Video: How to Knead Clay

This may seem like a silly question to most experienced clay hobbiests....but there are people who wonder how to properly knead clay dough (especially those guys who never made any bread from scratch ..LOL..just teasing!).

Although most air-dry clays don't require kneading to condition clay before using like polymer clay does, kneading is required to mix-in colorants or to smooth and condition clay (maybe because it's been stored for a while).  The action demonstrated in this video works for homemade clay, cold porcelain and any air-dry clay.

Easy Way to Make a Doll's Head Using Push Molds

Would you like to make clay dolls but find the task of sculpting the face a little daunting?   Especially the small features on a miniature doll!    A push mold might be your answer!    The face shown above was created with a 3" push mold.  Imagine making a Santa stump doll with this face, a beard and a festive robe!  For a miniature, the small 3/4" face molds should be a good size for a 1" scale doll.

In the following video, popular clay artist and instructor Maureen Carlson shows us how to make the best use of a push mold when creating a doll's head....plus how to customize the character's face!

She's demonstrating with polymer clay using her own molds (some of which have been discontinued since video was originally made).  Air-dry clay can also be used with push molds in the same manner as polymer.  There are a number of different push molds available for making dolls, flowers and other things (not just Maureen's).  You can also make your own push molds.   I'll guess we'll have to cover that topic another day!   ;-)

If you're looking for something more challenging or more creative than the easy-to-use push molds shown in above video, Maureen also makes and sells "Puzzle-Face" molds for creating faces similar to those shown below.

Puzzle-Face molds are also push molds but the facial parts are molded individually and then assembled onto a "blank" head.  Facial parts are also interchangeable.   The nose from one mold can be used with the mouth from another, etc.  Seems like there would be endless possibilities for giving them your own unique look!  In the following video, Maureen shows you how to get started with a Puzzle-Face.

      

How to Paint Eyes on Clay Figure

In today's video, clay instructor Marisol Romero shows us how to paint eyes (using acrylics) on a cold porcelain figure.   The eyes for the Jester Clown (from previous post) are shown in the demonstration, but, of course, these could be eyes for any of our cute air-dry clay figures!  She makes it look very easy!  ;-)

Make This Cute CP Clown

Please see my other blog, Cold Porcelain Tutorials, for a step-by-step, 4-part, video demo creating the cute cold porcelain Jester Clown figure shown above!

Make This Sweet Charm Bracelet

A perfect charm bracelet for someone who loves ice cream and cupcakes!   See step-by-step Clay Charms tutorial by Jennifer Hayes for making each charm with Crayola Air Cry Clay (or Paperclay, or Hearty Clay...your choice of just about any air-dry clay would be suitable for this project).

Jennifer says:   "If your daughter is anything like mine, she loves cupcakes, ice cream cones, and bracelets. When I began making clay charms, it made sense to me to combine all three. With inexpensive materials and a few free hours, I made a cute charm bracelet that my daughter loves."