Air Dry Clay Christmas Ornaments 5 Different Ways (& A Craft Blog Hop!)

Hello and welcome, crafty friends! Today, I’m joining all the lovely ladies of the Canadian Christmas Craft Blog Hop where we are showcasing our best holiday craft ideas. (You’ll see links to all 20 ideas at the bottom of the post). For my part, I’ll be showing you how to make Air Dry Clay Christmas Ornaments 5 Different Ways. Using air dry clay is quick and easy and is the perfect craft to do with the kiddos.

Okay, let’s get started!

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Basic Supplies Needed to Make Air Dry Clay Christmas Ornaments

air dry clay (I used FIMO in white)
wax (or parchment) paper + tape
rolling pin
cookie cutters
basic drinking straw
small jar filled with water
ribbon of choice (I used natural jute twine like this one or this one)

The following supplies are used in some of the ‘fancy’ designs that I’ll be showing you below and are, therefore, totally optional. These include:

a clay embossing set (I used this Walnut Hollow set)
gold glitter of your choice
small piece of greenery (real or synthetic)
brush & watercolours of choice
sand paper

Design #1: Basic Star Shapes

First, lay your wax paper on a surface and tape it down. This will prevent it from shifting around. The wax paper is a good choice so that the clay does not stick to the surface. Fill a small jar of water and keep it handy.

This is the air dry clay that I used (and highly recommend for this project). It is extremely pliable and very easy to use.

Open your air dry clay package and begin tearing off pieces.

The clay is very pliable in your hands, and is similar to silly puddy (if memory serves!).

Combine pieces together with hands, ensuring that there are no air pockets.

Roll out the clay to whatever thickness you wish. Mine was about a quarter inch thick.

Taking your star-shaped cookie cutter, press into the clay.

Remove the excess clay.

To smooth out any edges, dip your finger in the jar of water and gently massage any rough edges away.

Next, taking your straw, bore a hole in each star created. Make sure it is big enough for the ribbon or twine you’ve chosen to use to hang your ornaments when ready.

Set aside your stars and let dry according to the instructions on the packaging. 1-2 days is normally the recommended timeframe.

Design #2: Glitter Stars

For this design, you’ll follow all the basic steps outlined above, but with a twist.

As before, combine any separate clay pieces into a lump using your hands. BUT, before rolling out the clay, add some glitter.

Roll out the air dry clay as before.

Press your chosen cookie cutter shape into the flattened glitter clay & remove excess.

As before, make a hole at the top of each air dry clay ornament with a straw.

Set aside to dry.

Design #3: Embossed Wording

For this design, you’ll be adding words onto each ornament using a clay embossing tool. I used this one by Walnut Hollow:

Just as before, roll out your clay and using cookie cutters, create your shapes. Then remove the excess.

The Walnut Hollow clay embossing kit comes with a handheld tool and removable plastic letters.

Using the hand-held tool, slide the plastic letters onto it to create your festive word (remember, it will look backwards when facing you, so make sure to feed it onto the tool in the correct order).

Gently push the tool with the letters facing the clay ornament to create a word impression.

Continue in the same way, creating a different word per ornament.

And as with the designs above, don’t forget to make a hole in each ornament before moving onto your next design.

Design #4: Abstract Impression

Much like the design above, you’ll be making an impression into the clay, this time using a small piece of synthetic (or real) greenery.

First, roll out your clay and create your shapes. I chose to use Christmas trees for this design.

Taking your greenery, press gently into the clay.

Once removed, you’ll see an impression reminiscent of a tree in your ornament.

And, as before, using a straw, make a hole at the top of each ornament and set aside to dry.

Design #5: Add Some Colour with Watercolours

If you love colour, then you may wish to experiment using paint on your ornaments. You can use acrylic, certainly, but for this design I chose to create a soft touch with watercolours.

As before, roll out your clay, create your shapes using cookie cutters and, if you wish, use the clay embossing tool to add words or some other design.

Then, simply add some watercolour, making sure to get into the creases of your clay impressions.

After Drying: Add Ribbon or Twine

Once your air dry clay Christmas ornaments have fully dried (I let mine dry over a 2-day period, making sure to flip the ornaments over halfway between drying), add a simple ribbon or rustic jute twine to complete the look. Now you’re ready to use your ornaments 🙂

Here are each of the 5 air dry clay Christmas ornament designs ready for hanging!

Design #1

Design #2

Design #3

Design #4

Design #5

You can use these to decorate a tree or make them into gift tags to add to your Christmas gifts.

If You’ve Never Used Air Dry Clay, Here Are Some Tips & Suggestions

1. Storage: Place any clay you’re not using back into the packaging or into an air-tight ziplock bag. It is best to use up all the clay within a couple of weeks.

2. Drying Time: As I mentioned earlier, let your ornaments dry 1-2 days, making sure to flip the pieces over halfway between drying. I dried mine for 2 days.

3. Polish Edges: Once dried, you can use sand paper to polish off any rough edges (unless you – like me – prefer a more natural, rustic look).