How Do You Make Clay Animal Rings?

Making your own clay animal rings is a fun, creative craft that produces beautiful, customized pieces of jewelry. Clay crafts are a satisfying hands-on activity, perfect for all ages. Using a basic set of materials, you can form and bake your own clay into miniature animal shapes and then attach them to ring bands for cute, wearable art.

Animal rings have become a popular jewelry trend. They’re customizable, quirky conversation pieces that make great gifts. With a little bit of time and practice, you can make unique animal rings using polymer or air-dry clay in your own home.

Needed Supplies

To make clay animal rings, you will need the following supplies:

• Air-dry clay – This special clay dries into a hard finish at room temperature. Look for clay that is lightweight and easy to mold.

• Clay sculpting tools – Items like sculpting knives, loop tools, and dotting tools help shape details and textures in the clay animals.

• Ring blanks – These are simple metal bands that the finished clay animal can be glued onto. Choose silver, gold, or other metal colors.

• Acrylic paints and brushes – Use acrylic craft paints in squeeze bottles to add color after baking. Round or flat paintbrushes help add finer details.

Making the Clay Animal

Kneading the clay before you start shaping is an important first step. Take the clay and knead it for a few minutes until it becomes smooth and pliable. This helps remove any air bubbles and allows you to shape the clay more easily.

Once the clay is kneaded, you can begin shaping the basic animal form. Roll balls or oblong shapes for the body and head. Attach these together smoothly. For four-legged animals, roll cylinders or tapered tubes for legs and carefully attach them to the body.

After the basic shape is formed, you can add details like eyes, ears, tails, etc. Use small balls of clay for eyes and add them symmetrically on the head. For ears, roll out clay into flattened teardrop or triangle shapes and attach them. For tails, roll a cylinder or flatten a teardrop shape. Attach any other details like horns, wings, snouts that are appropriate for your animal.

Take your time shaping each detail and smoothing seams. Add textural effects like fur or scales by imprinting the clay with tools or your fingers. Work slowly and make sure the clay doesn’t dry out as you work.

Baking Instructions

Once your clay animals have been shaped and formed, they will need to undergo a baking or drying process to harden and set the clay. Here are the steps for properly baking clay animals:

Allow the clay animals to air-dry completely. Lay them out individually on a flat surface like a baking sheet or plate. Let them sit for at least 24 hours until no moisture remains. If there are any areas that feel sticky, soft, or cool, allow for more drying time.

Optionally bake the clay animals in the oven according to the clay instructions. Most oven-bake clays recommend baking at 275°F for 15 minutes per 1/4 inch of thickness. Check the clay packaging for specific temperature and times. Place the clay animals on a foil-lined baking sheet spaced apart and bake according to directions. Baking will further harden the clay.

Once cooled, the clay animals are ready for painting and attaching to the rings. Baked clay will be durable and last a long time. Be sure to fully dry or bake clay before proceeding to painting.

Painting the Animals

After the clay has been baked and cooled, it’s time to bring your animal sculptures to life with paint. Start by priming the entire piece with a coat of white acrylic paint. This will help the colors really pop.

Allow the white paint to dry completely before moving to the next step. Now you can paint your animal’s base color(s). For example, gray for an elephant, orange for a fox, black and white for a panda. Use acrylic craft paint and apply several coats to get nice, solid coverage.

Next, add finer details and accents with smaller paint brushes. Paint the eyes, nose, mouth, paws, etc. You can also add patterns like spots, stripes, or scales if desired. Take your time on this step to really make your clay animal’s markings and personality shine through. The details are what will make your finished ring sculpture truly unique.

Let the paint dry fully before applying any finishing clear coat or sealant. Your colorful critter is now ready to be turned into a wearable work of art!

Attaching the Clay Animal to the Ring

Once your clay animal has been baked and painted, it’s time to attach it to the ring blank. Here are the steps for securely fastening your clay creation:

Choose a Ring Blank
Select a metal ring blank in your desired size. Ring blanks come in various metals like copper, brass, and silver. Ensure the top is flat enough for the clay animal to sit on. Also pick a blank thick enough to support the clay.

Apply a Strong Adhesive
Use a thick multi-surface adhesive like E6000 that bonds well to metal and clay. Avoid super glue which may not hold the weight of the clay. Put a generous amount of E6000 on the top center of the ring blank, enough to fully attach the bottom of your clay animal.

Carefully Press Clay Animal On
Gently press the bottom of the baked clay animal onto the adhesive on the ring blank. Make sure the clay is making full contact with the adhesive. Let dry 24 hours so the bond is secure. Your clay animal ring is complete!

Finishing Touches

Once your clay animal rings are baked, painted, and assembled, there are a few finishing touches you can add for extra beauty and durability:

Seal with acrylic sealer – An acrylic sealer is essential for protecting the clay and paint from chipping or fading over time. Carefully brush or spray a coat over the entire ring and let dry fully. This seals in the paint and creates a smooth, finished look.

Add gloss for shine – For extra shine and sparkle, apply a gloss glaze or varnish over the acrylic sealer. This gives the animals and rings an attractive glossy finish. Let the gloss dry fully before wearing or gifting your clay rings.

With these finishing touches, your custom clay animal rings will have a professional completed look that highlights all your hard work and creativity!

Displaying Clay Rings

Once your clay animal rings are complete, you’ll want to proudly display them for all to see. Here are some fun ways to show off your homemade rings:

Stand Up Rings in Holder

Find a small tray, plate, or bowl and fill with beads, marbles, or rice. Gently press each ring down into the beads/rice at an upright angle. The beads will hold the rings in place so they stand up nicely. Arrange them creatively and place the holder on a shelf, table, or counter. The upright rings become lovely decor.

Hang on Rack with Ribbon

Tie a ribbon to each clay ring and hang them from a rack, rod, or bar. The ribbons let the rings dangle attractively. Grouped together they make a cheerful display. Use ribbon colors that coordinate or contrast with the clay animals.

Gift Ideas

Clay animal rings make fantastic gifts for kids. The cute animals and opportunity to get messy designing them will delight children. Give them as birthday or holiday presents. For a special touch, include a personalized card about the meaning of the specific animal. Kids will love wearing their unique handmade ring to show friends.

These also make great items for craft fairs and small businesses. Create matching sets of animal rings for best friends or siblings. Make a variety of animals in coordinated colors for a cute collection. People will love the original handcrafted rings as affordable gifts that have more meaning than mass-produced jewelry.

Fun Variations

Kids will love exploring possibilities to make these clay animal rings uniquely their own. Here are some fun ways to get creative:

Try sculpting different animals like dinosaurs, bugs, fish, or other sea creatures. Children often love turning their favorite animals into wearable art.

Add glitter or colorful beads to the clay for sparkly, jewel-like accents. Press them gently into the surface before baking.

Glue on googly eyes, pom poms, feathers, or other embellishments after painting for added personality.

Make monster or fantasy animals by combining features from different creatures. Unleash the imagination!

Use letter and number cookie cutters to imprint names, initials, or ages into the clay. Personalize with their favorite numbers.

Mix colors of clay together to achieve new custom shades like purple, orange or green animals.

The options are endless for putting your own spin on these cute clay animal rings!