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Precious metal clay - or PMC - has hit the market with tremendous force. Suddenly, all manner of designs are possible in a small variety of metals and with minimal equipment required. Essentially, this is a clay filled with miniscule pieces of a precious metal such as sterling silver or gold. The clay can be shaped any way desired and then fired. All of the clay burns off, leaving only the metal in the desired shape. While the initial cost of the clay may seem steep, when compared to the prices of specialty settings for jewelry and such it is considerably less than trying to find truly unique pieces.

In contrast, conventional metal is quite a lot cheaper for the raw materials, but takes a lot more skill and equipment to be able to work. Traditional metal requires intimate knowledge of each individual metal as each requires different heat levels, different cooling times and reacts differently to various factors. Skilled metalsmiths can make any design with raw precious metal, but the time and experience required is quite significant.

The attraction of PMC is that it is easily accessible to the average craftsman (or craftswoman). After the initial investment of a firing kiln and some starter PMC, all a crafter has to do is read the firing instructions and apply their own techniques for forming the clay into gorgeous pieces. Hand-sculpting takes an artistic eye and experience always improves it, but the learning curve is minimal as compared to traditional metalsmithing. In addition, the time to sculpt a piece is generally significantly less than the time to heat, re-heat and form pieces in the traditional manner.

While PMC may be more expensive, excluding the cost of necessary equipment, it has numerous advantages to many different types of crafters. Namely, without taking the time to learn metal smithing, a beader, polymer clay crafter, glassworker or other such craft person has the ability to create settings and embellishments completely unique to their pieces.

In other words, the primary difference between PMC and traditional metalsmithing is that it is more accessible to the masses. It is easier to create quality pieces without investing excessive time in learning a new craft, and requires a lot less equipment and therefore a lot less devoted space and lower initial investment. Additionally, molds are not required to make intricate pieces quickly as they are required in some instances of traditional metalsmithing.

Learn more about this author, Rebecca Brown.
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