4 Clay Sculpture Ideas for Beginners

Find inspiration for creating new objects and gifts with clay.

Body language, movement, and expression are what give life to any structure and the medium of clay gives you the opportunity to explore them. Working with clay is a craft that is filled with surprises, from the initial mold to the final glaze, there are endless possibilities to explore.
To help you explore the medium of clay, we have compiled a list of fun clay sculpture ideas for you to create and enjoy.

1. Candle Holders

Explore great clay gift ideas like how to make this candle holder in the online course Basic Techniques in Decorative Ceramic Modeling. In this course, learn how to work the clay to shape your own pieces and decorate them with floral designs. Discover various manual techniques for working with this material and fall in love with rustic designs; an eye-catching alternative in a world where almost everything is mass-produced.

2. Clay Earrings

Discover how to design a high-quality accessory collection by modeling, cutting, baking, and sanding with this type of clay known as polymer clay, with the course Essential Tools to Make Polymer Clay Jewelry for Beginners.

Polymer clay is a great material choice for jewelry, whether you plan to craft fun new accessories for yourself, or sell original designs in an online store. But with polymer clay’s explosion in popularity, you might wonder which brand of polymer clay to buy, and what exact tools you need to make unique shapes, patterns, and textures. Rachael Skidmore shares her full list of materials that will take you from beginner to expert.

3. Clay Flowers

Learn the basic techniques and two ways to make tiny leaves and flowers using polymer clay
Polymer clay or sometimes plastic ceramic as it is known, is a soft, versatile material that allows you to make all kinds of trinkets: toys, jewelry, molds, fridge magnets, decorative objects. All you have to do is work the clay into the desired shape then cook it in your oven at a low heat.

In the course Jewelry Tutorial: Create a Flower With Polymer Clay, creator of The Folky Fox and polymer clay jewelry artist, Marisa Clemente, guides you through the sculpting skills and stages for molding and applying polymer flowers.

4. Air-Dry Clay Vase

Creating your own pottery is an appealing idea, but it often requires an off-putting amount of equipment (from a wheel to a kiln). You can learn how to make a clay vase with the easy, fun tutorial, Ceramics Tutorial: How to Create a Simple Clay Vase, with potter, Sandra Apperloo, you can learn how to build a clay vase with simplicity.

Sandra is a Dutch potter who created The Pottery Parade and is the woman behind a series of techniques designed to make pottery more accessible for everyone. This easy-to-make vase is a great gift idea

Working with clay is a great way to explore your creative side and create unique items. From candle holders and earrings to flowers and vases, the possibilities are endless. Learn how to create beautiful pieces of art out of clay with our ceramics courses.