To me, a hobby store is like a sweet shop to a toddler. I want all the things. But you don’t necessarily have to go to the store for clay materials. If you look around your home, you’ll find lots of tools and materials that can be used for working with clay. Here’s an overview.
1. Wooden board
Do you have an old breadboard, wooden tray or similar lying around somewhere? These can serve perfectly well as a surfacesto work with clay on. This will stop your clay from sticking to the table.
2. Wooden rolling pin
If you have a wooden rolling pin in your kitchen drawer, use it out to roll out clay slabs. Rolling out your clay with an equally thin lath on each side ensures an even thickness throughout. This ideal for making plates, baking dishes and other handbuilding projects.
3. Toothpicks
The tip of a toothpick is great for making holes in the surface of your workpiece, or for writing and drawing. You can also use it to easily sign your work.
4. Tealights
The aluminium casing of a tealight provides a handy round cut-out. If you don’t like the idea of a round shape, you can cut the edge of the casing off to create a different shape.
5. Glass jar
An old glass jar, such as a chutney or jam jar, with a lid is ideal for making and storing clay slip. It’s handy to have one on hand when you want to quickly glue a handle, spout or knob to your work.
6. Plastic wrap or plastic bags
Use this to wrap packs of clay with this so they don’t harden, or to cover your work so it dries slowly and evenly.
7. Old guitar string or nylon string
Guitarists are lucky in that they always have materials at home with which to make a clay cutter. Simply tie old treble strings to two rounds of wood or screws, and cut away. If you don’t have a guitar, fine nylon wire works just as well.
8. Sponge
Cut a large cleaning sponge into smaller pieces to create lots of clay sponges for throwing, wiping or wetting your work.
9. Bank card
You don’t need to get your bank card out (haha) for all kinds of expensive ribs. With an old bank card, SIS card or an expired passport, you can start working with clay straight away.
10. Rotating serving board
Do you have one of those wooden cheese boards with a spinning top that’s gathering dust in your kitchen cabinet? Such a board can be used as a modelling wheel to help you finish your work to perfection on all sides.
11. Hair dryer
Using a hair dryer allows you to speed up the drying process, enabling you to work on larger and more ambitious projects. It doesn’t work as quickly as a paint burner, but it still dries faster than air drying alone.
12. Cookie cutters
You can also get started with clay using the baking cutters you have lying around. Stars, spheres, little men… who knows? Maybe those special cut-out shapes will give you some extra inspiration!
13. Fabrics, wool, thread
Do you have any fabric, wool or thread lying around somewhere in the house? These are wonderful materials for experimenting with prints in clay and creating textures.
14. Spray bottle
Give an empty cleaner bottle a second life as a water sprayer. For example, you can use it to spray water into a plastic bag that you keep a workpiece in to soften the clay again. You can also use it to moisten your clay during polishing.
15. Knitting needles
Old knitting needles of various thicknesses can be used as modelling needles. You can use them to seal seams, create holes and form beads, or add texture to surfaces.
16. Straws
Straws are perfect for making small, precise holes. They also come in handy if you are trying the bubble glaze technique.
17. Abrasive sponge
There are different types of abrasive sponge, such as microfibre, metal and natural sponges, and each one leaves a different imprint and texture on the clay. They work great for achieving a rough look.
18. Needles
Don’t have a pottery needle to check the thickness of your soil while throwing? Simply push an old needle into a ball of clay and leave it to dry to make your own needle tool.
19. Old comb or toothbrush
If you want to attach two pieces of clay together with clay slip, an old comb can be used to quickly scratch the surface of the clay. A toothbrush is also great for this.
20. A Stanley knife
The blade of a Stanley knife or craft knife is ideal for cutting off pieces of clay cleanly and precisely. A regular knife can be too thick, which compresses the clay and leaves an uneven edge.
Take a good look in your kitchen cabinets, junk drawer or garage and you are bound to find lots of tools and materials that could be useful for making prints, cutting out shapes, applying textures and further experimentation. Happy hunting!
