How to mold a person from clay in stages. We go in search of clay. How to quickly make a plastic model

Sculpting not only trains children's motor skills well, it can also become a hobby for adults. You can sculpt from cold porcelain, plasticine and polymer clay. The latter is especially popular in the manufacture of flowers, small figurines and other accessories. The recipes below will help you with the question of how to make clay for modeling yourself.

How to make polymer clay at home

From a material called polymer clay or plastic, you can create the most unexpected elements. It is often taken as the basis for jewelry, fashioning bracelets, rings, headbands, or brooches. All these decorations will shimmer with bright colors that you choose to sculpt. Jewelery around the neck looks especially beautiful - these are pendants, necklaces or just beads. In second place is the dishes, which are decorated with polymer clay with their own hands. Glasses, mugs, teapots or spoons - they can decorate your table for months.

You can make toys in the form of hinged dolls completely from polymer clay or mold a small utensil set for them: modeling it will be especially interesting for a child. Today, skilled craftswomen make everything that their imagination has enough of this material - from key rings to a bouquet of flowers, while there are already many recipes according to which polymer clay is prepared by hand. If you buy it in a store, then polyvinyl chloride and liquid additives are found in the composition, i.e. plasticizers. For self-production, starch, glue with glycerin and soda are taken as the basis.

Polymer clay for modeling from potato starch

The first DIY polymer clay recipe is based on potato starch. Often corn is used instead. The only difference is that the appearance of their potato starch products turns out to be a little grayish. If corn was used for crafts, then they look whiter. For the recipe itself, you will need the following ingredients:

• petroleum jelly or hand cream - 1 tsp;
• baby oil - 2 tsp;
• PVA glue - 100 g;
• lemon juice - 2 tbsp. l.;
• potato starch - 100 g.

To work, you need an enamel pan. Fill it with about 1 liter of water, put on fire. While the liquid boils, follow the instructions below:

1. Take disposable cups. Pour glue into one of them, pour starch into the other.
2. Send glue to another enameled container. Add butter with cream and lemon juice there, mix well.
3. Next, heat the mixture over a saucepan of water, i.e. in a water bath. Just don't do it too long or the clay will overheat and become tight.
4. After that, add starch to all the ingredients. With such small proportions, you can do it all at once, and not gradually.
5. Stir vigorously so that the mass does not stick to the bottom of the container.
6. Lumps will begin to appear in the mixture, it will become like cottage cheese, and then turn into a large lump. At this point, remove the container from the water bath.
7. Grease your hands with cream, start kneading the mass.
8. Roll up the clay, giving it the shape of a ball, cover with a layer of cream and wrap with a film so that air does not get inside. So the material should ripen for about 12 hours.

Recipe from glue and glycerin

The following instruction involves the addition of glycerin at one of the stages of work. This substance helps to avoid cracking of finished products. For such a recipe, you will need materials in the following proportions:

• PVA glue - 2 tbsp. l;
• cold water - 1 tbsp.;
• glycerin - 10-15 drops;
• potato or corn starch - 1 tbsp.

To prepare polymer clay according to this recipe, go through the following steps:

1. Arm yourself with a heavy bottomed saucepan. Mix the glue and half of the water there.
2. Cook the mixture over low heat for about 3-4 minutes, stirring constantly.
3. Take a separate container, where you combine the remaining water and starch.
4. Send the starch mixture to a saucepan with water and glue, drop glycerin there, then mix thoroughly.
5. Turn off the heat, leave the pot for a while to cool.
6. Place the clay on a table sprinkled with starch.
7. Knead the dough. It will be sufficient if it becomes pliable and its surface is smooth.
8. Form a ball out of clay, as shown in the photo. Then wrap with cling film, send to the refrigerator shelf for a couple of days.

DIY self-hardening polymer clay

According to the latest recipe, you can prepare self-hardening clay. For this option, you will need the following materials and tools:

• baking soda - 2 tbsp.;
• water - 0.25 st.;
• corn starch - 1 tbsp.;
• spatula for kneading dough;
• wax paper for baking;
• non-stick saucepan.

Self-hardening polymer clay is prepared according to the following instructions:

1. Combine all of the above ingredients in a saucepan.
2. Heat it on fire, stirring constantly. When the mixture is a little dispersed, drip a couple of drops of any fragrant oil, such as cinnamon. So the finished raw material will have a pleasant smell.
3. Keep the mass on fire until bubbles appear and a large lump forms from it. All this time, do not forget to stir, scraping the mixture from the bottom.
4. When you see that the mass began to resemble mashed potatoes, turn off the heat.
5. Dump the contents of the pan into another container lined with waxed baking paper.
6. While the "dough" is cooling, grease your hands with a fat cream.
7. Knead the mass into one large lump. Keep it in an airtight container so the edges don't dry out.
8. The raw material is already ready for molding. Roll out thin layers from it, cut out any figures with molds, make patterns on them with a toothpick, and then dry them in air or a battery.

Modeling is considered interesting, but at the same time a simple matter with which you can create a variety of gizmos.

Such products are great for original interior design, presented as surprises for various holidays.

How exactly to work with the material intended for modeling and what kind of crafts can you create with your own hands from polymer clay?

For beginners

So, polymer clay is a synthetic material, reminiscent of plasticine in properties, but hardening. This material is called plastic, or cernit, as well as thermoplastic.

Beginners who plan to make clay crafts should know that this material can be of several types - one has the properties to harden exclusively during the baking process, the other does not require firing.

Before choosing clay crafts, you need to decide on the material used.

What is required for modeling

During modeling, improvised materials are used in order to facilitate the working process with clay as much as possible and contribute to giving it the required shape.

For those starting out with DIY clay crafts, there is no need to purchase many tools as many of them may not be required.

For work you will need:

• special surface for work;
• knife, as well as a razor blade;
• toothpicks to create holes;
• cylindrical rolling pins;
• cutters;
• gloves, and wipes.

How to sculpt?

After complete solidification, the clay resembles gypsum, which is why the product is processed in a special way. Under the influence of high temperature conditions, the baked material resembles plastic.

Clay is sold in a specialized store. It is preferable to start creating crafts for kids made from clay with buds, as well as jewelry.

Flowers

To create a rose, a ball is initially made, which is shaped in the form of a drop - this is the core of the bud. After that, you should roll up a couple of balls, and then flatten them to turn into petals.

Alternately, they need to wrap the core to create a beautiful bud. Leave the first few petals in a straightened position, while bending the extreme ones.

Bijouterie

Polymer clay crafts are original decorations that are easy to make with your own hands, even if you have no modeling experience. Each beginner can make a bracelet, a ring using a simple technique.

To begin with, it is advisable to choose a simple product, for example, create beads. For these purposes, it is necessary to roll out the clay, cutting out squares of the same size for rolling into small balls. Thus, the beads will be the same size. After that, holes are made in the beads with a needle.

Master class for children

Modeling allows kids not only to know what surrounds them, but also contributes to the active development of finger motor skills.

The scope for creativity in this case is unlimited, however, when choosing a master class for making clay crafts, it is preferable to start with elementary forms. For example, you can fashion food for your favorite dolls or animals with your child.

Note!

Food

It is not difficult for a baby to fashion any fruits or vegetables. Visually show the baby how to create a veined apple leaf with a needle, give the necessary look to the pear.

Gradually master the modeling methods, given that kids always strive to achieve a positive result faster. In order to interest the crumbs in modeling, explain in advance that crafts are created gradually.

Beasts

In order to create animals with the help of modeling, it is advisable to use a variety of pictures with a schematic representation of animals.

Focusing on them, it is easy to choose a craft for future modeling and it is easier to figure out how to give the elements the required shape.

For very small animals, large pieces of fabric can be used, while large figures should be created according to the hollow element method using special molds. To complete the nose, as well as the eyes, use beads.

Note!

Clay products

How to prepare polymer clay for further modeling?

Before starting the working process, the clay should be thoroughly kneaded to give it plasticity.

When using red or white clay, when heated, it is necessary to maintain the required temperature regime, which reaches 110 degrees, since at high temperature conditions the clay often loses its created shape and changes in color. To verify this, look at the photo of clay crafts on the resource.

Can you make your own baked clay? It is possible, however, in order to create it, you will need to find high-quality natural clay, which should be fired as competently as possible without equipment.

Therefore, it is possible to produce this material on your own only through trial and error.

Note!

Photo of clay crafts

Clay modeling is a wonderful way to relax, get away from everyday problems and improve your life by letting creativity into it. This material is malleable, plastic and pleasant to human hands. From it you can make a large number of different things - toys, jewelry and decorative crafts. Finished products will wonderfully decorate the interior and can be wonderful gifts for any occasion.

What is polymer clay

Modeling can be done with both natural and artificial material. Today, it is the latter that is increasingly used, which, under the necessary conditions, very quickly hardens and becomes solid. Plastic, thermoplastic and cernite are its other names.

Beginners need to know that this material is divided into two types. The first seizes only when roasted in the oven, and the other at room temperature. Before you start work, you need to decide on the mass - it will be purchased or made by yourself. Who does not want to spend money on acquiring a ready-made composition can cook it at home, for this you will need:

• 1 glass of PVA glue;
• 2 tbsp. l. lemon juice;
• 1 cup corn starch;
• non-greasy baby cream;
• 1 st. l. vaseline;
• spoon for kneading;
• a bowl;
• film.

From these components, approximately 350 grams of mass can be obtained. The manufacturing technique is very simple: vaseline, PVA and starch are mixed in a bowl, then lemon juice is added. Next, the container is sent for 30 seconds to the microwave at maximum power. The surface of the table is smeared with cream, a warm mixture is spread on it, after which everything is kneaded for 5 minutes. The result should be a plastic and elastic material, completely ready for work.

Instruments

Polymer clay modeling for beginners and masters cannot do without special tools:

• Burlap - since the mass does not stick to this material, it is necessary for the manufacture of figures and stripes.
• Rolling pins - must be of polished and hard wood to obtain plates.
• Bars - come in a variety of volumes, are also needed for plastics.
• Spatulas - necessary for cutting, adding material and smoothing surfaces. Sold with blades of different sizes from 2 to 3.5 cm, and sometimes more.
• The mixing attachment is an electrical mechanism that combines different mixtures perfectly.
• Stacks - most often made from wood, but they can also be plastic, needed for handmade.
• The potter's wheel is a very important tool for clay sculpting, which can be useful for making any kind of product, especially for symmetrical containers.

materials

In order for the work to be pleasant, certain components are required, without which you can not do:

• Plastic - you can cook yourself or buy in a store. Before you get down to business, the mass must be warmed up well with your hands. It should resemble plasticine.
• Surface. Clay modeling cannot take place without a quality workplace, since not all parts of the product can be rolled out in the palms. Often you need a smooth and even base - a special glass board or A4 sheet.
• Gloves. Most craftswomen do not use them in their work in order to better feel the material. But if you want to make a product of high quality and cleanliness, you can’t do without them.
• Napkin. Sometimes there are marks on the surface, tools and hands. Mostly damp cloths are used for cleaning. This will help maintain order and not spoil the mass of the remnants of old work.

Clay modeling for children

Creating even the simplest sculptures with kids is a creative process. For them, a spherical lump may appear as an orange, a ball, an apple, and a bent clay column as a bagel or a ring. While working, the child experiences aesthetic pleasure and pleasure from the volume, plasticity and forms that are obtained as a result. This allows you to develop mental activity, artistic taste and many other qualities.

Creating figurines is one of the most favorite activities for children, in which fine motor skills improve, diligence, self-confidence and independence are brought up. So why wouldn't it be clay? Modeling a toy is useful and very interesting, since you can play with the result in the future. The development of creative imagination and fantasy, which is facilitated by such an activity, will have a beneficial effect on the baby and help him in the future.

Grinding

After finishing work, you need to remove all the bumps. For this, coarse sandpaper numbered 180 or 200 is used. Next, a smaller grit is selected, and the product is brought to the ideal. At the end, it is processed with the smallest types - 2000 or 2500. The longer the work takes, the smoother the surface will be in the end. This is done so that the figurine shines even without the use of other materials. At the end, the product is processed with a denim or woolen cloth.

Varnishing

The fired product is often subjected to such a coating, it gives strength and shine. Lacquer is applied as many times as required to obtain the desired result. A new layer should be painted only after the previous one has completely dried. It is superimposed thinly, otherwise the composition will simply merge, and an unaesthetic appearance will appear. After the modeling of clay is completed and the product is completely dry, you can use a special alcohol or acrylic varnish. To cover a flat figure, one side is first painted, and after complete drying, the other is processed.

If the product has a round shape, for example, it is a bead, then stringing it on a wooden skewer or knitting needle is perfect for this. It is very important that the coated objects do not come into contact with each other.

Master class on making roses

These flowers look very elegant and realistic. Despite the filigree, even a beginner can make this beauty:

• 6 small balls are rolled from blue plastic, each of which is then flattened in the palm of your hand. This will be the petals. The outer side is made thinner, and the inner side is thicker.

• Then one of the blanks is twisted.
• Fingerprints and palm prints remain on each of the leaves. In fact, this will only add realism to the texture.
• Clay modeling continues, and it is necessary to wrap the prepared core with the next petal. In this case, all elements should be overlapped and arranged in a spiral. Each fragment is pressed against the base of the previous one.
• Then the figure is squeezed to get a thin leg.
• After you need to start bending the edges of the petals. For greater showiness, creases characteristic of fresh flowers are made.
• Using a special tool, the leg is cut off to the very base.

Thanks to such master classes, clay modeling for beginners will be very interesting and completely uncomplicated.

To teach children useful creativity, first see for yourself how to sculpt figurines, flowers, a whistle from clay; read about this natural material.

Selection of material and its preparation for work

Pottery is one of the oldest. Until now, archaeologists have found fragments of pottery, jewelry that belonged to people at the time of the birth of their civilization.

And now this material is one of the most accessible. It can be found on the banks of ponds, in pits, or even in your summer cottage. It is enough to dig deeper, and the coveted building material is in your hands. In nature, there is a reddish and blue clay. For crafts, the first is most often used. Its pieces are poured with water for 1-2 days, then mixed to form a mass of a single consistency.

In order to make clay figurines, flowers, dishes, jewelry, it should feel like soft plasticine to the touch. Therefore, pieces of clay for such creativity are mixed with a small amount of water. If you are laying a brick oven or want to coat an already finished one, the solution should be more liquid - like thick sour cream.

Clay is lean, medium and oily. To understand whether this one is suitable for modeling, knead it in your hands and roll up the sausage. If it does not crack and does not stick to your hands, you can create from it.

If you don’t know what to do with children in the country in the summer, give them softened clay, let them mold animals, people, tea sets for dolls from it. Then they will put these items in the sun, after they are completely dry, they are ready for play. But there are certain methods for making pottery stronger, which you will learn about soon. In the meantime, let's talk about the fact that you can buy powdered clay, dilute it with water according to the instructions and work with this mass.

Sculpting techniques

But how to sculpt from clay using various techniques:

1. Knead a piece of plastic mass in your hands. If you want to get a disk-shaped blank, roll up the ball, flatten it. From such a circle you can quickly make simple clay figures, for example, a bird. To do this, on one side of the ball at the top, pull the workpiece forward to form the beak. From the reverse side below, you need to stretch a part of the clay in the opposite direction, make a tail, and wings from the sides. It remains to put the blank on two small branches - the paws of a bird, and a new clay toy is ready.
2. If you want to sculpt a sculpture from several parts, first create them. To "glue" these blanks together, moisten the adjacent parts with water and do this. You can make a talker of their clay and "glue" individual elements with it. The same solution will help get rid of the cracks that appear during the drying process of the product. It is enough to lubricate them with this talker.
3. If you plan to make original things from clay, you can use a toothpick, plastic cutlery. They press on an already formed, but not yet dried, blank of this material, an interesting pattern is obtained. With a toothpick, you can draw patterns on them.
4. Interesting print technology. If you carve a seal out of wood or take a finished one, press it on a piece of clay, and then let the cast dry, you will have your own seal. And if a young sculptor presses his hand to the rolled clay, then he will receive its imprint. A great idea is to leave a memory mark from the child’s hand or foot, which you can look at over time, when the baby grows up.
5. If you wrap a toy, a figure with food foil, and attach clay rolled with a rolling pin on top, then you will have to wait a day. After that, you carefully remove it from the base, leave to dry. After processing, the resulting figurine can be painted, and you will have a double of your favorite toy.
6. You can decorate a product that has not yet dried with beads, shells, pebbles, feathers, cone scales, etc.

As you can see, there are many interesting technologies when working with this plastic material, choose any and start creating. This activity will help get rid of the autumn blues and give you many joyful moments and positive emotions!

DIY clay toys

If you want such a charming octopus to live in your home, stock up:

• clay;
• water;
• sponge;
• toothpick;
• gouache;
• with a knife;
• sandpaper;
• white gouache;
• paint;
• varnish.

Manufacturing instructions:

1. If you bought powdered clay, dilute it with water according to the instructions. Sold and mass for modeling in vacuum packaging. If you got the clay yourself, by digging it up, fill it with water. When unnecessary impurities, plant roots, pebbles settle to the bottom, strain the solution through a colander or sieve and leave the mass for a day in the sun to dry out a little.
2. Add some water to the clay, knead the "dough", it should not stick to your hands.
3. Pour water into a bowl to wet your hands as you work and seal any cracks that form.
4. Tear off a piece of clay, knead it in your hands, roll it into a ball on a work surface moistened with water.
5. For such a clay toy, tentacles can be made in two ways. For the first, you need to roll 12-16 sausages, pointed at one end. With the other side, attach them to the body using water. In the second method, you need to stretch the bottom of the ball, cut it with a plastic knife into tentacles, give them an oval shape.
6. Dampen a sponge in water, moisten the surface of the clay toy, smoothing out bumps, cracks.
7. Let the workpiece dry for a day, then go over the surface with fine sandpaper.
8. Few people have a special oven for firing, so give the toy strength at home. Wrapped in a plastic bag with holes, put on a hot battery.
9. Cover the toy with the first layer of white gouache, let it dry, apply the second. After it dries, cover with yellow or other paint.
10. Facial features and other small details can be sculpted at the same time as you make the toy itself, or create them separately and attach with ceramic glue at this final stage.

To give strength to the product, you can wrap the clay blank in foil and put it in a fire. But the fire should not be large so that the craft does not crack.

See how Filimonov's clay toys are made.

To create these funny cockerels you will need:

• clay;
• plastic knife;
• modeling board;
• water;
• gouache;
• acrylic paints;
• soft cloth to dry your hands.

Take a piece of clay, roll up a "sausage", separate it. For young children, kindergarten teachers or parents will help to do this. We divide it into 3 parts: the central one is the largest, on the left is a piece for the head, on the right is for the tail.

Let the child roll up the largest part, giving it the shape of a carrot, bend it as in the photo - at an angle of 90 °. We tilt the left, thin, part - this is the preparation of the head.

If cracks have formed, you need to smooth them with wet fingers. Squeeze the opposite edge of the workpiece several times to give it the shape of a disk - this is the tail. And for the scallop, let the child roll up the ball, flatten it a little, cut off half and attach clay toys to the head.

To prevent the plastic mass from sticking to the board, place a sheet of paper here. Connect the parts with liquid clay, which is called slip.

To quickly prepare such a “glue”, make a bowl of clay, pour water into it. With a brush, you will combine these 2 substances, and you will get a slip for sticking parts.

Next, for a clay figurine, you need to make a beard. To do this, a small ball is rolled in the form of a droplet, which must be slightly flattened with your fingers, then glued under the beak to the slip.

To make a cockerel stand, roll a piece of clay into a cone, then insert a wooden stick (you can use a brush rod) inside and roll it over the work surface. You should get a cone-shaped blank, hollow inside, with walls of the same thickness.

Take this method into service, it will help to mold long skirts for dolls, bells. Put this cone on the board, flatten it a little on top, and use a slip to attach a clay toy to it.

Leave it to dry for 4-5 days. After that, it would be nice to burn the toy in the oven at maximum temperature. You can do this in a country oven.

When the workpiece has cooled, paint it with a composition prepared by mixing gouache with PVA. Acrylic paints can also be used.

If you want clay figurines to also make sounds, then blind such a whistle bird. To create it, take:

• clay;
• stacks, sticks;
• water;
• sponge
• acrylic paints.

A detailed master class with a photo will simplify the modeling process.

1. Take a piece of clay and roll it into a ball. Put your thumb inside, flatten the workpiece to make a plate with wide edges.
2. Without removing it from your finger, wrap it around it. Then remove from it and connect the edges so that an inner hole remains.
3. Wet your fingers in water, smooth the outer surface of the toy with them.
4. Cut a hole in the tail with a knife. Insert a stick into it, overlay it with a patch of clay.
5. At this stage, you need to check the toy by whistling into the hole made. The pitch of the notes can be adjusted by making it larger or smaller. To be able to blow out various notes, extracting music, make a small through hole from the sides.
6. Let's move on to the finer details. Fashion eyes, beak, comb, paws. Draw a pattern on the wings with a stack.
7. Dampen the sponge in water, wring it out, and walk it over the surface of the toy to smooth out roughness and bumps.
8. Let the whistle dry for 4 hours, after which it is placed for firing in the oven, where it will be 8 hours at 800 °.

The whistle is ready.

For the famous Dymkovo clay toy, bright colors were traditionally used, which were applied on a white background. They were made with eggs and milk. Now craftswomen are replacing such “homemade” paints with acrylic ones.

But Kostroma cockerels are decorated with icing. First, a molded clay figurine is fired for the first time at 200 ° for an hour. After that, glaze is applied and sent to the oven again, but for several hours.

How to make clay flowers?

Modeling helps to develop not only healthy children, but also those with health problems. The master class presented below contributes to the rehabilitation of children with diseases of the musculoskeletal system.

To mold a flower from clay, first we will make some petals for it. Let the child roll a sausage out of this natural material, cut it into equal pieces with a plastic knife. Then they need to be rolled into a ball and flattened with your fingers.

To make it easier for the child, first draw a flower on a piece of paper, let him lay out the petals on the drawing. The core of the flower is also made from a “cake”, it must be lubricated with slip (liquid clay) and stuck to the center of the flower. It can be decorated by applying a mesh, dots.

Next, you need to mold the petals, then dry and paint the blanks. It remains to place them on the panel and attach. To do this, let the children paste over a sheet of cardboard with a cloth. They or adults will make 2 cuts in the upper part of the panel, pass a thin satin linen through them, tie its ends in order to hang the picture later.

There are many ways to make a human figure out of clay. Which one to choose depends on your skill and the expected result of modeling - whether it will be a figure anatomically close to the human structure or a stylized, artistic image.

You will need

• - clay;
• - modeling tools (stacks, wire, plank).

Instruction

1. Familiarize yourself with the proportions of the human body. The more accurately you want to sculpt the figure, the more important this item is for you. This can be done according to the anatomical atlas. Remember the ratio of the sizes of body parts, pay attention to which large muscles create the relief of the human body on the back, legs, arms.
2. Take prepared, already wet, modeling clay. Keep it a little in your hands and beat it off to get rid of the air in the mass of clay. For clay modeling, a plinth is often needed - the base on which the figure is placed. It can be of any shape, for example, in the form of a stone on which a person sits, in the form of a relief plate, in the form of a pedestal.
3. Constructive molding. Model individual parts of the body, starting with the largest (torso, head, limbs). Blind the head from a rolled up ball. With the help of a stack (shaped spatula for modeling) on ​​the head, form the eye sockets, cheekbones, nose, mouth, and then bring them to the desired accuracy and perfection. Extend the neck slightly at the bottom of the head.
4. Sculpt the body from an oval piece of clay. You can make a cone out of a piece of clay, or you can mold the chest, waist and pelvis lines in more detail. In the torso, with the help of a special, round at the end, stack, make indentations for the arms and legs.
5. Sculpt arms and legs from rolled "sausages". They can not be detailed, but only the palms and fingers can be distinguished. You can even get very detailed by applying clay in the right places, creating muscles (relief modeling). Lastly, sculpt the small details. To create them, use the methods of pulling or pinching clay, pulling out with your fingers a small part from the total piece to the desired size.
6. Connect the parts as they are made. To prevent falling off of body parts during drying, it is necessary to tightly join the parts or insert them into prepared recesses and cover them with clay using a stack. It is also recommended to pre-slightly scratch the joints with a toothbrush or use small pieces of matches or toothpicks to connect the parts.
7. Plastic molding method. Sculpt a figure of a person from a single piece of clay, pulling out parts of the body or carving them, removing excess clay. In this case, the sculpture is molded, starting from the bottom up. This method is more complicated, as it requires a developed eye and a clear idea of ​​the proportions of the human body. But you can combine both modeling methods, making, for example, the head and chest from a monolithic piece of clay, and the arms and legs from separate parts.
8. A figure of a person with a height of more than 10 cm requires a frame, otherwise it will not retain its shape. Prepare the wire frame of the desired position, fix it on the stand. The wire must be both flexible and strong. For better fastening of clay on the frame, the main wire should be wrapped in not very frequent turns of another, maybe thinner, wire. When the frame is ready, cover it with clay, giving it the desired shape with your fingers and a stack.