After sharing bubble painting, a messy yet fun craft idea, in our last blog post, today we are here to share yet another interesting activity for kids of all ages. And why only kids? Adults will love this craft too! As the title states, we are talking about clay crafts. Making crafts out of clay is an oddly satisfying experience. The joy of squishing and shaping clay with your own hands is unmatched.
Kids love clay crafts because of the sensory stimulation they receive while manipulating soft and squishy clay. And we love them because they are great for helping kids build fine motor skills. While manipulatives and board games for building fine motor skills are effective, clay crafts, too, are fun activities to boost fine motor skills. Ready to see what we have here today? Keep scrolling!
3 Creative clay craft ideas to try today!
Things you’ll need
- Clay
- Glue
- Acrylic colors
- Décor varnish
- Artist’s gesso
- Talcum powder
- Paint brushes
- Clay modeling tools
1. Cloud Clay Topper
Specific items required:
- Pencil
Sprinkle some talcum powder over your work area so that it’s easy for you to work with clay.
Cut out a small amount of clay from the main brick and start rolling it to smooth it out.
Once you’ve prepared a smooth ball, spread it with a flattening tool on your work area.
Cut out a small paper cloud and place it on top of the flattened clay.
Use a pair of scissors to cut out the clay in a cloud shape.
Now take another piece of clay ball and roll it to make a thin strip.
Flatten the strip using a ruler and cut it into a small piece using the ruler’s edge.
Make a small crease in the middle of the clay piece so that you have a guiding point for making a small bow.
Fold the edges of the strip and make them touch the center crease with the help of a clay modeling tool. Then, pack the joint with a thin strip of clay. You can also add detailing, such as creases close to the center of the bow, using an appropriate tool.
Once the bow is ready, apply some glue to its base and attach it to one corner of the clay cloud you made previously.
Next, make five small clay balls and roll them into thin strips.
Role one end of the strips to make shapes, as shown in the image above.
Make five such shapes of different sizes to represent rain falling from the cloud. Arrange them close to one another and keep them ready for the next step.
Now apply a thin line of glue to the edges of the clay cloud.
Make another very thin strip of clay and set it on the cloud’s edges. You’ll now have two distinct pieces to make the cloud topper.
Put some glue on the upper portion of the clay rain and attach the cloud part to it.
You now have the basic structure of your cloud topper. All you need to do is decorate it with some color before you can attach it to your pencil.
So let’s begin the decoration part.
Before you start coloring, apply a layer of Gesso to the dried clay topper so that the paints do not get absorbed in the clay and look nice and bright.
After the Gesso dries up, paint the clay topper in your favorite colors or as shown in the image. Use a very thin paint brush to make eyes, cheeks, and a smile on the cloud.
Keep the topper aside to dry up after you paint the backside of the topper with black color.
You can now add a layer of décor varnish to the topper to maintain its color and shine.
The final step involves attaching the topper to your pencil. To do this, place your pencil on the backside of your topper and attach the two using a piece of clay. Press the clay firmly so that it keeps the pencil in place even when you are writing.
And there you have it. Your cute cloud clay topper is ready for use!
2. Owl Fridge Magnet
Specific items required:
- Magnet
Now let’s make an adorable owl magnet for your fridge.
Sprinkle some more talcum powder on your work area and prepare a medium-sized ball of clay.
Spread the clay with your fingers to make the owl’s body. Make an oval shape, and then use a sharp cutting tool to cut out a small portion of clay from the top.
Smoothen the edges of the cut portion to make it look like owl ears.
If you have difficulty visualizing the shape and design, you can refer to the images available on the Internet to see how owl drawings are made.
After you prepare the base, roll two small balls and spread them a little to serve as owl ears.
Attach ears on both sides of the base before moving on to the next step.
Now use another clay ball to create your owl’s tummy. Flatten the ball using a ruler, and then place the flat clay sheet on the lower half of the owl’s body.
Use a sharp tool to cut out the excess clay sheet, and make sure the structure looks similar to the one shown in the image above.
Going forward, prepare three tiny clay balls to make the owl’s eyes and nose.
Flatten the balls and give them a nice, round shape. Place them on the owl’s body to check if their size looks okay.
Now apply some glue to one side of the eyes and place them in the same position as before.
Cut out a small triangular nose from a flat piece of clay and place it under the eyes.
You can now use a design tool to add a series of dots around the circumference of the owl’s tummy. Adding a small flower detail to the owl will look good too!
Now leave it to dry.
Touch the clay owl after an hour or so. If it feels dry, apply Gesso all over it.
Now, let it dry before you start painting your owl.
Paint the owl’s head in light pink and the tummy area in dark pink. Paint the ears orange if that’s what you like.
Color the eyes and flower, too. You can also put small white dots on the tummy and ears to enhance the overall look of your owl.
Don’t forget to add a layer of varnish after the paint dries up.
Next, spread a small amount of glue on a magnet and stick it on the owl’s back.
You can now mount your owl magnet on your fridge to showcase your artistic talent.
3. Doughnut Keychain and Hairclip
Specific items required:
- Plier
- Keychain
- Jump ring
- Screw eye pin
- Snap hair clip
So, like we did in the above two clay projects, we will first start by preparing a ball of clay.
Roll the ball evenly so that you don’t see any visible cracks.
Now, divide the large ball into two small balls and roll them evenly before making a hole right in their centers to make doughnuts.
Roll a very thin strip of clay and cut it out into small pieces. Place these pieces on top of a doughnut, as shown in the image above.
Make another thin strip. But this time, don’t cut it into pieces. Rather, place it on a doughnut in a random style.
Your two doughnuts will look like the ones shown above.
You can now apply a layer of Gesso to the doughnuts.
Let the doughnuts dry for a bit, and then start painting them.
Color the base of the doughnut with sprinkles on top in brown color. Then paint the sprinkles in a variety of colors of your choice.
You can leave this doughnut as it is if you would like or paint it a dark brown color, as we have done with our clay project.
Paint the other doughnut too with contrasting colors like brown, light blue, and dark blue.
When the paint is no longer wet, apply a layer of varnish to protect it from dust and retain its color for a long time.
It’s now time to assemble the hair clip and the key chain!
Pick the blue doughnut and apply a little glue to its base before attaching it to a snap hair clip. We suggest you use a strong glue for this purpose so that the clay doughnut does not fall off the clip when you wear it.
Make your doughnut keychain by inserting a screw eye pin in a small hole on one side of your doughnut. Use a plier to insert it properly inside the hole.
Now open the jump ring and insert it into the screw eye pin. Join its ends together with the plier in order to prevent the doughnut from sliding out of the key chain.
Once the donut is secure, your doughnut keychain is ready for use!
Look at these beauties! Don’t they inspire you to try making them on your own?
That’s a wrap!
So, you see how wonderful these clay crafts look!
Yes, we know they are a little intricate for little hands, but believe us when we say they are a really good exercise to strengthen hand muscles and fine motor skills. Older kids can obviously make these crafts on their own, but if your younger kids too are eager to make a clay craft, give them a helping hand and teach them how to make things out of clay. The project may take a little bit more time than usual, but it will be a great learning experience for your children.
So, make a quick trip to your nearest art store to grab all supplies and wait no more to get started!
I am Priyanka Sonkushre, a writer and blogger. I am the person behind “One Loving Mama,” a mom blog. Equipped with a Bachelor’s degree along with an MBA, my healthcare background helps me deeply understand learning difficulties. I know how challenging it can be for parents to find the right resources to help their children excel in life. So, here I am to blend my healthcare expertise with my parenting experience to create valuable and helpful resources for parents and teachers supporting children with learning differences. If you wish, you can follow me on Facebook and LinkedIn.