Cold Porcelain Clay
Cold Porcelain Clay is called such because it looks similar to porcelain and although heat is used in the making process the final product is air-dried and so does not need to be fired in a kiln. Once made it can be used like any other clay, but remember that whatever item you make must be left to dry completely and then it must be sealed & protected with a varnish.
You can use either a cooker hob or microwave to make the clay; both heat sources do the same job and do not affect the result.
You will need:
1 cup PVA glue
2 tablespoons Baby oil
2 tablespoons lemon juice or vinegar
(my lemon wasn't very juicy so I needed to use 2)
Non greasy moisturiser
Plastic food bag (to store clay)
also:
Saucepan or microwavable mixing bowl
(although none of the ingredients are toxic,
it is recommended that you use a dedicated saucepan/bowl
for crafting so as not to risk any cross contamination)
Spoon (to use just for making clay)
Cooker hob or microwave
What to do
1. Decide how you are going to heat your clay, either on a cooker hob or in a microwave. If you are using a cooker hob you will need a saucepan, if you are using a microwave then you will need a microwavable bowl.
2. Place the measured cornflour (cornstarch) and PVA glue in the pan/bowl and mix together.
3. Stir in the baby oil and lemon juice.
4. Gently heat until it forms a solid ball - It will gradually go lumpy, then clump together to form a ball. The clay will get quite tough to stir as it thickens.
**If heating on the cooker hob then continuously stir over a gentle heat until it has formed a solid ball with no liquid left**
Mine took about 8 minutes.
**If heating with a microwave, cook for 30 seconds then stir thoroughly, continue to alternate heating for 30 seconds and stirring until it has formed a solid ball with no liquid left**
5. Spread a small amount of moisturiser on your work surface, tip the clay out and knead until cold (it will be hot to start with so be very careful) - fill your pan/bowl with hot water to soak.
**TOP TIP - I found that even though I had used the moisturiser the clay still stuck to my work surface so I rubbed a little moisturiser on the palms of my hands and pressed & kneaded the clay just between the palms of my hands (it didn't stick). I kneaded it in this way for about 20 minutes until it had gone cold - TOP TIP**
6. Put a little moisturiser in the plastic bag and rub it around so the sides are covered.
7. Place the ball of porcelain clay in the bag, squeeze out all the air from the bag, twist to seal and leave for 24 hours before using.
8. Your clay can now be used for any number of sculpting craft projects.
**TOP TIP 1 - Remember that this clay is air-drying so any clay that you are not using you must keep in the plastic bag so that it doesn't dry out and go hard - TOP TIP**
**TOP TIP 2 - To colour the clay just add a drop of acrylic paint to a small amount of clay and knead thoroughly just before you are about to use it - TOP TIP**
**TOP TIP 3 - A finished item can take anything from several hours to a few days to dry out completely depending on its size and thickness -TOP TIP**
**TOP TIP 4 - To protect a dried finished item you must coat it with a water based sealer such as Mod-Podge or a clear acrylic varnish - TOP TIP**
Now you've made your Cold porcelain clay, why not have a look at our tutorial on making decorative roses? Follow the link below.
On to the Cold Porcelain Roses tutorial...
Back to the Sculpting and Modelling menu...