Traditionally, plasticine modeling is perceived as an activity for children, but people of all ages can draw not only pleasure for themselves in this hobby, but also benefits.

If you still think that only short-lived trinkets are plasticine, look at this material in a new way. You can sculpt souvenirs, decor and even paintings. Having studied the theory, be sure to move on to practice. The cost of a box with multi-colored plastic bricks is more than acceptable, you won't lose anything if you don't like it.

The benefits of modeling for kids and adults

Modeling classes in many countries in without fail contribute to the programs of kindergartens and schools. It is proved that working with plasticine:

• promotes the development of fine motor skills;
• improves coordination of movements;
• teaches both hemispheres of the brain to work simultaneously;
• develops imaginative thinking;
• reveals creative abilities;
• makes an active child more assiduous;
• increases attentiveness;
• introduces flowers and the possibility of obtaining new shades;
• normalizes the emotional state, which is especially important for;
• improves speech;
• helps in the future to quickly learn to write and draw.

Creative experiments with plasticine do not reduce self-esteem, since any failed craft can be easily corrected or turned into a new, no less beautiful figure. Modeling teaches you to achieve goals and achieve results.

There are also indirect benefit- children are distracted from TVs and computers, which means that in the process of classes, their eyes rest. If you teach a child to sculpt from plasticine in the evenings, he will calm down before going to bed and sleep peacefully at night.

For adults, modeling is no less useful. Doctors recommend kneading plasticine and sculpting simple figures for people who have experienced a stroke, who have noticed memory impairment and impaired coordination of movements. It is known that there are many reflex zones on the fingertips, the massage of which improves the condition of the body and the functioning of the autonomic nervous system.

Adults automatically start fiddling with something in their hands during stress, crumpling paper or clenching their fists. To combat outbursts of anger, they came up with “gum for hands” - an alternative that does not stain the palms.

Types of plasticine for children's and adult creativity

Do not rush to go to the store for a package of plasticine, so as not to get confused in front of the showcase, study what types there are and how they differ.

What is classic clay made of?

Well-known to the older generation, classical plasticine appeared at the end of the nineteenth century. As often happens, different people in Germany and Great Britain came up with the material for modeling at the same time. The composition of the mass was based on natural clay, wax and fats.

The composition of the classic modern plasticine for children includes:

• kaolin (white plastic clay);
• paraffin or wax - natural plasticizers, due to which the mass softens from the heat of the hands and freezes in the craft;
• fats of animal or mineral origin (hence greasy stains on paper and clothes);
• ceresin - a waxy substance from a mixture of solid hydrocarbons;
• coloring pigments.

Composition different manufacturers differs depending on the brand: M(soft) and T(solid). To obtain the desired properties, zinc white, sulfur, rosin, machine oil are added to the mass.

In sets of plasticine for modeling there are a different number of colors. To get started, you can buy a package in which twelve multi-colored bars. For complex crafts, you need kits that include at least sixteen shades.

Plasticine made from clay is relatively hard. To make the mass plastic, you need to knead the piece for some time in your hands. It is at this stage that modeling brings the most benefits, but it is difficult for babies and people with poor health to achieve a result.

Wax mass for modeling

For children's plasticine modeling, it is better to choose soft and safe wax-based materials. Plastic wax clay does not require long kneading and is almost immediately ready for use. It is also easier to fasten the parts from the wax mass together, it is enough to press them against each other.

In addition to wax, the composition includes paraffin, stearin, dyes, plasticizers, and other additives. If the manufacturer did not use harmful substances, such a product will not cause allergies and skin troubles.

However, wax plasticine is capricious in storage, afraid of warm air and the sun. Such crafts are less durable. For kids, this is an ideal choice, but for adults, it is better to take a different type of plasticine so that the painstakingly created beauty will please you for as long as possible.

Sculptural clay for durable crafts

Sculptural plasticine for modeling is chosen not only by amateurs, but also by professionals, including students of art schools and future sculptors. The main difference between the material is plasticity; it is possible to create miniature parts from it with high precision and clarity.

A product of this type is created on the basis of beeswax, natural clay, talc, plasticizer oils. As a rule, the mass is not dyed in bright colors, but natural shades are left. Thanks to this, you can sculpt realistic sculptures, masks, figurines. If you need bright crafts (culinary miniatures, toys, jewelry), it is not difficult to color them.

Bright balls for children's creativity

Plasticine balls look like small multi-colored peas or millet groats. The material is based on miniature foam balls glued together with invisible polymer glue. During the sculpting of the figure, the ball structure is preserved. Children love to sculpt from bright balls. The mass easily takes the desired shape.

Ball plasticine happens fine-grained and coarse-grained(diameter of one ball is more than 1 mm). Depending on the adhesive substance, the material is divided into curing and reusable. The first one gradually hardens, suitable for souvenirs and jewelry. The figure with non-hardening glue, if desired, is easy to disassemble and create something else.

Styrofoam balls can be used in combination with other types of plasticine. The result is original toys, mouth-watering miniature food and much more.

Unusual novelties with different properties

Manufacturers continue experiments, as a result of which new modeling materials appear on the shelves:

• Fluorescent plasticine crafts glow in the dark, gaining light during the day. From this material, interesting figures are obtained for the interior of a children's room and New Year's toys.
• Mother-of-pearl plasticine is convenient to use to highlight individual details. For example, for sculpting a dress for a doll or a parrot's tail.
• Rubber plasticine is very elastic, stretches and bends in any direction without breaking. But if you bake the finished craft, it will become durable and monolithic. Suitable for practical toys and decorations - not afraid of water and does not break. You can make flexible and monolithic crafts - the question is in baking.
• The polymer mass for modeling is created on the basis of polymers and plasticizers. The material does not require baking, the products harden in the air and become durable.
• Plasticine soap was invented for creative natures. Essentially, this soap base, from which you can sculpt in the usual technique. Water is used to connect parts. finished soap can be applied as intended.

• Edible plasticine is ideal for children's creativity because it is absolutely safe. The main ingredient is confectionery marzipan. This is the best material for modeling culinary miniatures, fruits, exotic food.
• Gypsum-based self-hardening plasticine is a professional mass for modeling, from which you can create sculptures, souvenirs, panels, stucco, decorative dishes. Products do not need to be baked, they harden in the air.

If you want to try modeling different types plasticine, look for kits that include several materials and tools for working with them.

How to make mass for modeling with your own hands

If you do not have the opportunity to buy clay on plant-based, make a mass for modeling with your own hands. Accessible homemade material- salty dough. Hardening of crafts lasts a long time; to speed up the process, drying in an oven at low temperatures is used. Dough Recipe and Process Basics.

Play dough can be easily colored by adding food coloring or juices from brightly colored vegetables and fruits such as beets and spinach. Finished products are painted and varnished, making them durable and resistant to moisture. Salt dough makes beautiful toys, fridge magnets.

Another simple homemade plasticine can be made from starch and hair balm. Just mix half a cup potato starch with ¾ cup of balm, knead well, add dyes. Of course, it’s not worth spending an expensive conditioner on this, and if the new balm doesn’t fit your hair, then dispose of it.

Sculpting technique and tools

If you just put a plasticine package on your baby, a miracle will not happen. It will take a little time for the young master to fall in love with unfamiliar creativity.

Basic techniques and general rules

Experts recommend introducing children to modeling from a year and a half, but only under adult supervision and choosing a safe plasticine. For the smallest sculptors, wax is suitable - it is on a natural basis and easily warms up without requiring effort.

Do not rush to show your child crafts - even the simplest ones will seem complicated to him. Start by mastering the basic techniques. Show how to tear off pieces, roll up sausages, balls, koloboks and cakes. Please tell me how to connect them. Learn how to get a different shade from two different colors.

Later, move on to recognizable figures, choosing the simplest ones. Let it be the simplest flower, the sun, grass, bagel, ladybug. Gradually complicate the task, teach how to use molds and tools for reliefs. At this stage, step-by-step lessons with photos will be a good help. Take our or as a basis.

Adults and the elderly, who have forgotten with age how to sculpt from plasticine, should also not immediately take on complex work. If we are talking exclusively about the therapeutic effect, for example, after a stroke, then let the person simply work with the mass, kneading it in his hands.

If you decide to master a new hobby, not only for the sake of benefit, but also for aesthetic pleasure, start with simple figures or panels. After practicing on children's instructions, try creating. This is not a shame to hang in the living room.

What tools are needed for sculpting

To create beautiful plasticine crafts, one hand is not enough, you need special tools. The most necessary manufacturers may be included in the kit, and additional ones must be purchased separately.

Modeling board protects the table from soiling materials and simplifies flattening, rolling sausages, forming various figured parts. Boards are made of plastic and silicone. There are completely smooth, and there are with a partially corrugated surface to create texture. An ordinary cutting board will not work, as it does not stick to a special material.

Knives for working with plasticine are designed to divide the block into pieces and remove excess. Also, with their help, you can give reliefs to crafts and apply simple patterns. Knives are made of plastic, wood, metals. The blades are smooth and figured, linear and disk (as for pizza). Sharp blades are not needed here, the main thing is that nothing sticks to them.

Ruler useful for measuring details. Not everyone can determine the proportions by eye. An ordinary plastic ruler 10-20 cm long is suitable for work. A compass and a protractor may be required to get an even circle and the desired angle.

Stack- an important assistant, without which it is better not to start modeling from plasticine. Reliefs and recesses are formed in stacks, material is applied to surfaces (for applications), drawings are created. Stacks come in many forms:

• for pinpoint dents, you need a tool with a ball at the end;
• for smoothing the surface - with a spatula;
• for patterns - with a thin sharp tip;
• for relief - with teeth like a saw.

For children's creativity, it is better to purchase plastic stacks, although they can break, they are safer and lighter.

rolling pin- A very useful tool for sculpting in more complex techniques. A rolling pin is needed to roll out plasticine into an even and smooth layer. Such details are relevant when creating panels, paintings and postcards. For starters, you can use a small glass bottle. If you pour warm water inside, the material will soften faster.

Molds- These are tools that facilitate the creation of textures. By pressing the mold to the plasticine blank, it is easy to get a neat figure. Molds are convenient for modeling small flowers, leaves, berries from plasticine. in large numbers. To make the perfect leaf of a tree by hand, you will have to not only painstakingly remove the veins, but also study the structure of the leaf.

texture sheets are needed to quickly add texture to plasticine pieces and rolled layers of different sizes. With the help of textured surfaces, it is easy to get both a small detail for the application and the background of the picture. For example, sea waves or a sandy shore.

Apart from special tools for modeling from plasticine, you can and should use improvised means. Look at home for beautiful textured buttons, corrugated perfume bottles, coins. Cookie cutters, stencils and other unexpected things come in handy.

The subtleties of modeling and useful tricks

Classic plasticine is capricious in work. Its plasticity depends on temperature. environment and freshness. Before sculpting, the piece must be well kneaded in the hands until the mass begins to give in to molding and sticks together well.

To soften too hard plasticine, place it in a waterproof container and dip it in warm water. For example, you can put the pieces in a glass jar, which you then put in a pot of hot water.

Another problem is that it is difficult to cut out small details from a too soft plasticine sheet. Here you need to act the other way around - place the bar in the refrigerator for a short time or lower it into cold water in a waterproof bag.

With all the plasticity, plasticine parts do not always manage to be firmly connected to each other. To prevent the head of the puppet theater toy from falling off, use matches or toothpicks to fasten it. If the part is bent, you can strengthen the fastening with thread or fishing line. Only do not use needles! Is it dangerous!

Plasticine goes well in crafts with other materials, including natural ones. Add cones, acorns, pasta, small toys. See what you can do with your own hands from sea stones.

Most types of plasticine are afraid of contact with air. To prevent drying out, store the leftover product from the master class in tightly closed plastic boxes. The stores sell boxes with compartments for different colors.

Even if the hands after sculpting seem clean, they must be washed with warm water and soap. Do not forget that the composition contains not only herbal ingredients.

What to mold from plasticine: step-by-step MK for children and adults

So that you don’t have time to “cool down”, we suggest that you immediately go to our plasticine modeling workshops for children different ages and adults. We have prepared instructions of various levels of complexity, so that everyone can find crafts according to their strengths and talents.

Happy child 07.11.2017

Dear readers, today I want to introduce you to a very interesting type of painting - plasticineography. Plasticine painting comparatively the new kind creativity, which is very accessible and understandable to both children and adults. The process itself is very mesmerizing, it makes you immerse yourself in creativity, feel free from everyday life's worries and troubles. A young mother, artist and teacher Anna Pavlovskikh, who is already well known to you, will acquaint you with plasticine drawing in more detail. I am happy to give her the floor.

Hello dear readers! I noticed that reviews of various creative activities with children resonate with readers of Irina's blog, so today I decided to tell you about another very interesting technique- plasticineography. Plasticine painting is very relevant and modern look painting, which can be done even with the smallest children. Plasticineography allows you to create a relief or even image on a solid base, most often on cardboard. In children's crafts, beads, sequins, and cereals are also used to decorate plasticine painting.

Kneading plasticine, pinching off, rolling small balls, sorting out small details of decor not only trains fine motor skills, but also has a beneficial effect on the nervous system. It is especially valuable that in plasticine painting you can easily correct a mistake, which is important for children who are hard on their personal failures, take them to heart. Using the example of plasticine paintings, it is very easy to show that there are no hopeless situations, everything can be corrected and changed.

Painting can be done both according to a preliminary drawing and without it, in addition, you can use printed coloring pages and ready-made contour images.

Plasticine drawing materials

1. Plasticine, wax is best suited, it is softer, easily kneaded and smeared, has a rich, bright palette.
2. basis for drawing. It can be cardboard, thick paper, plastic and even glass.
3. All kinds of stacks, sticks, toothpicks.
4. Elements for decor: beads, beads, sequins.
5. Medical syringe for squeezing sausages.
6. Wet cloth for hands.
7. Modeling board to roll sausages, sculpt small balls.

To avoid the appearance of greasy stains from cardboard-based plasticine, you can pre-paste it with transparent tape.

Dear readers, I suggest that you consider the basic plasticineography techniques that you can use in joint creative activities with children.

It is most convenient to smear plasticine with the index finger, while smearing can be done in different ways: the smear mark can remain longer or shorter, depending on what we want to depict - a flower petal, a long blade of grass or a lion's mane.

Invite the child to smear the plasticine alternately with different fingers of different hands. This will further stimulate the brain activity of the baby.

Flattening rolled peas based on

By flattening small plasticine peas with your fingers, you can get very decorative works. Try to use this technique in combination with others or fill the entire plane with such plasticine dots. This type of painting will already be similar to pointillism - a type of painting in which planes are filled with colored dot strokes.

By smearing plasticine over the base, you can fill quite large spaces. In this case, not only the selected colors will play a role, but also the thickness of the plasticine layer. An additional way to give picturesqueness is to mix the colors of plasticine, as on a piece of watermelon and an apple.

If the plasticine is hard, you can warm it in your palms while reading a funny rhyme about plasticine:

Difficult to crease
bends tight,
He doesn't give a damn!
Here's the absurdity for you -
Plasticine is not molded!
A. Orlova

Decorate surfaces filled with plasticine with patterns made by scratching. Tools can be stacks, toothpicks, pastes from pens. So in the presented photographs, the fins of the fish are decorated with a toothpick.

One of the most interesting plasticine tricks for children is rolling sausages. In plasticine painting, these sausages just need to be pressed against the base. From them you can lay out snowflakes, ornaments, make snail twists, twist one sausage from two multi-colored ones.

Painting with plasticine from a syringe

If you decide to do creative work from many even sausages, then for a faster and more accurate craft, try using an ordinary medical syringe. To work, you need to cut off a thin tip at the base, prepare a mug of hot water. Put a piece of plasticine in a syringe and immerse it in hot water. After about a minute, start squeezing plasticine onto paper.

Let the plasticine cool down a bit to make the strands firmer. Now you can form the shape of sausages depending on the pattern. Very beautiful spirals are obtained from thin flagella, they can fill in the details of the drawing, or you can simply lay out plasticine strands next to the shape of the drawn objects.

Dear readers, today I introduced you to several plasticine painting techniques. Showed for illustration and inspiration the work of my daughter Svetlana. Using various decorative methods of plasticine painting, you and your children can create your own masterpieces. Try, combine these options together, experiment, use additional decorative elements in the form of beads and sequins. I'm sure everything will work out!

Let plasticine become a favorite toy for you and your child. Spending a little time to get your child involved in this amazing activity will keep your little one busy when you need a free moment. Learn these basic techniques yourself and teach your children. During an interesting activity, your child will explore the world, the joy of creativity and develop self-confidence.

Plasticine is an affordable and simple material used by both children and adults. What can be made from it? Everything your heart desires! Probably, today there is no such person who would not prepare crafts from plasticine with his own hands. This is explained by the fact that modeling is a very exciting, useful and interesting activity that develops a sense of beauty in people.

Plasticine creativity

Making a plasticine figurine is very interesting and not difficult at all. Kids of all ages love this activity. But parents very often do not want to do this. They believe that such material can stick to furniture, floors, leave traces behind.

At first, adults explain that a baby can swallow such bright and colorful material, and over time they simply refer to other interests of their child. But parents who have taught their children to love plasticine are able to give them many positive emotions which neither drawing nor applique can replace.

Unfortunately, many modern mothers and fathers do not seek to do something with their own hands with the child, forgetting what a joy it is for the baby. With the help of plasticine, you can create three-dimensional images and even entire compositions.

Each kid, using this type of creativity, has the opportunity to create his own colorful world! Making crafts from plasticine is very simple. Even the most Small child. Already after a year, the baby can be introduced to modeling.

Choosing plasticine

Long gone are the days when a hard plasticine mass had to be warmed up in the hands. Today, for the smallest, you can choose elastic and soft material. The choice necessarily depends on the purpose for which you are going to buy it.

For children, it is better to choose soft and bright sets. If you plan to make plasticine crafts with your children, opt for harder varieties.

Plasticine must necessarily correspond to the age of the baby. For the smallest, it is better to choose soft varieties that are plastic and easy to roll out. Very soft is a plant-based plastic material. It is made from starch or flour, so if a toddler pulls a piece of such material into his mouth during the modeling process, nothing bad will happen.

Wax plasticine belongs to soft grades. Although it practically does not stick to hands, but with an increase in air temperature in the room it can soften so much that it will be unsuitable for work. It is difficult to fashion small elements from soft varieties.

Classic plasticine in the form of blocks is harsh, requires preliminary kneading, but it perfectly connects to each other, which is important in the process. When using it, one must also take into account the fact that it can stain clothes and nearby objects. To avoid this, use an apron and special modeling boards.

When choosing material for older children, it is better to give preference to a solid variety. With it, the child will be able to create more complex plasticine compositions.

In recent years, modeling from hardening plasticine has become very popular. It does not stick to your hands, but when working with such material, you must immediately create " finishing option» composition, as it hardens instantly.

An excellent material for modeling is ball plasticine, consisting of multi-colored small balls. It is almost weightless, does not stick to hands. This type of modeling material is both hardening and non-hardening.

In the process, you can make crafts from balls of the same color, or mix several colors. Also, ball plasticine is an excellent material for application.

The benefits of sculpting

In the process of modeling, the child is not only able to see his creation, but can also touch it and, if necessary, change it. From one piece you can recreate completely different images.

Modeling from plasticine has a complex effect on the baby:

• develops memory and logic;
• increases sensory sensitivity, promotes the perception of texture, weight, shape, color;
• develops fine motor skills of the hands, which has a beneficial effect on the development and formation of the child's speech;
• develops spatial thinking, fantasy and imagination;
• cultivates perseverance;
• develops creative thinking;
• teaches to achieve the result of their work and, if necessary, correct mistakes;
• forms the ability to plan your time;
• develops the baby aesthetically, teaches to see beauty.

What can be made from plasticine

Already from the age of three, children can make simple plasticine figures with their own hands, without the help of their parents. The movements of the baby's hands become more dexterous over time, and he can already create what he wants: flowers, cars, animals, houses and other objects.

You can “destroy” a plasticine craft, and then make a new one or leave it as a keepsake. Crafts made by a child from plastic or plasticine can be presented as a gift to relatives and friends.

As the child grows older, the modeling process must be complicated. It is necessary to teach the baby to observe proportions, to sculpt complex products. These skills will come in handy at school in labor lessons. Interesting plasticine figures often end up at school art exhibitions.

From plasticine you can not only sculpt. This material can perfectly replace paints. Bright, as if living pictures come out of it, and the very process of their creation is a great pleasure for the young artist. Plasticine will not leave uneven strokes, it does not flow, and you need to draw with your finger.

This is the way to really feel the picture. The material mixes perfectly, so that several shades of the same color can be reproduced thanks to this.

When using plasticine for drawing, it must be taken into account that it melts, and because of this it is unsuitable for long-term storage. Therefore, deciding to organize an exhibition of your products, choose a cool room for this.