C-Man and I prefer gifting cash for weddings, but I wanted to add a little something for J and T’s wedding. I don’t remember where I originally heard about this tutorial for a doily ring dish, but I love the romantic look of it.

Materials/Tools:

• White air-dry modeling clay (look for ones that say similar to china/porcelain, the tutorial uses Efaplast, but I couldn’t find it at local craft stores)
• Fabric doily (check your local thrift store)
• Foil/parchment paper
• Water
• Rolling pin (alternative: clean wine bottle)
• Jar/bowl/pint glass for cutting out a circle
• Bowl for shaping
• Sandpaper
• Optional: white acrylic paint and paintbrush

Place foil on work surface. Roll the desired amount of clay into a ball. Wet clay, hands, foil, and rolling pin. With the rolling pin, flatten clay to 1/8 inch thickness (use rolling pin 1/8 inch guide rings or two rulers/magazines with approx. 1/8 thickness, one placed on each side). Keep clay wet to reduce cracks. I also found it helpful to roll the clay in one direction. If the clay is too sticky, add more water and place a piece of foil on top of the clay, then use the rolling pin to flatten.

Stamp a doily into the clay by using the rolling pin. Carefully remove the doily. Cut out a circle using a jar/bowl/pint glass.

Place the clay in a bowl and press down lightly. Allow clay to dry 1-2 days. It will turn white and easily pop out once it’s dry. Smooth out the edges with sandpaper.

Optional: paint the dish with white acrylic paint and let dry.

This turned out well after my second try. In my first attempt, the bowl I used for shaping was too flat and produced a plate rather than a bowl shape. I also tried to make larger dishes, but they weren’t as pretty. I prefer cute little things. 🙂

Try using different stamps—leaves, flowers, store-bought stamps—there are so many possibilities!