08 Aug How to Make a Clay Model of a Child’s Shoe

Today, as part of our clay modelling series, we are going to make a clay model of a child’s shoe. This is model #42 from the book, A Manual of Clay-Modelling by Hermione Unwin. This book was originally published in 1912, so I imagine that a child’s shoe would probably look quite different now-a-days.

Since we did not have any children’s shoes around our house (our kids are in high school now), we took a trip to our local resale store and found a pair of shoes similar to the shoe shown in the book. It is a slip-on shoe, with rounded toes, a strap, and a thin bow.

Materials Needed

• The book, A Manual of Clay Modelling by Hermione Unwin (or free online HERE)
• Modeling Clay (the book suggests red terra cotta clay)
• Clay modeling tools (this kit includes many tools, along with a sponge and wire to cut the clay)
• An modelling board with an armature – hopefully you’ve made this with us already
• A bowl of water
• An apron or paint shirt to protect your clothing
• Newspaper, or plastic covering to protect your table
• A child’s shoe

Happy Handicrafts Video: How to Make a Clay Model of a Child’s Shoe

The Process

We began by making an oblong slab away from the armature. Since the shoe does not have height, we have no need for the support of the armature. Since the size of the shoe is so small, we were able to make the clay model to size. We therefore made the slab just slightly larger than the shoe.

The next step is to start building up the shape of the shoe. We began with the mass of the toe, making it solid. Once that was done, we built up the sole and heel of the shoe. We then began making the strip to go around the heel. Next, we rolled out a piece of clay and then flattened on the board to a thickness of 1/8 of an inch. We cut out the length and width to fit around the heel.

Once the shape of the shoe is roughly in place, we cut out underneath the sole at the toe, leaving the top 1/8 of an inch thick. We rolled out a string of clay for the strap, flattened it, cut the edges straight, and joined it on the sides.

The final details were put into place, including a thin bow. The clay model was then completed by smoothing it out with water.

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