues, but if you end up eating a lot of polymer clay it’ll lead to stomachache.

Conclusion

While playing with the clay, your hand can get colored. But the colores get off easily, just by using hand sanitizer. Later you need to wash your hands with soap and water and your hand is clean. Thus you need to wash your hands anyways if your hands get colored or not for your safety.