Old Potters Air Dry Modeling Clay, 25 lbs, All Natural Modeling Clay. Ideal for Beginners and Advanced Sculptors. 25 lbs.

I’m used to clay but not without a pottery wheel, I was pleasantly surprised how well things worked out without one, it does dry out fast so have to keep that giant block covered for sure, but really easy to work with, prob even better with a pottery wheel. Only took 1-2 days to dry totally and I made dense figurines, there was some cracking but I found that the one that was more cracked was my first go and once I got the hang of it the others were fine, I found I had to is get the water/clay ratio down, I think the cracking was bc I didn’t use enough water, once I painted it it was fine though, I recommend covering it with a glaze at the end

Works great for a new adult crafter. Went through one box and bought another. Dries within a day or a few depending on size of creation. My one complaint is that I keep breaking my pieces after they are dry. But that may be a Me issue more than a Clay issue.

This is very nice great quality clay. Smooth with no imperfections or lumps. I have purchased this multiple times for use with my classrooms teaching art K-12. It is easy to slice with a wire cutter and I was surprised how much clay was packed into one box. I was easily able to do pinch pots with 25 students from one box of clay. The leftover lump stored well for a few months in an airtight bag. We painted these with acrylic paints after they dried. The smaller pieces dried within 24 hours, larger masks took a week to completely dry. We are in a low humidity mountainous climate.

Great size and quality for smaller crafting jobs will crack if on playable surface

I haven’t seen the dry results as of yet, but I’ve used the worst of air dry clays and the best of air dry clays… they ALL crack if left to dry in a room with nothing to slow down the moisture evaporation. This clay it’s soft but firm enough that it holds shape well, it’s easy to just grab just a clump of it right off the block or cut a slice with a wire cutter and start working with it. It’s easy enough for children to play with and also has the quality and stability that an artist/sculptor can use as well. I LOVE the smell. It might put some people off, but it smells just like the red Georgia clay we used to dig out of the mud and play with as kids. It had the scent of damp earth after a rain shower, natural and organic versus the typical chemical whiff when you open a pack of any other brand from well known ones like DAS, and Sculptey, as well as the off brands. It’s easy to work with, shapes and forms well, and I actually weighed it before opening the box on a package weighing scale. It came to exactly 11.0 lbs. Taking into consideration the box and the plastic it’s wrapped in, you’re definitely getting your full 10 lbs of clay. My ONLY reason for 4 stars, and I really hate to even leave 4 stars, is that while the box says the color is “WHITE” like I ordered, and expected what the image shows, the actual color is a muddy brown. I didn’t expect it to be bright white or even really white at all, but more of a gray similar to the image in the description, but this is very similar to what is advertised as “GRAY.” Perhaps it was packaged in the wrong box. Things happen. If this is just the color they call “white,” however, the image in the description is misleading and should be changed IMO. It won’t affect my work, but I wanted others to be aware in case it may affect theirs. I’ll upload some photos to show what the color looks like against white paper, which the paper has a lower brightness yet the contrast of the clay makes it look bright white. I always prime my finished projects with a white primer, but “tan” or “natural” would have been a more accurate color description. It’s very pliable and feels like real potters clay, the type you shape on a wheel and fire in a kiln. I’d buy it again, just be aware in case you need a light color clay and this wasn’t just a simple mistake during packaging and this brown is really color they describe as “white.” IS YOUR CLAY CRACKING AS IT DRIES? HERE ARE SOME TIPS THAT HAVE HELPED ME. I HOPE THEY CAN HELP YOU AS WELL: The key is to slow the drying time. 1. First make sure you’re in a room with no fan on, no dehumidifier, air vents pointing at your piece, and away from windows, especially if you live in Satans anus from May until December like I do, with temps between 90°F-112°F, not a drop of rain until March and April, and blazing sun that, yes, makes the concrete hot enough to fry an egg on. We tried it one year when temps hit 113°F for a week straight with not a cloud in sight. Brutal. Or if you’re in a climate where temps rarely rise above freezing. Or if you’re menopausal and keep your house temp around 65°F, that’s going to cause the clay to dry too fast also. (Been there and ruined many pieces thanks to estrogen imbalance) 2. Once you’ve found a place that has normal inside temp and is away from air vents, any portable air conditioners and windows, place your sculpture as you would for it to dry and then grab enough paper towels to create 3-4 layers that will fully cover your piece. 3. Lay them on a towel and using a spray bottle (on the spray setting, not the stream) dampen the paper towels without over-saturating them. You can always ring them out if you think you have too much water. They shouldn’t drip when you lift them up. They shouldn’t be heavy or leave any imprint in your clay. 4. Cover your clay sculpture as fully as possible with the damp paper towels making sure every part of your piece is covered. It you have a piece of screen or mesh to cover the piece with and add the paper towels over the mesh, that will work also. The key is to keep the moisture inside for as long as possible, allowing it to evaporate slowly. The faster to clay dries the more it cracks will form. The same goes for mediums like acrylic medium, joint compound, spackling, modeling paste, etc. 5. After 12 hours or so, check on it to make sure the paper towels aren’t leaving any imprint or flat area in your sculpture. If so, they are too wet. Ring them out, fix the flaw and lay them back over. As the paper towels dry out, check your work to see how dry it is. If it’s drying well and there is no cracking, you may try leaving it w/o the towels to dry the rest of the way on its own. If significant damp areas of clay still show on the surface, add another few layers of moist paper towels until those damp areas dry. 6. If you still notice small cracks forming, it’s likely due to not enough moisture reaching that area or the clay just wants to give you the big middle finger. It does it to me constantly. Lol. 7. This is where liquid clay comes in handy. It has a small tip where it can fill cracks without having to layer another piece of clay over the area which means smoothing and more work to prevent a lump. This isn’t 100% fool proof and you may still end up with a few cracks, but they shouldn’t be as large or as noticeable as they’d be if it were left to dry too fast. Liquid clay is a fast fix but it isn’t cheap, however if using for filling cracks only, a little goes a long way. If you plan to paint your finished piece, the color doesn’t matter, if not, be sure to match the liquid clay to the air dry clay as much as possible. I hope that helps at least a little bit. Cracking is annoying and I feel the frustration of those who deal with it. Also, if you’re new to working with large blocks of clay, or bought this for a child, be sure to get a wire clay cutter (and do the cutting yourself, don’t let young children handle the wire cutter that is basically a garrote. They do have different types that are more kid friendly or you can also make one yourself. It’s just a long, thin, super strong metal wire with two wooden handles. Any wire clay cutter is a must if you want to slice off bits of clay at a time. Be sure to place the clay you aren’t working with back into the bag and box IMMEDIATELY or it will dry out fast. Make sure there’s no air in the bag also. I’ve made that mistake more than once. Apologies for the long winded review, but I hope this helps someone, somewhere, in someway. Enjoy creating!