Souvenir house made of clay: MK. DIY clay souvenirs How to make clay gifts
Today, needlework in a wide variety of techniques and manifestations is back in fashion. Everyone can afford such a hobby, and it’s so nice to create beautiful things with your own hands, and literally “out of nothing”. One of the original hobbies for children and adults is clay modeling. What materials will be needed for such creativity and where to start? Especially for you - a detailed master class in our article.
Let's go in search of clay
Pottery is one of the oldest in the world. Dishes and decorative dishes were known to mankind at the dawn of the birth of civilizations. How to get started with this ancient technique? You will need the main material - clay, the easiest way is to buy it in a craft supply store. Some home craftsmen also try to sculpt from a cosmetic powder bought at a pharmacy. Another option is clay mined with your own hands. To do this, it is not at all necessary to go to a quarry, in many regions of Russia you can find places where the material we need lies directly under the soil layer. Attention: clay is oily, medium and skinny - depending on the amount and nature of impurities. Checking whether the selected piece is suitable for modeling is simple: just try to crush it in your hands and roll up the sausage. If the material does not stick to your hands and does not crack, you can start making crafts.
Basic rules for working with material
Today, clay modeling courses are being opened all over the country, and this is no accident. Working with this material is indeed somewhat more difficult than with plasticine or salt dough. First of all, the clay must be diluted to a plastic consistency. If you have powder - just add water and mix. The situation is a little more complicated with lumpy clay. In this case, the material should be filled with liquid for a while. Then drain the water and knead the lump. If you can't use up all the prepared piece at once, just put it in a plastic bag or wrap it with a wet cloth. It is believed that clay can become moldy during long-term storage - so try to knead it at least once a day if you plan to use it in a couple of days.
Simple crafts: where to start?
Clay modeling for beginners involves making simple figures. Separate a piece of a suitable size from the entire cooked mass. Remember it in your hands - your fingers should get used to the texture and density of the material. Next, you have to turn a piece of mass into some kind of figure. What exactly to blind? Experienced clay sculptors advise beginners to depict any images and forms that first come to mind. And most importantly - do not be afraid: one of the advantages of the material is that you can always redo everything before finishing the product. Try to make some simple animal or even a human figure.
Clay modeling is an interesting type of craft that allows you to create a variety of things. So, the easiest way is to draw complex shapes from one piece of material. But sculpting something from individual pieces of clay is a little more difficult. To fasten the parts you will need a special glue. Making it is very simple: prepare a liquid solution of clay with water. Before gluing one element to another, lubricate the intended junction with the resulting liquid. The same solution can smooth out cracks that sometimes appear when the material dries. Clay modeling is a very creative process. Try to decorate your crafts with "carving" using special tools or any improvised devices - for example, thin sticks or empty pen rods. An interesting technique is to give texture to clay with stamps, also try to roll out the layer on a piece of embossed fabric. From the selected material, you can make another type of crafts using special forms. Clay, diluted to a liquid state, is poured into them and left for a couple of days. After that, the figure is taken out, if necessary, smooth out all the irregularities and leave to air dry further.
Using clay, you can make molds from finished toys and souvenirs made of hard materials. It is very easy to make such crafts. Wrap the figure with which we will make a cast with cling film. Roll out the clay with a rolling pin and gently wrap around the prepared mold. Wait until the clay dries a little (no more than a day), then carefully remove it from the base. Leave the figurine to dry and process further in the usual way. Clay modeling (for children, you can pick up a few simpler crafts) is not only the creation of voluminous products. You can get by with prints. Roll out the material not too thin. Then invite the young sculptor to leave fingerprints on the surface or squeeze out the whole picture. Prints can also be made with stamps or simply beautiful molds, jars.
How to process the product?
Real pottery masters fire their products in special kilns. Of course, few people have such equipment at home. But you can always burn the clay at the stake. Just make sure that the fire is not too strong, otherwise your crafts may crack. Clay modeling is a fascinating activity, but it requires patience. It is not enough to sculpt a figurine, the products must still go through several stages of processing. After the crafts have completely dried, they must be carefully sanded, smoothing out all the shortcomings. Then the products are fired or covered with several layers of colorless varnish. Clay sculptures can be painted with paints. Remember that unfired products are quite fragile. After firing, the figurines become more durable, but it is still not recommended to drop them and subject them to aggressive mechanical stress.
For the first samples, you can always purchase a ready-made kit for modeling factory-made clay. It contains not only all the necessary materials and tools, but also detailed instructions for making crafts and a step-by-step guide for each action.
Clay goat. Master class with step by step photos.
Souvenir clay modeling "Symbol of the Year".
Alyabyeva Marina Viktorovna, teacher of additional education, MBUDO CDOD of the city of Dimitrovgrad, Ulyanovsk region.
Description: the master class is intended for school-age children, teachers of additional education, technology teachers and creative parents.
Purpose: souvenir - can be a decoration of the interior of the room.
Target: making a souvenir from clay.
Tasks:
1. To introduce the technique and methods of modeling clay souvenirs;
2. Arouse the desire to make a souvenir from natural clay material;
3. Develop fine motor skills;
4. Learn to sculpt and connect parts, lubricating well, taking into account the properties of clay;
5. Promote the development of fantasy and creativity;
6. Develop aesthetic perception, artistic taste;
7. Encourage desire, make exclusive gifts with your own hands;
8. Cultivate the desire to please others. Symbols like the threads of Ariadne, which allow a person not to get lost in the labyrinth of his own life. They exist in many manifestations of the reality around us, but each of them is interpreted differently, since any person has his own key to the definition of a particular symbol. Translated from Greek symbol- this is a sign, an image of a thing or animal to indicate the quality, property of an object. A conditional indicator of any concepts, ideas, phenomena.
Chinese zodiac.
Symbolism is most common in the East, where a certain meaning was attributed to each phenomenon, thing. The Eastern calendar did not escape this fate either. A small digression into history: the Chinese zodiac appeared due to observations of the orbit of Jupiter, whose period of revolution around the Sun is 11.8 years. For uncertain reasons, it was the 12-year cycle that inspired the Chinese astrologers the most, and subsequently the eastern zodiac calendar was compiled from it.
The chronology is based on a large 60-year cycle, divided into 5 small ones of 12 years each. Each year corresponds to a specific animal: starting with the Rat, followed by the year of the Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog and Boar. There are five primary elements, elements. They go one by one (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water) and are divided by colors (blue, red, yellow, white, black).
Symbol of the New Year.
On the eve of the New Year in Russia, toys and souvenirs in the form of a symbol of the coming year are very popular. A large selection of souvenirs and gifts with the symbols of the coming year is offered today in the trading network, but a hand-made souvenir will seem much more spectacular! This is an excellent and inexpensive present for a colleague, acquaintances or as an addition to the main gift. A small souvenir, at the same time, carries a significant semantic load - giving a friend, loved one a present in the form of an animal figurine, to which the coming year will be dedicated, you thereby wish the giver health, prosperity, prosperity, success in everything.
But, in the East, the attitude towards such presentations is different - it is customary to give not souvenirs with the symbol of the coming year, but sweets and fruits, for example ... tangerines. This interethnic tradition has its roots in China and has been going on for more than a thousand years. There it was customary to give two tangerines to friends for the New Year, and since they were expensive in those days, with this gift the incoming guest expressed a wish for wealth to the owners.
When leaving home, the guest was again handed two tangerines. So the hosts wished the guest wealth. There was a mutual wish for prosperity. In Chinese, the phrase "tangerine pair" is very similar in sound to the word, which translates as - "gold".
Today, tangerines can rightfully be considered the most common symbol of the New Year holidays in most countries of the world. They got accustomed perfectly in Russia! In every house, the festive table is decorated with tangerines, their aroma is mixed with the smells of delicious New Year's dishes, the smell of spruce, under which gifts from Santa Claus will lie at midnight!
Signs of the Eastern calendar.
Unlike the Western, generally accepted calendar, in which each of the 12 signs is assigned a month, in the Eastern one, a whole year is dedicated to each animal sign. And, as astrologers note, it is these 12 mythological beasts that determine the influence of the cosmos on the fate of people, literally from birth.
Zodiac calendar.
Throughout the existence of mankind, the starry sky has attracted people with its mysterious beauty and mysterious unknown. Ancient people were completely sure that everything that happens on Earth was sent from heaven. Since in those distant times there were no clocks and calendars, our ancestors oriented themselves in space, studying the correct "reading" of the starry sky.
Required material: clay, water containers, plastic boards, rags, stacks, ballpoint pen refills, brushes, gouache, varnish, foam sponges, whitewash.
Step by step work:
We knead a piece of clay in our hands - we get acquainted with clay.
We roll a thick carrot from most of it - a cone, press it inside the thick part with our thumbs, a void forms, while the wall thickness is not more than 1 centimeter, but not less than 0.5 centimeter.
We smooth the surface, align the edges, with wet hands, sliding movements of the fingers. We put a hollow cone on the wide side.
We roll up the oval - the head, lubricate it to the sharp part of the cone.
With parallel movements of the hands, we roll up two long, thin carrots - horns, with two fingers we roll two drops - ears.
We attach all the details well to the head, giving them a characteristic shape.
We roll up two carrots, on the wide side we form a hoof, embossing with a ballpoint pen.
After wetting the attachment points with water, we lubricate the sharp part of the cone - the hands.
It's time to decorate the head with rings - wool.
It is possible, from long flagella, to arrange decoration - fur on a fur coat. The dress is embossed with a finger - drapery.
Work is ready!
Dried in natural conditions from 3 to 5 days.
We prime with whitewash.
We paint using gouache, brushes and foam sponges for priming - imitation of fur, on the coat.
Cover the work with clear varnish, you can use spray varnish.
Helpful Hints
A handmade souvenir can be presented for any occasion.
It can also be given just like that, for example, if you came to visit a friend / girlfriend or relative whom you have not seen for a long time.
3. With a marker, pencil or pen, apply the desired letters to the colored buttons.
* You can buy keyboard stickers (with letters) and carefully stick on the buttons.
4. Prepare the frame and remove the glass from it (if any).
5. Glue the buttons to the frame in the desired order.
Craft "Beads" - a souvenir with your own hands
You will need:
Acrylic paint (any colors)
Gloss (optional)
Wooden beads (without varnish)
tassel
Leather rope/cord or thin chain
Scissors
1. Paint the wood beads in your favorite colors and let the paint dry, then apply a second coat of paint.
2. After the paint has dried, you can cover the beads with gloss (lacquer).
3. Put the beads on a rope or chain. To make it easier to thread the rope / cord into the beads, you can wrap one end with tape, which then remove.
4. Tie the ends into a loop.
Do-it-yourself souvenir for the kitchen (master class)
You will need:
Wood cut (or piece of plywood)
simple pencil
Black marker or black acrylic paint
black thread
small nails
1. Prepare a saw cut or plywood and draw the shapes of the fork and spoon with a simple pencil.
2. Draw a black marker (or brush with black paint) over the drawing with a pencil.
3. Nail small nails around the perimeter of the pattern.
4. Pull the thread over the nails. You can do this in any order.
Souvenirs (master class): leather keychain
You will need:
hard skin
Pencil
Needle and thread
Tool for installing eyelets and the eyelet itself (if desired)
Key ring
1. On a dense piece of skin, draw the head of the animal. Marker draw eyes, nose, muzzle.
* If you don't have a piece of leather, you can use felt, vinyl, or foam/styrofoam/sponge.
2. Cut out the design and make a notch (see image). Fold the ends one on top of the other as shown in the image to get volume.
* It is not necessary to make an incision, you can simply make a hole in the cut out pattern, where you can then insert a key ring.
3. For a neater keychain, you can insert the grommet and then insert the key ring.
Paper souvenirs: postcard in the form of a fashionable handbag (photo)
You will need:
Corrugated cardboard (you can use plain cardboard or thick paper)
Design paper
Lace
Decorations
Spray paint (you can use acrylic paints with a brush)
Handmade souvenir: clay vase
You will need:
Plasticine
Baking dish (in this example, it is iron, 30 cm)
Wax paper
shells
1. Prepare a mold, lay wax paper or plastic wrap (bag) in it and put plasticine in it, rolled out to the size of the mold.
2. Press down on the plasticine so that it "spreads" along the bottom of the mold.
3. Prepare the shells and make their prints on plasticine.
4. Fill the plasticine with plaster.
* For this vase, 5 parts were used, so the volume of plaster in the manufacture of each part was the same (7 spoons). In order not to drill further holes in the plaster, you can insert pieces of metal wire into the plaster in advance, at the same distance from each other.
5. When the plaster is almost set, remove it from the mold. All unnecessary parts must be removed to get a smooth tile.
* This must be done before the gypsum is completely petrified.
6. When all 5 tiles are ready, lay them on a newspaper or cloth, in pull the pieces of wire out of the plasterand wait for the tiles to dry completely.
7. Drill holes along each tile (unless you inserted pieces of wire before the plaster set).
8. Pull the threads through the holes and connect all the parts into one vase.
9. Place the vase on the plastic base and start pouring plaster to make the bottom. You can also insert five pieces of wire where the holes should be (see image below).
10. When the plaster is almost set, pull out the bottom to be leveled.
11. Make holes (if you did not use wire for the holes in advance), attach the thread to the walls of the vase.
* If you want to paint a vase, then it is better to untie all the details, paint, wait until they dry.
You can paint the vase. In this example, shoe polish mixed with vegetable oil was used for painting. This mixture was rubbed with a cloth. After drying, the tiles were covered with nitro varnish.
Insert the bottle of flowers into the vase.
How to make a souvenir: a fabric pot
If you are bored and you don’t know how to keep yourself busy, then you can try yourself as a sculptor and make beautiful ones with your own hands. souvenirs as a keepsake or as a gift. I will say right away that hand made requires great patience and nerves, but at the end of the work you will be rewarded with a good result.
Of course, you need to decide on the material for your work. It will be clay crafting. You can find it in many children's stores or stationery stores. Most often, it is sold in the form of a powder, which we filter to remove impurities. Next, add some water. We make excellent soft clay! She is moderately fat and obedient in her hands. To test its quality, you can dip it in water and then rub it. If the clay is well kneaded in the hand, then it is of high quality. If it is rough, and you feel it, then the clay is of poor quality.
Place of work. Must have good lighting - this is a must (the light must fall from the left). Make a stand to secure the bell shape. You can use a frame (a more complex mechanism for fixing shapes). When sculpting, use thin mittens that fit close to the body and do not hinder movement.
Let's start with the body. Take a piece of clay, which is enough at your discretion for the shape of a person. Thoroughly knead it on a stand. Knead until, when giving different forms, cracks no longer appear. To give the desired softening, add water, but do not overdo it with water! Gradually shape the clay into a triangular shape, but for now without any internal space. Work with two hands - this will give you the opportunity to shape the two sides of your figure at once. Constantly look at the work to give the figure the exact proportions and not spoil it. Remove large unnecessary pieces of clay with a knife. Small details, on the contrary, with the help of stacks. They will allow you to remove or attach small parts. Gradually smooth the top of the triangle. Do not sculpt the bell right away! Just ruin your work. But we need sound, and for that we need an inner (hollow) part for the sound to resonate. We begin to push through the middle with a finger. This must be done carefully! We start first from the middle, then we go to push along the edges. Our body is ready!
Let's move on to the head and limbs. For our head, a regular volumetric oval made of clay is suitable. Gently attach it to the body. Limbs. Much easier with them. Just attach the so-called "sausages" to the body. When attaching one part to another, for example, a leg to the body, the attachment points on both forms must be scratched with a sliver and moistened with plenty of water. Otherwise, parts of the sculpture may come off. In the process, you can add muscles, as well as make the shape of the hand and fingers. This can be done with a simple pinch. Legs on bells do not. Its lower part acts as the hem of a dress or pants (but this is already in the process of decorating and painting the figure). It should be remembered that solid objects cannot be inserted into wet clay: when it dries, it shrinks, but not solid objects, as a result, the product will crack. So introduce solid objects so that when the clay dries, it can be removed (same wire). Drying should take place without it.
After waiting a bit, we thread a coin on a wire or thread into a bell so that the coin rings. We're almost done with the work. Minor items should be considered. These can be hats, objects in hands, or something else, at the discretion of the sculptor. We attach them (I advise that the details are also made of clay).
If you do not have time to finish the work, then cover the work with a damp cloth. The next day, the clay will remain damp, and you can safely continue your work.
Leave the sculpture to stand for a while to dry. If you have a stove at home, after drying, put the figurine there. This is done after the stove is heated. This phenomenon is called roasting. After preparing the figurine, you can begin to paint it. After the stove, she will sign very well! I paint it with ornaments. This is traditional for me. Good luck, gentlemen, remember that this is handmade - you have every right to be creative in the process.
Ceramic vases, pots, tea sets, candlesticks, plates, whistles and even musical instruments - all this can be created independently.
To learn how to make ceramics with your own hands, the main thing is desire. Before becoming a ceramist, try molding the simplest knickknack out of clay, and you will understand whether it is worth spending money on buying equipment for work. If something didn’t work out, it doesn’t matter, soak the marriage and make a new figure out of it, before baking, the product can be modified endlessly.
What is ceramics made of and where to get materials for work
Ceramics is fired clay, which is the main material in the work of a ceramist. Unlike, natural is of natural origin, it is mined from the bowels of the earth without subjecting it to chemical and other types of processing.
Experienced craftsmen, in order to save money, extract and prepare raw materials on their own. This process includes several stages and hardly deserves attention if you are just starting out and living in the city.
Clay for the manufacture of ceramics must be oily and free of pebbles and other debris, otherwise the craft will crack during the baking process. The finished mass is stored under certain humidity conditions.
Natural clay is different types:
- White - the most common, initially has a grayish tint, and after heat treatment it acquires a pleasant shade of ivory.
- Red - contains iron oxide, which gives the raw material a greenish tone. The main color of the raw material is brown, after firing the products become red. It lends itself well to modeling, does not crumble, ideal for sculptures and large items.
- Porcelain is gray when raw and white when baked.
- Blue - more often used in cosmetology and traditional medicine.
- Black or dark brown ceramic body - the hardest clay, acquiring an ivory hue after kilning.
Also clays for ceramics classified by temperature processing into low-melting, medium-melting, refractory.
It is most convenient to buy ready-made pottery clay, focusing on the fraction size, color after firing at different temperatures, and other characteristics and quality indicators. The cost depends on the manufacturer, packaging, texture. There are ready-made masses with additives for investing in various tasks - modeling, molding, potter's wheel.
In addition to clay, glazes and enamels are needed to cover products, pigments to give hand-made ceramics the desired shade, special additives to improve properties and heat treatment.
Used to glue parts slip mass- a kind of glue made from diluted clay. If you simply connect the elements, they can fall off when heated. All this is sold in specialized stores for ceramists.
Methods for the manufacture of ceramic products
There are several ways to turn the clay mass into a beautiful ceramic product.
modeling- the most affordable way to make ceramic products with your own hands at home. Souvenirs, sculptures, dishes, toys or other crafts are molded by hand, as if from plasticine, helping themselves with special stacks or improvised devices.
Pottery requires a rotating circle. With the help of this ancient craft, even today they create vases, jugs, pots, plates, cups.
warm-up- the easiest option for making ceramics for beginners. In the work, a plaster mold is used, in which soft clay is laid out, and after hardening, a figured product is removed. Gypsum molds are attractive because they absorb excess moisture, helping the clay product to harden and dry.
Casting- here they also use forms, but of a different plan. Diluted clay is poured into molds, blanks are dried, removed and painted.
Clay crafts gain strength only after firing - processing in pottery kilns at a temperature of 900 to 1300 degrees. Finished souvenirs are covered with acrylic paints or special vitreous glaze for ceramics. In the case of glazes, another firing is required after staining.
If you want to get a natural shade, milking is used - an unpainted baked ceramic figurine is covered with milk in several layers and baked again at lower temperatures.
Pottery kiln - types and preferences
Previously, kilns for firing ceramics were forges dug in the ground and heated exclusively with firewood. Modern pottery kilns are gas, electric and wood-burning. The latter, as a rule, are made by hand, they are suitable for use in private households. In the conditions of an apartment, it is most convenient to work with electric furnaces; for large volumes, you can choose a gas furnace.
In the metal case of such furnaces, a refractory brick or other material is hidden that retains heat and is not afraid of heating. Ventilation holes are provided to remove moisture, the process of firing ceramics is controlled by a software controller. Electric pottery kilns are not cheap. The price depends on the manufacturer, volume, power.
On sale there are models with vertical and horizontal loading and hood. According to the type of location of the heating element, pottery kilns are divided into muffle and chamber. IN muffle it is located around a container made of refractory material (muffle). In chamber heaters, the heater is located inside, which reduces heat loss and makes the equipment more economical.
If you try a little, you can make a ceramic kiln at home with your own hands, taking refractory bricks as a basis and something for the body, for example, an old washing machine.
Baking is the most important process that does not forgive mistakes. Sometimes even experienced craftsmen see a worthless marriage instead of the expected masterpiece. Products are never taken out immediately, they must cool in the oven.
How to choose a potter's wheel
Pottery wheels are needed for sculpting round objects, so this tool is not necessary to buy right away. If you are just learning ceramics, start with sculpting or punching. Circles come with manual, foot and electric control.
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