Give your favorite fruit a spot on your wall: craft easy air-dry clay decor

Wall decorations from air-dry clay: supplies

Wall decorations from air-dry clay: instructions

1. Shape fruits, vegetables, or nuts from the clay as a single piece or from smaller parts. If you make leaves or stems separately, roughen the surfaces before pressing them together to ensure durability. You can also glue the pieces together. For thin sections, insert wire inside to add strength.

2. Decorate the surface any way you like: press holes or etch leaf veins. Finish smooth areas by brushing them with water.

3. Place your creations on a flat surface, such as baking paper, and let them dry thoroughly. Drying takes 1–3 days, depending on the thickness.

4. Sand away most of the rough spots from the dried pieces with fine sandpaper.

5. Paint the pieces and let them dry. For precise details, draw over the paint with a paint marker.

6. Remember color theory and use online color wheels to help mix your paints. Start by slowly adding the darker color to the lighter one.

You can hang the fruits on the wall without holes by using picture strips or mounting putty. However, test them in an inconspicuous area before placing them on wallpaper.

If you want a hanging hook, insert wire into the moist clay. The wire will stay firmly in place if the piece is at least about 1 cm (about 0.4 in) thick. Keep in mind that the clay shrinks slightly as it dries.

Once the base coat has dried, you can add details using a paint marker. To achieve a three-dimensional look, choose shades that are close to one another.

Form a thin base piece that’s slightly smaller than the size of your grape cluster. Press each grape on individually.

A grape cluster has a fairly thick shape, so give it plenty of time to dry.

Choose a consistent theme for your pieces. Someone who loves Italy might choose lemons and tomatoes, while a forest fan might opt for mushrooms and maple leaves.