Clay Craft Ideas

Clay is such a fun art material for kids to work with whatever their age. Today I have put together a collection of amazing clay craft ideas for kids. Preschoolers, school aged children and much much older kids will all enjoy using clay and working on these beautiful projects. Many of these clay craft ideas would make stunning homemade gifts to be treasured.

Are you looking for homemade gift ideas? Take a look at our salt dough handprint bowl, DIY bird feeders and our heart scribble mugs.

Scroll down and take a look at this collection of amazing clay crafts. Click on the links to read full instructions for each project.

What type of clay should you use? (affiliate links)

Air drying clay - (UK link / US link) is perfect for homemade projects big and small. You can achieve a high quality finish without having to fire your creations in a kiln. Air drying clay will harden in the air, it may take several days to fully dry depending on the size of your creation. If you are making a craft that is not going to be painted I would recommend using white air drying clay.

Polymer clay - (UK link / US link) is great for smaller creations and detailed projects. It is easy to work with and comes in a huge variety of colours. It is hardened by firing it in a household oven.

Clay Crafts

Who remembers making clay pinch pots as a child? These funky little pots are perfect to put little plants or treasures inside.

Clay craft ideas for kids. DIY clay pinch pots made from air drying clay.

We totally love our keepsakes and I have fallen in love with our heart footprint bowl. It is such a wonderful keepsake to remember how tiny the kids little feet really are. It would be so cute to make with a babies footprints!

Clay craft ideas for kids. Footprint bowl keepsake made from air drying clay.

If you want to work on a smaller scale. These fingerprint heart keyrings are super cute.

Clay craft ideas for kids. Fingerprint heart keyring made from polymer clay.

For slightly older children this sunflower clay bowl would make a really fun clay project. A flower bowl would make a lovely gift that an older child could make by themselves.

Clay craft ideas for kids. Sunflower clay bowl made from air drying clay.

You could also make this fun cat bowl. It is a really easy air dry clay project that older kids will love to make.

In a similar way to the cat bowl above you can also make a unicorn air dry clay bowl craft. It is perfect for keeping jewellers, hair clips or other small objects inside.

Air dry clay unicorn bowl - clay craft ideas for kids

These daffodil candle holders would also make gorgeous homemade gifts. The middle of the daffodils can either hold a candle or be used as a cute little bowl!

Clay craft ideas for kids. Daffodil clay candle made from polymer clay.

Wow! I am so impressed by these MAGNETIC pin bowls. They are a lot simpler to make than you would think and look beautiful.

Clay craft ideas for kids. Magnetic pin bowl made from polymer clay.

What do you imagine dragon eggs would look like? Kids will LOVE making these fantasy dragon eggs using clay and jewels.

Clay craft ideas for kids. Fantasy dragons egg craft made from air drying clay.

Brightly coloured alphabet magnets will give any metal surface a fun and playful look. Writing fun words and messages with them is a great learning experience for kids!

Clay craft ideas for kids. Magnetic fridge alphabet letters made from polymer clay.

Making a hanging heart decoration would be great as a group project. Make and paint a few clay hearts each and string them together to make a stunning decoration.