Hello! Greetings is here to show you everything you need to know about how to harden clay! Clay is an infinitely versatile and playful substance that can be used to make all sorts of cool things. And after you’ve spent making your masterpiece, you’ll want to find out how to make it hard and strong. This is referred to as hardening clay and we’re going to teach you how!
But before we discuss the hardening of clay, let’s have a look at what clay really is. Clay is a kind of soil composed of very fine bits of minerals and organic materials. When you add water to clay it becomes soft and can be molded into anything you want. But if you want your creation in clay to last a long time, you have to harden it.
There are a couple of methods you can use to harden your clay projects. One popular method is where you air dry the clay. That’s how you dry things: You set them out so the water can dry, or evaporate, away. An alternative approach is to bake your clay in an oven. This helps the clay harden fast and makes it sturdy. However, do follow the baking instructions on your clay package to bake it at the temperature and for the time suggested.
When you make a clay self hardening object, while the clay is wet, the particles are tiny and can shift. But as the clay dries, the water disappears and the particles start to adhere to one another. This is what hardens the clay and makes it solid. Clay hardens in a manner similar to the way concrete hardens as it dries. It's all thanks to chemistry!
There are several methods to dry and harden your clay. Like we said, you can allow it to air dry or bake it in the oven. You can also speed its drying by setting a hairdryer on low and moving the stream of warm air back and forth over the tile, or use a dehydrator if you have one. Just be sure to be patient and allow your clay to dry totally before you put it to the test.
Although hardening ultralight clay is pretty straightforward to work with, there are a few things to be cautious of. A common mistake is touching your clay before it’s completely dry. Your clay may be ruined or break if you try to move it or play with it too early. The second mistake is not paying attention to the baking recommendations of the clay. Be sure to bake it at the right temperature and for the right amount of time to harden it properly.
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