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Clay Crafts Recipes and Videos

Clay crafts are a wonderful way to get senior citizen's, with limited dexterity, to exercise their fingers and hands.

Below are 3 types of clay you can make. A Cold Porcelain clay, another type of no-bake clay, and also a polymer clay.

Make Homemade Cold Porcelain Sculpting Clay

does not need to be fired

can be dyed or painted

keep clay not being used, in a bag

air dry clay can begin to dry while being worked with. To help prevent this, wet finger tips now and then if you find it is drying on you while working with it

as hard (and fragile) as porcelain is when fully dried, seal your sculpture when done, with spray lacquer or dip sealers

Ingredients:

3 cups white glue

3 cups cornstarch

1 tablespoon white vinegar

1 tablespoon glycerin

2 tablespoons canola oil

Blend these ingredients.

Place in a microwavable container and heat in the microwave for 2 to 3 minutes. Check the consistency every half minute or so and more often the last half minute. You want a consistency where the clay is thick and lumpy.

You could heat on a stove, instead of the microwave, for about 15 minutes. When it begins to pull away from the pan and has the thick and lumpy consistency remove from heat.

Don't cook this too long with either method or it will be too hard to work with.

Knead the dough until you can make shapes with it. It may be best to use cold cream on your hands and be careful if the clay is still warm from cooking.

It would be best to store the clay for a day before using. Be sure to store it in an airtight container.

You can cover Styrofoam, cardboard, wood or any other material with the clay, using the other material as a base to work from.

The thicker an item is, the longer the clay will take to dry. It dries from the outside in. You can color the clay with acrylic or oil paints. Take the amount of clay you wish to color and making a dent in it, put in the color and then knead the color into the clay using your hands. Work it all the way through so the color is uniform. The more paint you use the more intense the color will be. For pastel shades, use much less paint. Make many different colors and store extra amounts of clay in tightly sealed containers.

You Tube Videos of Cold Porcelain Clay Making And Using.

More Clay Crafts

How to make No-Bake Clay, Part 1

How to make No-Bake Clay, Part 2

Clay Craft Recipe

No-Bake Clay Recipe

1 cup corn starch

2 cups baking soda

1 teaspoon alum

1 1/4 cups cold water

several bowls

Food coloring or paint

Saucepan

Paper plate

Small towel or cloth

Newspaper

Clear shellac or acrylic spray

Mix cornstarch and baking soda together. Sifting will help to prevent any lumps. Add the water. Heat in a saucepan over medium heat for a few minutes, 3 to 5 minutes should be good. Once it is as thick as cooked mashed potatoes, remove from heat. Put this aside until cool enough to handle. You could remove it from the saucepan and place on a paper plate. Covering it with a cool towel would help prevent it from drying as it cools.

The dough can be divided up if you want to make colored dough before making your craft projects.

Three methods to color the clay for your clay craft.

Add food coloring to the water before making the dough.

Add paint to the dough after it is made and before it is shaped into your crafts.

Wait to paint the item after it is fully dried.

Once you have completed your craft, including painting it and it is fully dried, you could cover it in clear shellac or acrylic spray.

Push molds are great for clay crafts.

Polymer Clay:

Another recipe for more clay crafts

One part corn starch to one part white glue. Add water if it is too thick.

This clay can be fired in low temperatures in a home oven. Make sure any item covered as a base will not melt! Place the items on a baking sheet and place in the oven. Bake approximately 275 for 20-25 minutes.

The heat fuses the polymer particles into a solid and makes a harder, more durable item. Polymer is plastic particles and for this reason it should only be fired in an oven where there is good ventilation in the room. An open window or a fan. The gases from plastics can cause headaches otherwise.

After the firing process you could finish your craft with a clear shellac or acrylic spray.

A plastic or wood surface could possibly be damaged while using this clay on it. To solve this problem you could use a glass surface, or put down a layer of wax paper.

If you have clay left over, store it wrapped in wax paper and put away in an airtight container, away from heat.

With all types of clay used for your clay crafts, wash hands well immediately after. Some clays, like polymer, although non-toxic can cause eye irritation if eye is touched before handwashing.