I do sculpture in clay. How can I rewet the clay once it starts to dry out.?

Question

I am interested in softening the surface of my sculpture as well as in how to make the leftover trimmings nice and malleable again.

Answer 1

if your sculpture isn't too dry you can cover it with wet cloth until it is as malleable as you want it to be.you must keep the wet cloth wet or it won't work as it will dry out again.
as for your trimmings you can dry them completely in the sun
and then soak them in water until they completely disintergrate.
stir until you have a watery slurry and filter this through a fine filter or sieve(only if you want to remove any foreign materials
from the clay.)
let the slurry settle, pour away the excess water.
with whatever is left pour into a plaster slab(if there is a hollow space to pour into)
and leave it to dry until is dry enough(you may need to knead it on a plaster bat until it is consistantly malleable.)
if you are not too sure ,try asking a potter around your area.
God bless,
gabe

Answer 2

spray bottle with water.
If your clay gets to the leather hard stage, rewetting is not very efficient any more. Making and using paper clay can allow easier rewetting for larger sculptures which require more time to work on. The paper fibers suck the moisture deeper into the clay. Paper clay is not good to store, however (it starts to get really smelly when the paper decomposes).
For leftovers which get too dry, it is more efficient to let them dry completely, then smash them into small bits, soak them with lots of water and dry on a plaster bat to required consistency. Alternatively you can add dry clay powder to required consistency.
Whenever you work with dry clay and get a lot of dust from the clay around you wear a decent dust mask (not the cheapo one string kind, they don't really work). Clay dust can cause silicosis.

Answer 3

Keep your work in progress damp with a spray misting bottle and keep covered with plastic when not working with it. I put a small amount of water in a plastic bag to put my scraps in. Then when I'm ready to use them again they are still soft. If you put in too much water don't worry they'll dry.

Answer 4

I have never really done this, but, I thought you keep dipping your hands in water throughout the molding process to keep it wet, but, not too wet.

Answer 5

wet towel would stick to the clay...
drrr I'm sorry....
like they said above spray it and put plastic wrap around it and maybe that will help

Answer 6

Use water with paint brush, it should help you. I am not an expert. If it does not work, then sorry.

Answer 7

Soak it in water