Air Dry Clay Ideas: How to Make a Cute Clay Octopus

You can use air dry clay to create interesting handicrafts, such as small animals, plants, flowers, and even imaginative three-dimensional paintings. This is a very good experience for children’s growth. Therefore, in schools and families, teachers and parents can guide children to use air dry clay to play.

However, for beginners and children, you can start by making simple animals with air dry clay. Today, we will make a cute clay octopus.

Prepare Materials

First, we need to prepare 4 colors of air dry clay, namely black, white, orange and pink. They will be used to make the head and body of the cute octopus.

You can choose the 6-color air dry clay toy set, which contains the colors and tools we will use in this tutorial.

Make Cute Clay Octopus Step by Step

Making clay animal crafts is generally divided into three parts: head, body and facial features.

Step 1: Make the head of the cute octopus

Take out the orange air dry clay from the bag or box, hold it in your hands and knead and stretch it for a while. You need to check whether the clay has dried and hardened. If the air dry clay is a little dry, spray some water and knead again until the clay becomes soft again.

Take a portion of air dry clay and put it in the palm of your hand. If you only have a piece of orange clay, remember to leave 1/3 of it. You will use it to make the body of the octopus later.

Then, knead the air dry clay into a round ball. This big round ball is the head of the cute octopus.

Children can slow down to feel the process, use different strength, and the shape of air dry clay will be different.

Step 2: Make the body of the cute octopus

Take the orange air dry clay again. You can move your hands back and forth, and roll it into a stick or sausage shape. This process can also be done using the matching roller tool.

You still need a little leftover orange air dry clay, which you will use later to make the octopus’s mouth.

Next, use a plastic knife to cut the long strip of air dry clay into 8 even small balls.

Okay, now we’re going to start making the eight legs of the octopus.

Take one of the eight small balls made previously, place it in your hand, and press part of the small ball with your palm. When you squeeze and roll it back and forth, your hands can roll the small ball into the shape of a carrot.

Repeat the above steps to complete the 8 legs of the cute octopus.

Finally, we stick the 8 legs to the round head to complete the body of the cute octopus.

After sticking the legs, bend them slightly to make the octopus look more three-dimensional.

After doing this, we have the appearance of a cute clay octopus. Next, we need to decorate it with eyes and mouth to make it lively.

Step 3: Make the facial features of a cute octopus

Take a small piece of orange air dry clay, roll it into a ball, and use a chopstick or a small round-head tool to press it into a bowl shape.

Then stick it to the octopus head you made earlier.

Next we are going to use three other colors of air dry clay, which will make our clay octopus more cute and lively.

First, take a little bit of black air dry clay, knead it into a small ball with your index finger and thumb, and then flatten it. This is an eye of a cute octopus.

Next, we take a small amount of black clay and knead it into a small ball again, but this time roll it into thin long strips.

Stick the air dry clay made above to the octopus’s head to make it look like it’s winking at you.

Now let’s add some shine to the cute octopus’s eyes. Take a little bit of white air dry clay, knead it into two balls, one large and one small, flatten them and stick them on the black eyes of the octopus.

Some more blush! Take pink air dry clay, roll it into two oval balls, flatten them and stick them on the octopus’s face.

Finally, we can further optimize the eyes and body of the cute octopus. You can slightly decorate the octopus’s legs with white air dry clay for example. Painting on two playful eyelashes is also a good idea.

You’re done! Go show off your work!

After the children use air dry clay to make cute octopuses or other crafts, we need to wait for them to dry.

How Many Hours does it Take for Air Dry Clay to Dry

Air dry clay is a lightweight clay that can be air dried in 24 hours under natural conditions. You don’t need to put them in the oven, just wait patiently for 3 hours for touch to dry.

Be aware that if the weather is humid, such as when it rains, the drying time of air dry clay will be extended. At this time, you should pay attention to placing the finished craft in a dry area to avoid direct contact with rain or water mist.

In addition, when the air dry clay crafts are made larger, the drying time will also become longer, which is undoubtedly because larger works use more air dry clay and of course take more time to dry.

Since air dry clay for kids is water-based, it is safer and more environmentally friendly, but it also means it is harder to dry. So we recommend beginners or children to start with smaller pieces and wait until they become more proficient before trying larger pieces.

How to Store Air Dry Clay After Opening

Opened air dry clay, whether used or leftover, should be resealed before storage, such as put back into a plastic bag or box.

When storing air dry clay, keep them in a cool, ventilated place away from sunlight. Don’t leave air dry clay outdoors! Rain and UV rays shorten their lifespan.

The cute octopuses or other crafts made by children can be placed on ventilated shelves or put into glass cabinets, which not only look good, but also protect and preserve the air dry clay for a long time.

How Long does Air Dry Clay Last in Container

Normally, air dry clay stored in a container can last more than a year.

The container isolates water vapor in the air, which can avoid the problem of air dry clay deforming due to moisture absorption. At the same time, water can breed mold, so using a waterproof container can prevent air dry clay from getting moldy.

Colorful air dry clay for kids contains colorants and pigments which are usually not UV resistant. So if the sun shines on the air dry clay craft, it will cause fading.

Place the air dry clay in a container can protect and store it for a longer period of time.

Why did Air Dry Clay Crack

Some reasons why kids’ air dry clay can crack:

Quality: Unqualified air dry clay will crack during the drying process. Therefore, when purchasing air dry clay toys, you must choose products with relevant certificates.
Water: Air dry clay will absorb water and become soft, but if too much water is added during play, cracking may occur during the drying process.
Thickness: If you press the air dry clay too flat and the thickness is too low, it may crack during the drying process. Generally, the thickness of air dry clay cannot be less than 0.25 inches.

Can you Reuse Air Dry Clay After it Dries

If air dry clay dries out and becomes hard, soak it in water for a while and it will become softer again. Therefore, when you want to preserve your air dry clay craft for a long time, pay special attention to waterproofing.

Usually, air dry clay will gradually dry out and harden during play, so parents and teachers can prepare a small watering can for children. After playing for a period of time, they can spray some water on the air dry clay to keep it soft and flexibility.

An extreme case is that the air dry clay has become as hard as a rock and you may need to leave it in water for a long time, sometimes 2-3 days. At this time, you’d better prepare a sealed plastic bag or box to avoid the combined action of air and water causing the clay to become moldy.

Conclusion of Making a Cute Clay Octopus

By using air dry clay to make cute octopuses, our children not only got to know this lightweight clay, but also gained a deep understanding of what an octopus looks like. At the same time, during play, children continue to explore, communicate and share, gaining not only the joy of playing, but also the experience of growth.

In addition, air dry clay can also be used to make other creative crafts. You are welcome to continue reading our other tutorials: