A Fun & Buzzworthy DIY: How to Make Mason Jar Air Dried Clay Flower Frogs

Calling all mason jar lovers, find the steps to make flower frogs for easy flower arranging using air dry clay. A fun craft project that can be customized to your taste and preferred size of your jar or vase.

Happy Monday!

How about fun indoor craft project to escape the heat and humidity?

As a professed jar-aholic,

I was intrigued when I ran across these air dried clay flower frogs on Pinterest 

and couldn’t wait to make some!

These flower frogs are an easy and fun craft project that anyone can do,

customizing the design by texture, color and size of your vase or mason jars!

The hardest part is waiting for the air dry clay to cure!

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You’ll need some air dry clay to make these flower frogs,

I used DAS Air Hardening Modeling Clay.

I used white clay, but it’s also available in terra cotta and stone gray.

If you’re not familiar with air dry clay, it doesn’t require oven baking

and dries to the touch in 24 hours, drying completely within 72 hours,

depending on the temperature, humidity and size of your piece.

You’ll also need a rolling pin, cookie cutter and plastic straw(s).

I used my silicone baking mat to roll out the clay to keep it from sticking

 or you can use a nonstick silicone craft mat.

Pinch off handful of clay from the block straight from the package

(no kneading required) and roll it out to an even thickness;

I rolled my clay out to a 1/4 inch thickness for my flower frogs.

I love my Rolling Pin with Adjustable Thickness Rings

that allows you to roll your piecrust, cookie dough or fondant in an even thickness!

The stainless steel tube is easy to clean and gives your dough for a smooth, even surface.

Bonus: it also comes with a pastry mat.

I kept the rest of unused clay in a lidded plastic container as I was working

until I was ready to pinch off another piece.

Note: Tightly wrap any unused clay in the foil packs and store in an airtight container or resealable bag

for up to 3 months.

Longtime readers know my love of all things *bee*

so I was all abuzz when I spied this

Primitives by Kathy Small Florals with Bee Rolling Pin.

A little pressure from the embossed rolling pin leaves an impression in the clay

as it would in a shortbread or cookie dough.

There are lots of fun embossed rolling pin designs available!

Alternatively, use a piece of lace or a doiley to make an impression in the clay using your rolling pin.

I used a Scallop Flower Cookie Cutter 

to cut out my mason jar flower frog.

A regular mouth mason jar is 2.75 inches wide; I used a 4-inch scalloped flower cookie cutter

so the flower frog would hang over the mouth of the jar,

I used the mason jar lid ring as a guide for the placement of the holes for the flower stems

for my favorite Ball Honeybee Keepsake Mason Jars. 🐝

These collector’s edition canning jars highlight the vital importance of pollinators,

embossed with a bee and honeycomb design.

They’re fun for summertime sipping too!

I experimented using two sizes of straws to punch the holes for the flower stems.

I ended up using a standard size straw for most of the holes.

After punching out the stem holes, use a metal spatula to lift the flower frog

from the silicone mat trying not to stretch the clay.

This is my first time using DAS Air Hardening Clay, which I found very easy to use!

You can reroll your scraps of clay or rework your clay if you 

don’t like your design or first few embossing impressions.

Use the straw to push the clay out of the holes.

For faster drying time, place your flower frogs

on a metal cooling rack so air circulates underneath them while drying.

I placed my flower frogs on the porch to dry which took about a day and a half.

All air-dry clays are water-based so they require sealing

 so they’ll be resistant to moisture.

I gave them a coat of acrylic craft paint and let them dry.

 To highlight the embossing details of the flowers and bees,

I dry brushed the flower frogs with an acrylic brown craft paint

to give them an antiqued look.

If you’re not familiar with ‘dry brushing’, it’s a paint technique using an almost dry brush.

Dip the ends of your brush in the paint, then blot your brush on a some paper towels,

wiping most of the paint off,

before lightly dragging your brush over the surface.

You can apply light multiple coats, building your layers until you achieve the look you want.

When the paint was dry, they were ready to seal.

I gave them a couple of coats of acrylic spray sealer on both sides,

allowing them to dry between coats.

Follow the manufacturer’s directions for applying and recoating your sealer.

Here’s how they look finished! 🐝🌼

I tried to space the flower stem holes around the bee so it was visible.

This is fun and easy project with the most time consuming part waiting for the clay to cure

and dry between coats of paint and sealer.

Put your personal stamp on these flower frogs,

embossing them with the pattern of your choice and painting them your desired color.

You can get about (7) 4-inch flower frogs rolling your clay to 1/4 inch thickness

out of a 1-pound package of clay.

I added some bee favorites that are blooming to my mason jar using my flower frog. . .

Black-eyed Susans, Shasta Daisies . . .

Cosmos

And Chinese Forget Me Not

🐝 🌼 🐝 🌸 🐝

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 Between Naps on the Porch