Air-Dry Clay Bowls

These air-dry clay bowls are ones I made about a month ago. I posted them on my Instagram around then, I just forgot to write a post on them. This is just a craft I did to see how I liked it. I didn't buy anything expensive to use for this project, just Crayola Air-Dry Clay in the color white. I bought it in the tub for really cheap. The girls and I played with the Terracotta colored clay and that was a disaster. It was so unbelievably messy.

It was simple to form with my hands and when it was starting to dry out on my hands, water easily softened the clay again. It took about two to three days to dry. It really depended on how thick it was. The little bowl on the left took longer than the one on the right.

When they finished drying I put a layer or two of paint on them. DecoArt's Elegant Finish Metallic Paint worked wonderfully on the bowls. It set evenly and isn't tacky. I used the color Rich Espresso. The inside of the bowl on the left was colored in acrylic paint. I watered it down just a little so it wouldn't have a weird rubbery texture that easily came off the bowl.

This was just a project that I wanted to try. I've never made bowls with air-dry clay before but it's something that I'm going to do again in the near future just as a little craft for myself and for some practice until I get better at handling this form of clay. I'm so used to oven-baked clay which isn't always as soft as air-dry clay/paper clay.

Getting Back Into Art

I haven't been around in several months. I guess another thing I have to get back into is blogging, not just art. I've been posting a lot of the things I make on my instagram but that's about it. Since my sister and I moved to a new place, I've been wanting to do some more artsy things. I bought some air dry clay that I plan to use eventually. It's not the paper clay that I like but it will do for now. I just want to get back into it.

Just recently, I bought a new sketch book. It's not a big one but I don't plan on using paint in this book like I normally do. I plan to start the year off with zentangles. They are time consuming but they are fun. I do enjoy them. I'm currently shopping around for good pens. My go-to pen of choice is usually always Mircon but since it's not in my price range (or when it is, they never have the sizes I need) I need to find a cheap alternative. I used a cheap craft store brand pen this time. It's the same as a Miron but they are cheaper and don't last as long.

This is the zentangle I started out with. It wasn't supposed to be a zentangle but the dumpy little flower I mad looked awful so I had to fix it up. I ended up making this. A lot of it was experimentation. Like the boarder. I saw it on Pinterest and just had to try it. 

My other practice sheet (above) is just a bunch of circles and I'm filling in the spaces. I consider this more as a reference sheet than anything. A lot of these I had to come up with randomly. Some of the patterns I found on Pinterest. This is my work in progress.

In 2015, I'm hoping to start blogging again. I want to do more art. I want to reopen my Etsy shop (and open my other one while I'm at it). There are things I need to do before then and that is make stuff. My Etsy shop(s) won't be open in the beginning of the year but I want to start making things for them. I guess we'll see how it goes.

Craft Time - Baking Soda Clay

After a week of doing this craft it is finally done. Normally it probably wouldn't take this long but my time with the girls are limited. I only see them twice a week and we usually only have an hour with just the three of us so, yes, time is very limited. It didn't help that I forgot to bring the stuff on Monday. Silly me.

So the girls and I made Baking Soda Clay.

You will need...

• Baking Soda
• Cornstarch
• Warm Water
• A saucepan
• Measuring Cups
• A wooden spoon or silicone spatula

Directions...

• Add 1 cup of baking soda, 1/2 cups of cornstarch, and 2/3 cups of warm water to the saucepan. Stir until everything is blended and smooth.
• Put saucepan over medium heat and stir until it looks like mashed potatoes.
• Once it's done, remove from saucepan and let cool. It doesn't take long. Once it's done cooling it's ready to use.

This can be air-dried or baked.
For air-dry, it takes two days to dry. Make sure you flip it every one in a while. I noticed that my creations cracked, only some of them. This might have been because I didn't flip them or because the temperature was inconsistent. I'm not certain since this is the first time I've used it.

For baking, I read somewhere that you can bake these at 175 degree for an hour. Just make sure you flip them half way through. If you happen to know where I read this, please let me know so I can put a reference.

The girls decided to make hand prints in their clay it it turned out fine. When everything was dry, the girls painted them. I helped Little One with hers.

I glazed theirs with Triple Thick. I have a huge jar of it I tried with my clay charms but I didn't like it as much as I liked Sculpey Glaze. Matter of opinion, I guess.

How To Make Cold Porcelain

Cold Porcelain is an air-dry clay that is cheap and easy to make. There are two ways to go about making it - by using the microwave or the stove. I used the stove but I think next time I will used the microwave. But in the end the results are the same so it really doesn't matter.

Here is what you need to make cold porcelain:

1 cup cornstratch
1 cup glue (two 4 oz. bottles)
2 tablespoons of lemon juice
2 tablespoons of baby oil (I read it can be substituted with olive oil)
Saran Plastic Wrap and/or wax paper
Non-greasy or oil free lotion

Mix the glue and cornstarch together in a microwavable bowl or a sauce pan (depending on how you are going to make it). Then add the lemon juice and baby oil. Don't worry if the mixture doesn't look smooth. The heat will help with that.

For microwave:

Put your bowl of the mixture in the microwave in 10-15 second intervals.

For Oven:

Mix your ingredients in the sauce pan and put on low or medium low heat. I cooked mine on low because I was a bit nervous about making it.

For Both Microwave and Oven:

The mixture will become soupy and then it will thicken again. When it thickens, start testing it to see if it sticks to your hands. If it does, then the mixture still needs to cook. If not, then set it down for a moment and lay out a piece of Saran plastic wrap (or wax paper).

Squirt a bit of lotion onto the Saran plastic wrap (or wax paper) and spread it all around. This keeps the cold porcelain from sticking. Also make sure your hands are lotioned.

Pour the mixture on the Saran plastic wrap (or wax paper) and knead. It may be hot so be cautious about that. You can let it set for a few minutes to cool down but once it's cool enough to touch, start kneeding until it is completely cool. It doesn't take long and you might not need to wait for it to cool down at all.

To prevent cracking, put your cold porcelain in some lotioned plastic wrap and store in an air tight container (or a Ziplock bag) for 24 hours. If you are using a Ziplock bag, please take the air out of it and make sure that there are no holes. That is a sure way to lose your cold porcelain.

**Note: Cold Porcelain is air-dry. This is why you need an air tight container.

DO NOT add water to the mixture at all. This causes cracking.

After 24 hours, you can play with your cold porcelain and create things out of it. Cold porcelain shrinks when it dries so your creation will be smaller than how you make it.

Cold porcelain is degradable in water and heat due to the ingredients. Use a glaze to protect it. I would suggest something like Sculpey Glaze (but it's expensive depending on where you are). There is also Triple Thick by DecoArt. I've never tried it but some people really like it and one coat is all you need. There are some varnishes you can use but whatever you do, DON'T use Mod Podge. Mod Podge will not protect it from water since it is a water base glue. It will just end in a mess.

Have fun with it. Cold Porcelain is perfect for making things with the children. I wish I would have tried it when I was a nanny. The kids would have adored it.