How to Make Clay Sushi With Cute Faces

Use real sushi dinners as inspiration.

Making clay sushi with cute faces is a creative project to explore a child's visual art skills. Use the activity for teaching the child about the variations of sushi and the basic preparation and baking of polymer clay. Polymer clay is a good choice for these projects. Unlike other kinds of clay, polymer clay can be baked in your oven. Display the clay sushi for dinner guests or as an art exhibition for friends, family or art teachers.

Things You'll Need

• Wax paper
• Petroleum jelly
• Polymer clay
• Craft knife
• Toothpick
• Cookie sheet
• Oven
• Acrylic paint
• Paintbrush
• Polymer glaze

Instructions

1. Lay a sheet of 18-by-18-inch wax paper onto a flat work surface. Rub one-quarter teaspoon petroleum jelly into your hands and fingers to help lubricate and stretch the clay.

2. Form multiple one-half-by-2-inch polymer clay sushi pieces and multiple one-half-by-1-inch polymer clay sashimi rolls by hand. Measure each piece with a ruler. Cut all pieces to size with a craft knife.

3. Draw the details of the sushi or sashimi with a toothpick. Outline the piece of seafood draped atop a lump of rice, as a traditional sushi example, or the short ends of narrow vegetables exposed from the top of a sashimi roll. Draw cute faces onto each piece of sushi or sashimi. Trace a smiley face onto the top of each piece of sushi, for instance, or arrange the short ends of narrow vegetables into the shape of two eyes and a smile on your sashimi.

4. Place the clay sushi and sashimi pieces onto a cookie sheet. Heat your oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. Bake the clay pieces for 60 minutes. Allow 30 minutes for all pieces to cool.

5. Coat all clay sushi and sashimi pieces with acrylic paint. Allow two hours for the paint to dry. Coat each piece with polymer glaze. Allow an additional 30 minutes for all pieces to dry before handling or displaying.

References

• Polymer Tutorials: Polymer Clay -- Baking