With so many different homemade clay recipes available, it can be difficult to choose the perfect one. A basic bread clay recipe can be whipped up in no time with a few common household items. The best part about bread clay is that there is no baking required to preserve the various items, such as ornaments, beads, jewelry and sculptures, that can be created with bread clay.
Materials:
7 slices white bread
Knife
Bowl
7 tablespoons white glue
1/2 teaspoon water
1/2 teaspoon liquid dishwashing detergent
Acrylic paints or food coloring
Directions:
1. Cut the crusts off of seven pieces of white bread with a knife.
2. Tear the pieces of white bread into small pieces with your hands and place the pieces in a bowl.
3. Add 7 tablespoons of white glue, 1/2 teaspoon of water and 1/2 teaspoon of liquid dishwashing detergent to the bowl with the bread.
4. Combine the ingredients in the bowl with your hands until they are thoroughly blended and have developed a thick, but flexible, clay-like consistency. If it is necessary, add water one drop at a time to the bowl to thin the clay or add small pieces of bread to the bowl to thicken the clay.
5. Divide the clay in equal portions and knead a different color of acrylic paint or food coloring in to each portion of clay with your hands. Make sure that the paint or coloring has been evenly distributed throughout the clay to achieve the best color.
6. Store unused clay in plastic bags in the refrigerator. Make sure that the plastic bags are tightly sealed to keep the clay from hardening. Properly sealed clay can be kept for approximately three weeks.
Tips:
Add 2 tablespoons of chalk powder to bread clay to make it whiter.
Brush bread clay sculptures with a mixture containing equal parts of white glue and water before allowing the sculpture to dry to create a smooth appearance.
Air dry bread clay sculptures for approximately 24 hours. Cover the dry sculpture with a layer of clear nail polish, acrylic paint or acrylic spray to seal and preserve the sculpture.
Warning:
Bread clay contains chemicals and is dangerous to consume. Keep bread clay away from pets and young children who are not being supervised.