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How to make a Clay Bowl – DIY Air Dry Clay Bowls

Learn how to make a clay bowl using air dry clay. Clay bowls are perfect to store small things like rings, earrings, loose change, etc and make a wonderful handmade gift.

Clay Bowl with text overlay: How to make a clay bowl. Learn how.

I have been wanting ring dishes to store my rings, well in fact to store all the jewelry I wear daily, for a while now.

My daughter reminded me that a clay bowl like she made during a pottery class would be great to store my rings. The clay bowl she made is super cute, she made it using a pottery wheel.

I don’t have a pottery wheel, but I do like making little things with clay. So I decided to go ahead and make my own clay bowl. Yay for a clay project!

Ready to make DIY clay bowls?

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How to make a Clay Bowl

Supplies:

Instructions:

Step 1: Open the packaging of the air dry clay and take out a small amount of clay.

FIMO air modelling clay.

You’ll notice that the clay is not white. It will however dry off-white.

Air-dry clay.

Make sure to store any leftover clay in its original packaging inside a self-seal bag with a damp piece of paper towel.

Step 2: Take the ball of clay and use a rolling pin to flatten it about a quarter of an inch thick.

Clay rolling pin.
Rolling out clay with rolling pin.
Rolled out clay.

Step 3: Place a bowl face down over the clay.

Glass bowl over clay.

I used a glass bowl however you can use a cookie cutter instead. If you use a cookie cutter, you won’t need to follow the next step.

Step 4: Use a clay knife or a regular knife to cut around the bowl.

Trimming around bowl.
Clay trimmed around the bowl.

Step 5: Cut a little slit from the edge of the bowl to the end of the clay. Remove the excess clay that you trimmed around the bowl.

Clay trimmed around the bowl.
Glass bowl circle cutter.

Step 6: Remove the clay circle from under the bowl and place it over the bowl.

Remove circle shape.

Step 7: Gently mold the clay over the bowl.

Place the circle over the bowl.
Mold clay over the bowl.

Use your fingers to smooth the edges as much as you can. Keep rubbing the clay until you have a smooth finish. You can also use a little bit of water to help you remove any creases that may appear.

Smooth edges of the clay bowl with fingers.

Step 8: Allow to dry.

Clay bowl drying over a bowl.

Mine took 24 hours to dry completely. It went from beige to off-white when it was completely dry.

Dried air clay.

Step 9: Use a file or sandpaper to file down any sharp edges or rough edges that aren’t smooth enough.

Clay bowl removed from glass bowl.
Smooth edges with a file.
Sanding clay with a file.

Step 10: Time to decorate your clay bowl with acrylic paint, gold leaf gilding, or simply leave as is.

DIY clay bowl.
DIY air dry clay bowl with stones.

DIY Air Dry Clay Bowls

DIY clay bowls with air dry clay.
Clay bowl with gemstones inside.

I really love how the bowl turned out. Now I want to make a bunch of little bowls. They are so easy to make, the hardest part is waiting for it to dry. Hehe

Good thing I want to make more, my daughters ask me to make some for them because they want small ring bowls too. I don’t blame them, they are the perfect size to store rings. They will look nice next to the rope bowls I made them.

My oldest asked me to add some gold paint to hers, I really like the gold look of this gilded heart ring dish! I think I’ll use lace to add a texture stamp to one of the clay bowls too. I’ll make sure to show you how they turn out. I did it, I made lace clay bowls!

I hope you have enjoy this clay bowl tutorial.

If ever you have made a clay bowl, you may be interested in these pottery bowl painting ideas.

Lynne | My Family Thyme

Thursday 15th of February 2024

Such a lovely project! I am happy to share your clay bowl at this week's Tuesday Turn About Link Party. Thank you so much for sharing!