The Shrinking Owl

In my last post, I wrote about pottery being the craft I would really like to do. While I don't have access to a kiln I figured I should really just give air dry clay a try. In the spirit of this blog, I decided to have a go and I bought an air dry clay kit from Sculpd. 

Before I get into the experience; a quick note on Air Dry clay. It is a material that will harden when you leave it out at room temperature for a period of time (24 to 48 hours usually). The big benefit is that you don't need a kiln to "bake" it like natural clay. The downside is that it won't be waterproof, so what you make can't hold water or be left outside.

I was so excited when my kit was delivered, nearly opened it and got stuck in straight away! 

As I did pottery as a kid and had made some relatively elaborate vases (which my mother still uses!), I figured it would be easy. So I decided I would make an owl shaped planter and a four-pronged candle holder and ignore the suggested pinch pot in the instruction book.

First observation, it's not quite like riding a bike... Or to be charitable to myself it's not quite the same structure as clay so I wasn't quite prepared. I thought working on a plastic placemat would be ideal, but it got stuck. I had to scrape it off and start again on some baking paper. It so sticky, it got all wrapped around the rolling pin - again placing a sheet of baking paper on the clay to roll it out was the solution. RTFM!

For the candle holder, while I had an idea in mind of what I wanted it to look like, I wasn't sure how to go about it. Rolled a couple bits of clay, folded each end, and pinched a hole on either side. Then I just compared each one to the wine bottle opening, as I had used it as a candle holder before. Not the best idea. Now that it's all dry, one whole is way too big and the other three are too small for the candles!

The second observation is shrinkage. It does seem to shrink a bit when fully dried out. So despite my measurements and paper cutter guide, my pot is too snug for my succulent.

BUT, I had so much fun doing it, it was like being a kid again! I have a lot more ideas for things to make and also a better feel for the material and how to work it so I'll be having another go. So watch this space... No Etsy store any time soon, but for sure I have rediscovered a messy new hobby! 

What I used:

Clay: Sculpd, it comes with two packs of clay, various tools you need for cutting, carving, some paint, sealant, and an instruction booklet with suggestions on what to make.

Paint: I used acrylics by Benicci, which I got in the first lockdown when I thought I could channel my inner Bob Ross.