Review on School Smart Air Dry Clay Pounds by Lori Aguirre

WOW. This air dry clay is superior to others I've tried in the past. For the disabled veteran who currently does not have access to a stove, this product is a godsend. I looked at many reviews online and found that due to an apparent lack of experience with clay they are all wrong. I love to sculpt, but since I can't drive, access to the studio is severely restricted. School Smart Air Dry Gray looks and has the texture of well mixed porcelain. After playing with this material for a couple of days, I realized that the lack of adequate experience from other people led to negative reviews on the network. Please read the following before purchasing: 1. Although this is an air dried clay, it MUST be treated the same as real ceramic clay. If it's "too wet and sticky," just take out the clump, knead it a little, and let it sit for a few minutes. It dries quickly to a working consistency. I highly recommend using a canvas work surface like real clay, although it is not required. If it gets too dry while you're working, just spray with water and wait a few minutes. Mix up some slip and use an inexpensive sable brush to smooth and blend the details. Remember that this material behaves like real clay and MUST be treated as such!3. To avoid cracking, follow the rules of real clay: DO NOT make the pieces too thick! Cracks are caused by a combination of normal shrinkage and uneven drying. If the part sags, stop working on it. Cover it with a plastic bag and leave it for a few hours. Thick lumps take longer than you think and MUST heal slowly.4. The finished product must dry slowly. The thicker the clay, the longer and slower it should dry! Proper drying of the end product consists of bagging it loosely with a plastic bag, e.g. B. a shopping bag to cover. Larger pieces can take a week or more! If you have access to a ceramic humidity cabinet - even better! Other tricks to avoid tears: If tears form, place a piece of damp paper towel in the bag, but make sure it doesn't touch the item. Check it regularly. If it's sagging - too much moisture - remove or reduce the amount of water in the paper towel. If it starts to crack, spray it with water and work the cracks out with your finger or a polishing tool. Pack it up again and keep an eye on it. If you're using rebar, which I highly recommend, use a flexible material. I've been experimenting and have come to the conclusion that aluminum foil is the best option. If the film is not compressed too much, its "give" is enough to reduce shrinkage cracks. Paint and Seal - Easily sanded and leveled with traditional methods, well polished. It is highly recommended to first apply a solvent based matte spray primer. Easy to paint with acrylic paints. Tempera and watercolor create a sloppy mess as I feel they are too wet for this air dry tone. The entire piece should be coated with a clear coat as this clay is very sensitive to water and moisture. I use Krylon products for priming and painting. Clay takes pigments well. I used acrylic paint to get great results with uniform color and consistency. It has to be mixed by hand. Keep in mind that this is a messy process and the bagged clay takes about 24 hours before it is used. As for throwing the wheel, I would consider this practice tone. Although experienced hands can throw it easily, I recommend using cheap real clay for students unfamiliar with the technique. I believe this is NOT a beginner tone. I consider this a mid-skill product. In terms of level I'd say extremely talented 7th graders and up could use this. For middle school students, I would just say high school. This material is too similar to real clay for elementary school students! Attached are photos of some of the work done with this product. These are all experimental pieces using this clay and wire wrapped in aluminum foil rebar.