21 Dec How To Create a Modelling Board with an Armature for Clay Modelling

In our last post, we learned about the handicraft of clay modelling. After gathering this knowledge, I was excited to start, but one thing still held me back. To this do this handicraft correctly, we needed a modelling board with an armature.

What is a Modelling Board?

According to the book, A Manual of Clay Modelling by Hermione Unwin, “The modelling board should be not less than 9 inches by 11 inches in area and should either have two wooden bars screwed on to the bottom, across the grain of wood, to prevent warping, or else have a piece of wood mortised on each end, like a drawing board. The armature must be fixed towards one end of the board, to allow room for working those models which do not require it.”

What is an Armature?

Since it’s important that the clay model is not held in the hand of the student, an armature must be fixed onto the modelling board. The model is then built around this projection. It needs to be “upright, 1 3/4 inches high, screwed on to the modelling board.”

No Modelling Board with an Armature to be Found!

“Well, no problem,” I thought, and I went straight to Amazon. In our modern-day era, we are so used to convenience that it is sometimes a little shocking not to immediately find what we are looking for. Yet that’s exactly what happened. I scoured the internet and local craft stores only to find NOTHING. I imagine this is because our pursuit of the work of clay modelling is not something that is popular in schools today. Our instructional book was originally published in 1912, and there is probably no current demand for modelling boards with armatures.

Let’s Make One Ourselves!

I like to think we are resourceful and I was determined to make what we needed with the things that we had.

The first thing we needed was a modelling board. Instead of buying raw wood, cutting it to size, sanding and finishing it, etc, we found 9″ x 12″ bamboo cutting board online. Wooden cutting boards are already treated so that they are not supposed to warp. Finding the right size makes this whole process much simpler! Just a note: the one I purchased is no longer available. However, the one I have linked to is even better because it’s the same size and already has some non-slip silicone feet! There are really no alterations needed – all we need to do is make the armature.

Happy Handicrafts Video: Want to Teach Clay Modelling in Your Homeschool? Here’s What You’ll Need.

How we Made Our Armature

There are several options on how to attach an armature. We thought of drilling a large screw through the board, but we didn’t have such a large screw. Since we are not carpenters, we were afraid of splitting our new cutting board. Instead we decided to drill a hole and place a wooden dowel.

We started by marking the spot where we want the armature to be placed. We wanted it along the middle of our board and about 1/4 of the way in from an end. Since our modelling board was 9″ x 12″, we measured 3″ in from an end and 4 1/2″ in from each side and place an X to mark the spot.

We had a 3/4″ wide wooden dowel that cut we down to 2″ (making allowance for the width of our cutting board). This would give us the required 1 3/4″ of armature extending up from the board. You can see how professional we are. We have none of the appropriate tools. So, we used my husband’s Japanese hand saw to cut the dowel (it actually worked really well).

We then smoothed the edge with some sandpaper.

Next, we had to drill a 3/4″ hole into the modelling board. Having no drill, we used a Dremell with a 3/4″ drill bit. It wasn’t perfect, but we got it done.

Once we cleaned up the mess, we filled the hole with wood glue and inserted the dowel, which fit perfectly! With some slightly damp paper towels, we cleaned up the excess glue and let it sit for 24 hours to dry.

How to Stabilize your Modelling Board

Now if your cutting board didn’t have the silicone legs on it, you can add your own base to keep it still when clay modelling. We used a large piece of self-adhesive felt which we applied to the underside of our board.

List of Materials Used in this Project

• Cutting board, 9″ x 12″, with silicone legs
• *For Charlotte Mason Co-ops:* if you’d like to purchase cutting boards in bulk, Amazon sells 9″ x 12″ sizes in packs of 18, for a great price!
• Pencil and ruler for markings
• A 3/4″ dowel
• Sandpaper
• A drill with a 3/4″ drill bit
• Titebond wood glue
• (Optional) Self-adhesive felt

And that completes our modelling board with an armature. We are ready to start our clay modelling series, and we invite you to join us over on our YouTube channel, Happy Handicrafts. This is where we record our own homeschool handicrafts. Each handicraft is put into a playlist, which homeschoolers can then use to teach and learn. Hope to see you there!