With Valentine’s around the corner, this simple DIY air dry clay earrings idea is the perfect craft project for kids and adults alike. Not only do they look fab but they make fantastic gifts too!
If you have never worked with air-drying clay then this is the perfect project to try.
You only need a few supplies and it is also a great project to make together with the kids or for teens to make themselves.
Whether you are making them for yourself, as a gift, or to sell at a craft fair you can make them in a whole rainbow of colours.
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Supplies Needed To Make DIY Air Dry Clay Heart Earrings
Materials
- Air Dry Clay
- Acrylic Paint
- Mod Podge (or any other white PVA glue)
- Head Pins
- Spacer Beads
- Earring hooks
Equipment
- Rolling Pin (or glass)
- Silicone Mat (or any other smooth non-stick surface)
- Fine nosed jewellery pliers
- Small bowl of water
- Cling film (glad wrap)
- Clay scraper blade
- Mini heart form cutters (if you do not have this you can make your own with a tealight – see below)
- Sandpaper (fine grit)
- Small paint brush
Instructions To Make DIY Clay Heart Earrings
First, gather all your supplies. If you do not have the jewellery-making findings then you can always pick them up at a local craft store or order them online. On Amazon, you can find reasonably priced earring making sets that contain all the bits you need in one set.
Make sure you have a good smooth flat surface to work on. I used an acrylic clay tile but silicone mats or wax paper also work great for this as they are non-stick
The clay scraper blade is not essential but it makes life easier when lifting the clay off the surface as it stops the clay form from going out of shape.
If you do not have one then you can either use anything that is thin, bendy, and smooth or just lift them very carefully with your fingers.
How To Make DIY Mini Heart Cutter
- Take an empty tealight and cut the circle out of the bottom to leave a long strip of aluminum
- Be careful with the strip of aluminum as it can be sharp
- On one of the long edges fold a thin 1mm strip over (this is just to help with the sharp edge)
- Cut the long strip down into a length of approximately 9cm
- Fold in half making a sharp crease in the center
- Pinch the folded end of the strip with the 2 ends up in the air
- Whilst still holding the strip firmly use a straw or a pen to bend one side down into a loop
- Repeat on the other side
- Pinch the bottom together to form the heart shape
- When using this cutter it will leave a long tail on the heart, just trim this off with a sharp knife
How To Make The Air Dry Clay Shapes
Make sure that your clay is in a good state and not dried out to avoid the shape cracking and achieve the best results.
You will need to prepare the clay and warm it up by kneading it, this will help to make the clay easier to work with and prevent the clay from cracking as it drys.
You can also do this without the clingfilm (glad wrap) but this helps get a smoother slightly rounded finish which looks quite effective.
- Take a 2″ block of clay and knead until it is soft and pliable
- Roll it into a ball
- Roll it out into a circle that is approximately 1cm in thickness
- Place a piece of clingfilm (glad wrap) over the clay
- Use the mini heart-shaped cutter to cut out 2 heart forms
- If you are using the DIY mini cutter form then trim off the excess tail (if there is one)
- Use a very small dab of water on your finger to smooth out any imperfections in the clay (do not over-wet the clay as this can cause it to crack)
- Allow the clay heart shapes to dry for 24 hours.
- Once the clay shapes are completely dry you can smooth any imperfections with a fine grit sandpaper
How To Paint The Air Dry Clay Hearts
- Use a clean brush or cloth to remove any gritty bits and dust
- Now you can paint the clay, using a paintbrush apply a thin layer of acrylic paint
- Allow the paint to dry then repeat adding additional layers of acrylic paint until you have good coverage
- Once you are happy with the coverage allow the paint to dry for at least 1 hour
- Whilst you are waiting for the paint to dry you can clean the paintbrush ready for the sealant
- When the acrylic paint has completely dried use the paintbrush to apply a thin coating of sealant (I used mod podge gloss which you can read about on their website: plaidonline.com
- Allow another 1 hour for the sealant to dry
How To Make Earrings With The Clay Hearts
I have chosen to make my clay hearts into dangly earrings by adding them to an earring hook.
You can also just as easily turn these into earring studs. Because the back of the clay heart shapes are flat you just need to glue them onto earring posts instead.
- Take a headpin and thread on a 1mm silver spacer bead
- Thread the clay shape on top and then add another spacer bead
- Use needle-nosed pliers to bend the wire at the top into a small loop
- Cut the excess wire from the headpin off
- Thread the loop that you have just made in the headpin onto the earring hook
I hope you liked this air dry clay earrings project idea and that inspires you to create more fun designs from clay.
If you are just getting started using clay then make sure you check out my Clay Hearts Decor Idea, DIY Air Dry Clay Cones, and my Handmade Soap Gifts (which also include a clay element).
I am really starting to get more and more into working with clay and already have quite a few more posts lined up with quick and easy projects.
So make sure you sign up on the Happy Home In Holland – Email Subscribers List so that you do not miss them.
Where To Next? Check Out My Other DIY & Craft Ideas
If you liked this Air Dying Clay Project, then be sure to check out my other DIY Craft Ideas.
And If you would like to keep up to date with all my new DIY & Craft Projects then make sure you sign up for the Happy Home In Holland Newsletter, which will keep you up to date with all my latest news, freebies, and offers.
