How to Make Saucers Out of Clay

Form your saucer slightly wider than your cup.

Complement your tea cup with a handmade saucer made out of clay. Making pottery is one of the oldest human crafts. Experienced ceramicists often make saucers, which are essentially small plates, on the potter's wheel. But most home crafters do not have access to professional wheels and kilns, which are high-temperature clay ovens. A simple way to construct a symmetrical and well-formed saucer is to use slab construction, which is a hand-building technique of joining clay pieces together.

Things You'll Need

• 2 lbs. air-dry clay
• 12-by-12-inch piece of canvas
• Clay knife tool
• Rolling pin
• 5-inch-wide plate
• Clay needle tool
• Small cup
• Acrylic paint
• 5/8-inch paintbrush
• Clear varnish spray

Instructions

1. Throw the air-dry clay onto your 12-by-12-inch piece of canvas to remove any air bubbles. Slice the clay in half with a clay knife tool. Pick up both pieces of clay.

2. Slam one piece of clay onto the canvas. Throw the other clay piece on top of the first clay piece. Cut the clay in half. Repeat the throwing to remove any remaining air bubbles. Slice the clay in half and set aside one half.

3. Roll out the clay with a rolling pin until it is slightly over 1/4-inch thick. Place a 5-inch-wide plate upside down on the rolled clay.

4. Trace around the small plate with a clay needle tool deep enough to cut it out. Keep the tool perpendicular to the clay while cutting. Remove the excess clay.

5. Slide your hand under the canvas and flip the clay onto the small plate. Remove the canvas. Gently press the clay into the small plate so that it molds into the plate's shape.

6. Roll out a 6-inch snake-like shape that is 1/8-inch thick to create a foot or bottom for the saucer. Form it into a uniform circle. Smooth the ends together so that the circle is seamless.

7. Mix together 1 tablespoon of clay and 2 teaspoons of water in a small cup to make slip, which is clay mortar. Dab the slip onto one side of the clay circle. Press this side onto the bottom center of the clay saucer. Smooth it with your fingers.

8. Dry the saucer upside down with the plate underneath to help it keep its shape. Let it completely dry for approximately seven days and then remove the plate. Paint the saucer with acrylic paint, using a 5/8-inch paintbrush. Allow the paint to dry for two hours.

9. Spray the entire saucer with clear varnish. Allow it to dry for 30 minutes and spray one more coat. Let it dry for two hours.

Tips & Warnings

• A foot is not essential to the saucer, but it makes the saucer look more polished.

• Designs can be etched into the saucer with the needle tool.

• These instructions would also work for natural clay. Fire it in a kiln after it dries according to its cone temperature, which is its firing temperature.

• The saucer is not food safe.