I have done countless DIY projects over the past four years, and honestly, this DIY ring bowl is one of my all time faves. Why?
It’s easy. It’s inexpensive. It doesn’t require lots of fancy tools. It’s not overly time-consuming (only 1.5 – 2 hours). The result is stunning.
After the wedding you can display it as a cherished handmade keepsake from your wedding.
The inspiration for this project came from Esther over at WhollyKao. I made some modifications to the bowl so that it could be used as a ring bearer bowl.
Want to make one of these for your ring bearer to take down the aisle? Here’s how:
You will need:
- 795 gram package of White Oven Bake Clay
(I used Sculpey
- Fabric doily
- Letter Stamps
(optional)
- Rolling pin
- smallish oven safe bowl (I used a Pyrex mixing bowl that was oven-safe)
- Chopstick or bamboo stick for poking holes at top of bowl
- Lid to cut out the shape
- fine grit sandpaper
Preheat oven to 275 degrees.
Form your clay into a ball and place on Silpat or piece of parchment paper.
Roll it out to approximately 1/4 inch.
Take your fabric doily and position it how you want it to appear on your bowl. Roll over the doily with the rolling pin.
Position your lid on the clay, just to get an idea of where you want to create your cut-out. (Don’t press it down yet.) If you are adding letter stamps, add those now.
Peel back doily. It should come off easily. And it won’t ruin your doily!
Position your lid and press firmly on the clay.
Remove excess clay and save for future projects.
Use a chopstick to create two holes at the top of the piece.
Form your little birdies.
Place your birds on the edge of the oven-safe bowl and push down a bit so that it creates a lip at the bottom of the bird. This will make it easier to glue.
Place your clay bowl into the bottom of the oven-safe bowl. Push it down a bit so it takes the form of the bowl. You’ll want to keep the clay bowl fairly shallow, so make sure the oven-safe bowl you are using isn’t too deep.
Place oven-safe bowl (and birds) on a cookie sheet and put into the oven for approximately 30 minutes. When it’s done, remove from oven and let cool inside bowl for 20 mins. When cool, turn bowl over. It should pop right out.
Sand the edges of the bowl. (It took me about 15 mins to get mine just right.) Sand birds.
Place a small amount of E-6000 glue in the groove of your birds and adhere to the lip of your bowl.
Let dry.
Use a piece of string or butcher’s twine to tie your rings to the bowl. That’s it!
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Love this idea! Thanks for the helpful tutorial.
WOW!! This looks so easy!! I'm definitely going to try to make one for myself! Thank you so much for sharing.
Hi there
Are you able to tell me where you got your letter stamps from? Ive been working in clay for a few years, making lace effects with doilies, etc. but have never found a decent set of letter/number stamps :-) would be great if you could share. Love your project, might have to have a go myself :-) thanks
What a great idea to make it a ring bearer bowl. I love how yours turned out!
Thanks for the inspiration Esther
I actually got them at a yard sale. These are the ones I used http://www.leevalley.com/us/garden/page.aspx?c=&p=50900&cat=2,43319,33281&ap=1
I love this little bowl and have some polymer clay.
Beautiful. Such a great idea and not too difficult to take on either ;)
SO pretttyy!!
Great tutorial, I had never played with Oven-Bake Clay I'll have to try it. I have featured it on Craftuts site! Thanks!
that's a beautiful idea for a wedding gift
Wow! That's amazing!
Did your clay dry completely hard? Mine is still a bit flexible. I'm not sure what to do. I have baked it for 30min at 275 three times already!
Hi Michelle.. Yes, mine is hard.. Did you use Sculpey brand? Not sure why it wouldn't harden. I'm sure it will harden eventually if you keep baking it.
Love it! Did you use a mold for the birds?
No, I hand sculpted those Julia.
hi there! if i use air dry clay...would it still work? thanks!
Hello! By a happy chance I came across your site yesterday. While looking around, I discovered this bowl and have become mildly obsessed with it. It is so pretty! In my quest to find a suitable doily, I have not found one that is as pretty as the one you have. Any chance you remember where you acquired yours? Thanks for sharing this project!
Glad you like the ring bowl Kella! I acquired the doily from my mother in law. Maybe you could check Etsy for vintage doilies?
Thank you so much for a wonderful idea, Christina! I loved it so much that ordered the Sculpey white clay right away, and made 2 of these bowls for my daughter's upcoming wedding, thinking that in case one doesn't turn out right, there will be an extra one. I followed the directions to the letter, and they looked beautiful before I baked them, but after baking, they both turned out with an ugly yellow tinge, almost as if they had been burned, even though I used a 275ºF oven. Also, one of the bowls cracked to the point that I can't use it at all. Did I need to turn the oven off after heating it? What did I do wrong?
I would appreciate any advice you can provide, as I really would like to make this lovely bowl for my girl's wedding. Many thanks again for this great idea.
Colette, sorry you had trouble with the bowls. I have no idea why they turned yellow and cracked. Did you make them the same thickness as in the photo? Maybe try turning the temp way down and slow bake them, keeping a close eye on them.
Thanks for the tip, Christina. I did use the same thickness as in the picture and my bowls looked so nice before baking. Maybe my oven thermostat is out of whack. I will try 2 things: bake my next bowl at a lower temp, as you suggested, and use the more pliable, softer, Sculpey Ultra Light clay, (guaranteed not to crack) for my next bowl(s). I don't give up easily :)
Colette, I hope it works out for you next time!
I really love the letters you use on your website!!!!
Can you tell me which type of letter it is so I can download it for my sister's baby shower?
Thank you very much!! :D
Also, I'm looking to do this ceramic dish soon! it's really pretty and easy :D
Ale... I got these letters at a yard sale. They were for making patio stones. These aren't the exact ones, but they were something like this http://www.meijer.com/s/milestone-kids-garden-tile-stone-kit/_/R-40076
Ohhhh Christina! I'm so sorry, I didn't explain well...
I was refering the letters on your website :) or the fonts... What are the name of them, because I like them so much and I would like to download them to use for the inivtation of my sister's baby...
Thank you so much for your quick answer :)
What a charming idea and a wonderful memento of the wedding. I'm getting married this summer and had never thought of doing anything like this, great inspiration. Have pinned.