What Is Near Clear Silicone?

Near Clear is a type of transparent platinum-cure silicone.

Standard silicone used for fantasy toys is naturally more opaque or milky in appearance. Once pigments are added, most of what you see is the colour of the silicone closest to the surface.

Near Clear is different.

Its transparency allows you to see deeper into the material.

Translucent Colours Behave Differently

Near Clear does not mean your toy has to be completely colourless.

Quite the opposite.

Colour can be mixed into transparent silicone while allowing some of that transparency to remain.

Depending on the pigments and concentration used, the result can range from:

almost water-clear to softly tinted to deeply coloured but still translucent.

This gives us much more control over visual depth than we have with an ordinary opaque colour.

Does Near Clear Feel Different?

It can.

Near Clear formulations have their own Shore hardness levels and material characteristics rather than being perfectly identical to every opaque silicone formulation.

We use following Near Clear firmnesses:

Near Clear Soft - Shore 00-31
Near Clear Medium - Shore 00-45

Do not assume that a Near Clear firmness will feel exactly the same as an opaque silicone simply because the Shore values are close.

The formulation itself may have a slightly different surface feel and flexibility.

Tiny Bubbles Can Be More Visible

Transparency has one unavoidable side effect: you can see everything.

Altough we do our best, some small pin-prick bubbles can sometimes appear around the underside or base of a toy as a natural consequence of processing the material.

These small cosmetic bubbles in non-critical areas do not automatically mean the toy is defective or unsafe.

Near Clear Needs a Little Extra Care

Near Clear is still platinum silicone, but if you want to preserve its visual clarity for as long as possible, it deserves a little more attention than an ordinary opaque toy.

The three biggest things to think about are:

heat, UV light and staining.

Avoid Repeated High Heat

Standard solid platinum silicone toys can often tolerate high-temperature cleaning methods.

Near Clear is more sensitive to them.

Repeated or prolonged high-temperature exposure can contribute to:

• temporary cloudiness
• yellowing or ambering
• loss of visual clarity
• changes in firmness

For that reason, we recommend warm water and mild soap as the normal cleaning method for Near Clear rather than boiling.

Keep It Away From Prolonged Sunlight

Near Clear and a sunny windows may look beautiful together.

Unfortunately, they are not ideal long-term partners.

Extended exposure to sunlight and UV can contribute to visible yellowing or ambering.

If you want to display your Near Clear toy, avoid keeping it permanently in strong direct sunlight.

Clear Silicone Shows Stains More Easily

An opaque dark-purple toy can hide minor discolouration extremely well.

A nearly transparent one cannot.

Strongly coloured substances can therefore become much more visually noticeable on Near Clear.

The source material specifically notes potential staining or discolouration from things such as:

• strongly coloured lubricants
• bodily fluids
• other substances that remain in prolonged contact with the silicone

That does not mean Near Clear is guaranteed to stain.

It means that if staining happens, transparency makes it easier to see.

So clean your toy promptly after use and avoid unnecessary long-term contact with strongly coloured products.

Will Near Clear Stay Perfectly Clear Forever?

Probably not.

Transparent materials show their age much more obviously than opaque ones.

Over time, Near Clear may gradually develop:

• subtle yellowing
• amber tones
• changes in transparency
• visible marks that would be hidden in opaque silicone

This does not automatically mean the silicone has become unusable.

There is an important distinction between cosmetic aging and actual material damage.

Near Clear is chosen for its extraordinary visual appearance, but part of owning a transparent silicone toy is accepting that its appearance may evolve over a long lifetime.

Good care can help slow those changes.