If you are a crafter, artist or hobbyist that likes making jewelry, you absolutely need to try working with Precious Metal Clay (PMC). PMC or silver clay is very easy to work with, and you do not need to have a lot of tools to work with it.

If you cannot find a class in your town or city, you can purchase the materials you need online to work with PMC, but if you can find a certified instructor, it is easier to learn how to use it. Some basic instructions on how to get started.

Precious Metal Clay is a material that was developed by Mitsubishi Corporation as a byproduct of another line that they manufactured. It is essentially particles of precious metal embedded in a non-toxic organic binder that once fired becomes solid silver or gold. It did not catch on as a jewelry making material immediately in Japan, but a few artists in the United States began experimenting with it, and it started to gain in popularity. After experimentation, and some formula changes, there are now three main types of PMC available for purchase with some other related PMC products for ornamentation.

Original PMC: Original PMC is the first formula made, and is the least user friendly of the three formulas. This version takes approximately two hours to fire in a kiln, and shrinks about 50% from the original clay to the finished piece.

PMC+: PMC+ is my personal favorite PMC formula to work with and one that I think most beginners should start with. It is the most cost effective. You can fire a piece in a kiln from a range of about fifteen minutes to two hours. It shrinks about 12%, and it is slow drying in comparison with PMC3.

PMC3: PMC3 was designed when jewelers cried out for a formula that they could combine with fused glass. It can be fired at the lowest temperature of the three formulas, which allows it to be fired in a hot pot or other smaller kilns. However, if you want to fire glass into the clay, you need a regular PMC kiln.

PMC can be purchased in lump form, or in a PMC+ paper, or syringe (PMC+ and PMC3), and lastly a paste is available for purchase in all three formulas. These formulas are all fine silver. If you want to work with gold, you have to purchase the Original PMC formula.

What is so wonderful about working with PMC is that you can form the material just like wet clay. It can be pressed, stamped, cut, and molded into any shape or form, then once it is fired you are left with the exact shape you created, but in fine silver or gold. After firing, it acts just like fine silver or gold and you can use metalsmithing techniques to finish it.

If they don’t have to buy a lot of metalsmithing tools to work with it, and they don’t need to have all of the numerous metalsmithing skills to create something beautiful. It is a great material for hobbyists or artist. Common tools are similar to polymer clay tools, cutters, xacto knives, plastic rollers, cookie cutters, or rubber stamps. You don’t need to hammer, saw, or solder most pieces.

Do you want to add a stone to your design? Well, fire the stone right into the piece that you are making. Do you need to create a bail or loop? If so, you can make one out of PMC, and fire it right onto the piece.