Do you have to glaze clay before you use it?

What glaze to use with dollar store no-bake clay?

• Not sure what glaze to use for the things I make with this dollar store clay that doesn't need baking. I want glaze to make it more unbreakable or if that's impossible, just shiny but not ruin the clay or acrylic paint. Any ideas? Thank you.

• Answer:

  People tend to use the word "glaze" loosely, or for their particular craft.** If you just want to give a clear gloss finish to another surface though, then there are *various* clear finishes you can use. Almost all of them will also "seal" air-dry clays, and other porous materials as well, though some will end up a little more water"proof" than others after drying/etc. You can also use a "glossy acrylic paint" on your air-dry clay which would also seal it as well as giving a glossy appearance (although some acrylic paints are "flat" so won't dry glossy...in that case, just add a coat of clear gloss finish over them). (Several coats of clear permanent finish, particularly of a clear polyurethane like Varathane/etc which is quite tough, will make your air-dry clay item "stronger" in general, but some of the item's strength will depend on its size and shape plus how well you joined the parts and/or made the clay soft and pliable before shaping it.) You can read about various kinds of permanent clear finish on this page at my site (just ignore the fact that the clay discussed there is polymer clay) and in some of my previous answers: http://glassattic.com/polymer/finishes.htm http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20120116100721AABpuV2 http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20110401054729AAGgnMM (**P.S. If you ask a person who normally uses earthen clay--which must be fired in a high temp kiln to get very hard--they're likely to think you mean one of the special "glazes" that are used in a kiln on those kinds of clays, not "glazes" used on air-dry clays you're likely to find in a craft store or dollar store or a brand of clear gloss finish like "Sculpey Glaze" which is intended for polymer clay (though could also be used on your air-dry clay). You can read about the different kinds of "clay" there are in my answer here, if you're interested: http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20100621051506AA53JtD ) .