Hello Crafters!

There are plenty of air-dry clay (or cold porcelain) recipes out there and believe me I’ve tested out a good handful of them! This tutorial showcases the two easiest and most successful recipes that I experimented with. Both recipes use air-drying to set the clay instead of the baking method. Personally I find the process of baking the clay far too tedious. I prefer to set and forget which is why I chose to share the air-dry method with you!

Recipe 1: 2-Ingredient Air Dry Clay

This recipe just seems to good to be true. In fact, it can barely be classified as a recipe considering it only contains 2 ingredients!

For this clay you only need cornstarch and white school glue. You barely even need to measure as the recipe is a simple ratio of :

• 2 parts cornstarch
• 1 part glue

Simply mix these two together in a bowl until they come together into a smooth mass with no lumps. Once it comes together in the bowl you will “need to knead” (heehee) the dough with your hands. The dough is a bit sticky so I sprinkled a little bit of extra cornstarch on my hands to stop it from sticking and it worked just fine.

After kneading the clay, powder your work surface with a bit of cornstarch (again to prevent sticking). Roll out the clay with a rolling pin or if you only made a small batch and you are lazy like me just sprinkle cornstarch on top of the clay, put a piece of parchment on top of it and grab a heavy book to just squish the dough out flat!

Grab some cookies cutters or a knife and cut out your desired shapes.

Lay the shapes out on a flat surface to dry.

*TIPS*

*If the clay is extremely sticky while mixing just add some more cornstarch

*The clay tends to curl up on the edges while it dries. To make sure your shapes dry flat you will need to periodically flip them over while they are drying.

Recipe 2 : Stovetop Air-Dry Clay

This recipe is a little bit more involved than the 2-ingredient clay but it is still super simple and still uses ingredients that you probably already have in your kitchen. I found the two recipes to have similar results but this stove-top method dried out a bit faster than the 2-ingredient clay.

Combine in metal bowl:

• 1/2 cup white glue
• 1 tbsp baby oil
• 1 tbsp vinegar or lemon juice

Mix in 1/2 cup cornstarch until smooth.

It should look like this:

Place the bowl with your clay mixture over a double boiler. Gradually increase the heat while stirring.

The clay is ready when it comes away from the sides of the bowl.

Like this:

Put cornstarch on your hands to prevent the clay from sticking to your hands. Knead the clay until smooth.

Wrap the clay in plastic wrap until you are ready to use it!

*TIPS*

*Like the 2-ingredient clay this clay will curl a bit when it dries. Just occasionally flip over while drying.

*When heating the clay on the double boiler be sure to very gradually increase the heat to avoid lumps.

*If the clay is too sticky mix in some cornstarch.

Finishing Your Air Dry Clay Projects

While I made magnets with my clay, that is just the tip of the iceberg! No matter what you made with your clay, here are some tips for finishing off your creation:

• Regular acrylic paint works great on this clay
• If you have any imperfections in your dried clay just take a small dab on water on your finger and smooth the imperfections away
• It would be a good idea to seal your project to keep it looking great for years to come. I would recommend clear finish spray paint but mod podge, varnish, or even thinned out glue would work as well!

Any questions, comments, or ideas? I would love to hear them below in the comments section!

Happy Crafting!