Fairy in a Bottle

This sweet little make is a perfect gift for young and old alike.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            You will need:                                                                                                                                                                                                             A small  jar                                                                                                                                                                                                              Oven drying clay (I used sculpey)                                                                                                                                                                    Shredded green paper                                                                                                                                                                                                                            A bow to decorate the top (optional)                                                                               

Firstly, choose a colour for the dress. Take this colour clay and flatten it into a thin circle, about 5cm (2 inches) in diameter. Remove a section of the circle, as shown in the picture. The size of this section will change the high and width of the final product.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           Roll out two small pieces of clay. These will form the arms.                                                                                                                                  Form the semi-circle into a cone. This is the fairy's body.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     Tip: If you have any spare clay, you can put it inside the cone to  strengthen it.                                                                                               Attach the arms by gentle pressing them onto the body at the shoulders.

 Now roll a sphere of clay for the head. Make sure it's the same colour as the arms.                                                                                             Flatten a piece of clay into a rough circle. This will be the hair. It will look better if it's not perfectly circular.                                                                                                                                                                                                                      Take two very small pieces of black clay for the eyes.                                                                                                                                      Arrange the hair on the head in the style you want.                                                                                                                                                                                                                           Gently press the eyes onto the head.                                                                                                                                                                      Tip: You can alter the hair colour and face shape to make the fairy look like the person you're going to give it to.

At this stage, you can as decorations to your fairy such as a bow in her hair.                                                                                                           To finish, you will need to bake the clay to harden it. I baked mine at 130 degrees Celsius for 15 minuets, but you need to check the packaging of your clay for instructions.

Put the shredded green paper in the jar to act as grass. Feel free to experiment with other materials, such as felt, to act as grass.                   You can decorate the top with ribbons or stick on jewels. If the fairy in a bottle is a gift, it's a nice idea to put the person's name on the jar, as I have done in the picture.