If you’ve spent any time on my site or follow me on social media, you know I take my crafting pretty seriously. I tend to go for complex projects that use natural materials. However, sometimes I find it helpful to chill out a bit and just make a little cute something for fun. So, when Carol from Claymoo contacted me a few weeks back and offered to gift me a couple of free air dry clay kits, I gave them an enthusiastic “yes!” You’ll find my review of the kits and my thoughts on air dry clay below.
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About the Air Dry Clay Kits
The Claymoo sent me two of their air dry clay kits: the Strawberry Short Cake (15$) and the Lady Charlotte (17$). Both are available directly from the Claymoo website or as part of sets on Claymoo’s Etsy Shop.
Each kit came with several small bags of air dry clay in the colors needed for the kit, a toothpick (for sculpting details), and password. A QR code on the back of a package linked to a webpage with both a video tutorial and step-by-step instructions with photos that could be accessed after putting in the passcode.
The Clay used in these kits appears to be a variation of foam clay. This is a type of clay that requires no heating or other input to cure, just air and time. On the FAQ page for the, Claymoo lists the general ingredients used to make the clay, but doesn’t give details on the specifics, like what type of adhesives or preservatives are used.
The only other thing you need to use the kits is a clean, nonstick surface. I used my desk, which is just wood painted with chalk paint, with no issues.
Handling Air Dry Clay
Once I got used to the texture, I really enjoyed working with the air dry clay. It has a soft, springy feel and, while sticky, didn’t stick to my hands. Think, marshmallow fluff, but much easier to handle.
The clay needed to be kneaded and stretched a bit before it could be sculpted, which was explained in this Quick Start Guide. The only thing the guide was missing was tips on how to get the clay out of the little bags. I struggled with that, but towards the end I finally got the hang of it (the trick is to put your fingers on either side of the clay and pull, rather than try ing to dig it out of the bag).
I didn’t have any issues with the clay sticking to my hands or my work surface. However, I did find that any little bit of lint or dust instantly got stuck to the clay. So, make sure your work surface is really clean! The clay also tends to stick very firmly to other pieces of air dry clay, so be really sure about your placement before you put your pieces together. I was able to subtly reposition mine, but there was always a bit of residue left that needed to be disguised.
Sculpting the Clay
The Strawberry Shortcake was marked as an “easy” kit, and it really was. The shapes are easy to make, even for someone like me who hasn’t done much sculpting. It took a few tries to get the hang of using the toothpick to create details, but once I got the movements down it was easy. Plus, when I messed up, it was easy to just knead the clay back into a ball and start again.
The Lady Charlotte was a bit harder, but I’m happy with the way it turned out. The tough part was sculpting the ribbon. The air dry clay loves to be molded into solid shapes, but it’s a bit of a struggle to get it into long, thin pieces. The little shapes that made up the bow were also a challenge, but I think I did OK in the end!
The reason that I found the kits so doable, was the great instructions. Having both a video and written/still images made the whole process really easy.
Curing the Air Dry Clay
The hardest part for me was finding a safe place to store my mini sculptures as they were drying. Foam air dry clay doesn’t need any heat to cure, just airflow and time, so it’s great for home use. The instructions on both my Claymoo kits said that they needed about 48 hours before they would be safe to handle. This tracks with the general guidelines I’ve seen of 24 hours of drying time for every one Inch of thickness.
Now, I have no problem leaving things to sit, but my cats love to throw things on the floor. Eventually, I found a small spot on top of a plastic box on my shelving unit that I was reasonably sure was safe from my adorable troublemakers but still had plenty of airflow. I was worried that the sculptures might stick to the top of the plastic container, so I put down a sheet of printer paper first. Then I left everything alone.
My Finished Air Dry Clay Sculptures
After letting them dry for a couple of days (Ok, I forgot about them for a week, it happens), I checked on my mini cakes. They were very lightly attached to the printer paper, but came off with no fuss.
My finished air dry clay cakes were surprisingly light. They felt like nothing at all in my hands. When I pressed on them, they had a little bit of foam-like “squish” If I pressed really hard with my fingernail, I could make a bit of a more permanent mark, but for the most part the clay just bounced back. All the different elements felt securely attached, even though I had just pressed them together and not used any glue.
They were sturdy enough that I was able to let my niece and nephew (almost-4 and 6 years old) play with them without any damage. I’d avoid letting a younger or more rambunctious child play with the finished pieces, but these should be safe for gentle play by kids who aren’t tempted to chew on them.
Overall
Overall, I really enjoyed the Claymoo Air Dry Clay kits. They were a fun, quick craft that resulted in adorable little sculptures. It was a nice introduction to the medium and a pleasant way to spend an afternoon. Given how important play is to maintaining a creative practice, I felt like this was time well spent.
I would defiantly try these kits again with kids, however, they’d need to be a little bit older and more patient than my niece and nephew are currently. But these kits would be great to do as a family or as a party activity.
While I don’t think I’ll use air dry clay regularly in my personal artistic practice, it was a really fun medium to explore. The Claymoo kits allowed me to get a feel for what the medium can and cannot do, which is soooo important when exploring new materials.
Have you used air dry clay? Or tried one of Claymoo’s kits? Let me know in the comments below or over on Instagram!