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A Father's Day Craft Project

This was the first time I’ve worked with clay since I can remember, and it was so fulfilling! The feeling of using your hands to mold clay, just can’t be beat. The world is your oyster with the things you can create. Plus, there are so many easy clays to work with, right out of your home. No need for a kiln.

This project is so simple, it’s a great one for children too. It got a 5 star revue from Daddy! He genuinely loves it, and finds it very useful. A great success all around. It’s our ‘Habitat at Home’ clay catchall tray, for his change, keys and phone. A little reminder of his family’s love. The perfect father’s day present!

‘Sculpey’ is a polymer clay, that can be found at the craft store. It can be kneaded into shape, or rolled out on a cutting board. It has directions for baking in the oven on the packaging. The packaging states 275 degrees F, for 15 minutes per 1/4 inch. I found that this still left the clay quite soft. I left mine in the oven at 275 F, for an hour and a half, to allow it to harden more. You can easily lengthen the time when baking with this product, but do not raise the temperature. Keep the kitchen ventilated when baking, as the clay will release an odor.

  • Materials
  • 1 8oz package white polymer clay
  • Pointed clay tool, or other household pointed object
  • Polymer clay gloss
  • Acrylic paint (colors of your choice)
  1. Knead the clay in you hands to soften, then roll it out on a cutting board.
  2. Mold it into a bowl.
  3. Remove excess clay from around the edge to make it circular.
  4. Work it into the shape you desire. I just pressed the edges up a little with my thumb and fore finger.
  5. Write “daddy” or “dad” with your pointed utensil.
  6. Carefully fill in the letters with black paint, using the pointed utensil.
  7. Bake in the oven at 275 degrees F (130 C) for 1 hour and 30 minutes. (This is much longer than the package instructions. I felt it needed this extra time to harden more).
  8. Take it out of the oven to cool.
  9. Once cooled, paint it the colors of your choice. I chose a light gray for the inside, let it dry. Then, a brilliant blue for the outside, (painting the blue over the lip a little). You can paint anything you’d like to make it your own.
  10. Once the paint dried, I applied 2 coats of gloss to the interior and outside edge. I didn’t gloss the flat base. I followed the gloss instructions. Let the first coat dry for 30 minutes before applying the second coat. Then let it dry for 24 hours.

Voila! – Project done.
It’s so simple, that it makes you want to do more clay projects as soon as possible. I can’t wait for the next clay project already!

ABOUT
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Hi my name is Kristina Myers. Welcome to my hobby blog. Well, it's much more than a hobby blog. I couldn't contain myself to just talk about hobbies. I have broadened it right out cover anything that takes place around the home and enriches life itself.

I hope you enjoy reading my posts as much as I have enjoyed writing them.

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