ULTIMATE Air Dry Clay Comparison and Review

Air Dry Clay Is Fun! But not all clays are the same, so I've done my best to help sort the best from the worst.
Channel mentioned in this video:
‪@tinalemac‬ and her video • MAKING *NEW* DIY TEXTU...
The Clays Online
FIMO - polymerclay.com.au/Fimo-Air-B...
CLAYISH - clayish.com.au/collections/ad...
MAD - www.jacksons.com.au/blackwatt...
CRAYOLA - www.amazon.com.au/CRAYOLA-575...
JOVI - www.amazon.com.au/Jovi-Air-Dr...
DAS - www.amazon.com.au/DAS-Hardeni...
KADINK - www.officeworks.com.au/shop/o...
I haven't listed the ones I wouldn't buy myself.

[@troymarshall9905]

i feel so sad that there arent the views or liked deserved on this entire channel. Hoping for a huge success boom soon xox

[@aussiecrafter]

Thank you 😊 💓

[@vee_tinymoose]

I’ve just subbed, so that’s one more 😊

[@anyaashcroft1944]

Me too!

[@CarolinaGirlCreationZ]

This is such an interesting review. I bought DAS air dry clay for my first air dry clay and haven't looked back. It seems to be the most workable and solid after drying clay ever. Thank you for the review of other clays! Super useful and as it stands now, I'll be sticking with my favorite DAS clay.

[@LaynieFingers]

i love this video so much! I appreciate you not saying x is the best, and instead saying it's the best for your purposes. Everything is so nuanced, ya know? And I love the finished piece! Its whimsical and joyful and just makes me smile.

[@observableuniverse1]

The final ranking is at 16:23 :)

[@ChantelleArts]

this is a fantastic review! excellent testing, filming and editing ❤❤

[@sabs666ify]

I waited a few days befor i watched your vid this time,just because i wanted to take my time and relax while watching. So its almost 1 am the night after christmass and i am tired and just wanted to relax . The right time to watch you. Tanx for the work you put in to this video. Hope your kid is doing well and you and your fam had a nice Christmas. Hope to see you soon.

[@shannynls]

I loved this so much! I have been wanting to work with air dry clay but have been reluctant because I didn't want to spend a ton of money finding out which one worked the best. You have taken ALL of the guess work out of it! THANK YOU!

[@akschauer]

Thank you for this deep dive! Have a wonderful holiday!

[@flis625]

Gorgeous! Thanks for sharing this info and the wonderful piece you made. I love the flowers and am going through a bit of a flower phase myself (drawing only!) so loved seeing these cool ones. Hope you and your family have a fantastic 2024 and we get to see some more great videos from you, especially those where you get creative!😍

[@RenaeC86]

Thanks for this video Di! It was so much fun to watch and so informative. I work with kids and they love to use air dry clay but balancing price v quality is so tricky. I have used some of these brands but seeing their strengths and weaknesses laid out next to each other is so useful! It will help me choose which clays to use with what projects (including what clay to splash the cash on for my own personal projects - that fimo looks great!) Have a wonderful Christmas filled with art and heart ❤

[@aussiecrafter]

Thank you so much, Renae. I'm glad you've found it useful. 😊

[@daraamagi6286]

Thank you so much for making this! ❤

[@lovelydaywithholly]

This was super informative, thank you Di!

[@allisonhinkle9504]

I appreciate all the hard work!

[@sparksalot7323]

LOOOVE this! Have a happy Christmas!

[@Jennie_Chbz]

The comparisons were very interesting! I loved the finished piece. The fabric look turned out really well, as did the flowers. 🌸

[@thatgamerinyellow2544]

Omg you are so underrated for how much beautiful work you do!

[@janscott7565]

Thanks, Di. Another great video. I really like the effect of your finished piece. Good colour choices. Happy Christmas.

[@aussiecrafter]

Thanks mum 😁

[@janscott7565]

🥰@@aussiecrafter

[@delviquest]

I am just researching clays, wanting to give it a go, and this video was so very helpful! Thank you!

[@andrysitaradejong5108]

Thanks for the reviews! ❤

[@kelly5822]

I loved your video, thank you so much for making it. 😊

[@ArtisticKatz]

You make me snigger with your description of things! Keep up the great work, merry Christmas too you and your family 🎉

[@aussiecrafter]

Thanks Michelle ☺️

[@TheMessyDeskxyz]

Wow, the final result is stunning! And very creative. I’m not into clay…. But if I ever want to give it a go, I now know which brands to look out for! You did an amazing and comprehensive review!

[@DD47N1]

Super grateful for all of your work and experimentation on this! It's not a cheap endeavor on money, nor time, and I appreciate you saving me both! I have used a few of these but at disparate times so I never had the opportunity to truly compare them! I am definitely going to have to give the FIMO a try! Also, I don't know if you would have easy access to it but Sculpey has an air dry version too and I really like it! The final product is strong, smooth and easy to paint but it also almost sparkles and is a gorgeous bright white when unpainted too! I really love the clothlike texture of your background on this one and the flower colors are amazing! Hoping you and yours have a Happy Christmas and a New Year full of health, happiness, and prosperity!

[@aussiecrafter]

Thank you for the Sculpey recommendation. I didn't know they made it, and now I want to try.

[@kristinwade9873]

Thank you! This was so helpful!😊

[@nickimontie]

That looks like it was a lot of fun! Happy New Year!

[@zoesakurablossom5327]

Thank you for this informative video! Personally Das has worked super well for me so far, but I haven't tried many other clays, so this is cool to see!

[@JB-co2lc]

Very helpful comparison and project ideas. Thanks.

[@belindaburgiss3058]

Love it. So much fun to do and the cartoony vibe is awesome.

[@LadyThoopie]

This video was a real eye opener! Ive used das before but had no idea fimo did air dry clay! Need to get me some of that :) loved the final look, the blue contrasted perfectly with the bright colours. Hope you all had a great Christmas and that your son is feeling more himself xx

[@aussiecrafter]

Glad it was helpful and thank you 😊 🙏

[@E4Alabbasy]

I absolutely needed a fun video from you today 🥰 thank you for the comparison! I absolutely understand how you got their, I get easily distracted between paintings, I even ended swatching all of my paint instead of actually finishing a painting that I started 😂

[@aussiecrafter]

I'm glad the vid came at the right time 😌 I here you about delaying starting a project. 😄

[@eyesseeyou803]

Thank you. Enjoyed this video immensely.

[@AwkwardBirb]

Oh, very nice! I love the IDEA of air dry clay but I’ve never found one I liked. This will really help, thank you!!❤

[@beckybanta126]

This was so interesting & quite fun to watch as you labored along. Been using Crayola air dry with grandkids, but now will look for others as well. Your flowers are beautiful, earning smiles! 😊 Always look forward to your videos & creations! Merry Christmas to you & yours. 🤗🌲🌲🌲

[@aussiecrafter]

Thank you Becky 😊

[@chocolatemuchie8403]

Omg thank you for making this video

[@s3pius]

Thanks for the deep dive comparison

[@EvelynRobinson22]

Thanks for doing this! I’ve played around a bit with the Anko clay & for basic designs (i used some to preserve my senior girl’s paw print before I said goodbye to her early this year) I was curious to see how it performed all ‘round. I’ll definitely be trying some fimo. I used to love working with clay in high school & I think 2024 I’ll be using air dry clay, as well as some other new art techniques/supplies

[@sheenamoore3938]

Thank you so much for this informative video. I normally use the 2 that came out on top...YAY.

[@user-eb6pp7by7v]

Thank YOUUU!!! I really need this

[@ashram12]

The best air dry clay is "La Doll" / "Premier". It's often used to make dolls in the doll crafting community, so that should tell you it holds details well. I've tried a few air dry clays, including DAS which I don't like because it has a strong smell. Also, just a note that you shouldn't make any dishes / cups with air dry clay as it's not really "toxic-free"...this is what my pottery teacher tells me anyway.

[@Goddess452]

Hi, Merry Christmas to you and your family 🎄 Just wanted to say thank you so much for all your wonderful videos and work! ❤ I love your videos and am looking forward to what creative goodness you get in to in future. Your videos are always so genuine and inspiring. Really appreciate that you show you progress and how your feeling everything is going, its so relatable and comforting to know we all have times we struggle or criticise ourselves but to always appreciate the effort and outcome. You’re so talented 😊 I really looking forward to some more sculpting videos, always so cute 😊 All the best From Amy in Scotland 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💝

[@aussiecrafter]

Thank you so much Amy 😊 I really appreciate your comment 🥰

[@EllieRoseMcKee]

I love the final piece!

[@rosecraver4042]

Absolutely love. Looks amazing. Lots of hugs from a small town in Georgia, USA 🎄🎆

[@danielastuff9529]

I have worked with DAS in the past with my daughter and it was a devastating experience. Now that you compared all the brands I will buy sime FIMO an try again 😊❤. Thanks for this super informative video!

[@edensmith206]

Such a great video thankyou you've saved me buying and trying out different brands, also what brand was the texta you used?

[@philiphoweartistwriter272]

Great video, a lot of work and thanks for sharing what you found out.

[@creativitybytrisha6819]

This was awesome to see your comparisons. I've used the Crayola and it crumbled after a few years. I wonder how the other brands hold up over time.

[@monbub]

thank you! i was looking for good clay to make an incense burner for my mom's birthday and this video encouraged me to get fimo clay

[@snowpuppies1]

I liked this product and your review!

[@sheanalay6535]

Loved this video thank you soo much. I’m now trying to get into air dry clay as well and you literally took all the guess work out so thank you 🤗. I wanted to ask what did you use to paint your flowers. Was it a gesso primer? And what was the white paint? Mixed with your colors, those colors popped so nicely. Anyway I loved this video thank you again 🌺

[@yukimuraruki]

Hi there :D Thank you for sharing such an informative and great video :3 I'm often using DAS-clay since it's the easiest available in my country, however I also saw the Fimo ones and was tempted, but thought like "hm, maybe stick to the stuff you already have. Next time I think I would like to give them a try. Actually, I made christmas ornaments and painted them for the annual christmas calendar at work. They said the gifts should be sustainable, so I thought creating something would be the best. So, DAS-clay out and then painting different motives was extremely fun. So I am really looking forward to your future creations as well :) So, I hope you'll have a cozy jolly time for Christmas! Best wishes for you and your family (I hope your little one is doing better). Merry Christmas - and if there's no video before the year ends: happy new year :D

[@aussiecrafter]

Thank you so much 😊 Making clay ornaments sounds like fun and at least the DAS is super strong for that type of project.

[@Arts_Grace]

Loved the video sorry I'm a bit late watching it... I hope you and your family have a beautiful Christmas... Also fellow supporters have a fantastic time over the holidays

[@aussiecrafter]

Thank you! You too 😊

[@catbraunwell6450]

Great video. Thanks! 😊

[@katylowe3504]

Amazing video! The whole package!

[@cherylburkitt9722]

Thankyou for sharing..is really interesting and helpful.. Will save much time and money for us.. I love your idea and final project.. very bright and happy ❤😊 I'm in Melbourne 🎉

[@natmickan]

This is a really great application for clay! I’ve only used the Jovi and Crayola clays before, so it’s good to know that there’s an even nicer option out there too (that’s actually worth the money) Have you tried making your own air-dry “porcelain” (aka cold porcelain) before? That might work well for this application, and it’s really easy to make with common household items (most of them are PVA glue + either bicarb or cornflour-based).

[@Taracinablue]

Entertaining and helpful. I've only ever used the Crayola one, so now I know =) I love the doodly flowers, btw--what a fun idea to make them out of air-dry clay (and useful, to create something while doing what might otherwise be a boring set of tests) Also, I feel bad for those mushrooms that were sacrificed in the process--did you save them to glue them together later?

[@TeddyCrafter84]

This was a fantastic comparison! I've been using DAS on & off for awhile & I've never been that happy with it. It's been ok, just thought that there must be better out there, so I'll be trying FIMO next time I need some airdry clay XD The art piece looks fantastic & I agree, definite 90s vibes. Merry Christmas Di! Hope Santa brings you some fun art supplies 💙🎅☀

[@aussiecrafter]

Thanks and Merry Christmas to you too. Santa did! He went shopping on muse kits and I'll be reviewing an epic kit 🤫😁

[@TeddyCrafter84]

@@aussiecrafter Ooh, exciting! Can't wait to see 💙

[@minji5457]

I've used both DAS and Jovi and I honestly liked Jovi more. I found it easer to work with. Whenever I used DAS it would create a lot of air bubbles and sometimes wrinkles depending on what I was doing..it never happened to me while using Jovi. I feel like when you're working with it the texture is way smoother too! I havent used any other air dry clay brands but Jovi is pretty decent for its price

[@elizabaum]

This was a great comparison. I've thought about messing with air dry clay, but I never knew where to start. Now I do, if I ever circle back around to it again.

[@aussiecrafter]

Glad it was helpful 😁

[@juliewaters8732]

Stunning

[@aliaamustafaaltabbaa4958]

Thank you it was very very helpful..

[@kerryoneill1210]

Looks great!!!

[@amiemarieart]

Thankyou for doing this video! I needed this a while back lol- I done a video trying to use air dry clay…… it was a mission 😅 Your final work is AMAZING I love the bright colours and the black line work made it perfect 😊

[@aussiecrafter]

Thank you Amie 😊

[@june4976]

Thanks for the test! I'm gonna try the Fimo with my kids😀I had cheap one from Aldi last year, which was disputably okay, and they already loved it. Now, they should be able to do a little more with it, and if Fimo is better, I'll definitely go for it.

[@aussiecrafter]

Thank you, and have fun 😁

[@suzt7076]

Cool project!

[@_sea_pea_9500]

Awesome video, very helpful. Do u think the fimo would stick to resin, relatively well?

[@aussiecrafter]

Oooh, I'm not sure sorry as I've never tried. I am currently trying to get Fimo to stick to a smooth plaster surface which was tricky. I had to create grooves in the surface using a pointy thing, then push some clay into the grooves, smooth it, then attach the clay pieces using the cross hatch. My next video will show how I do it. I won't know if it's successful until it fully dries. Smooth surfaces are tricky unless you want to attach it with glue after drying.

[@carrie4910]

Looks great! Love the colours!

[@nightfan1983]

Fimo has always been the go-to clay at our school, so not surprised with its top spot in your ranking ^^ Merry Christmas to you and your loved ones :)

[@roeldiecast2341]

I wanna learn about sculpting, I buy a Das clay and see this video wow I've got a lesson thanks for sharing

[@rebelliouscottoncandy]

My favorite air dry clay that I use is the sculpey brand! I’ve only tried it and Das and it’s my favorite.

[@woodaxed]

hi thanks for that uk based mainly been using das tried a hobbycraft own brand and was very sticky will try the fimo clay i mainly wood sculpt but have been making fairy houses and the clay makes a great top

[@marysia4m859]

thank u for this video :D, could u tell me what kind of glue u could use for glueing the flowers instead of clay ?

[@cabk.4538]

Great Video!

[@JojosCraftyLove]

Thank you for the comparisons! I am bummed that you only gave Jovi 3 stars. lol May I make a suggestion, please? It would be great if you could show the packaging when you do comparisons, please? I wanted to see the Fimo packaging. 😅 New sub! Yay!

[@fjolliff6308]

Tytytytytytyty! Thank You! I made some sculptures last year out of Crayola air dry and gifted two of them. One of the recipients informed me that a few months after they got the sculpture, it started cracking! I checked a piece that I kept and sure enough, cracks! I was thinking about trying DAS, but after watching your video, I think Fimo will work out better for my purposes. I haven't asked the second recipient yet how their jewelry dish is holding up, but I fear some repairs are in order anyway.

[@bayanalnabelsi2472]

The best video at all 🎉🎉

[@nicolemitchell446]

DAS is my favourite air dry clay. I haven’t tried the fimo though. I hated the mont marte! So much so I emailed them. They contacted me and offered to send me a replacement and were very nice about it. I declined the free replacement however as it was just that bad. Their customer service was very good though.

[@aussiecrafter]

I'm glad it's not just me that hates the Mont Marte, but I'm glad they have good customer service because I generally don't mind them as an affordable art and craft brand.

[@carrie4910]

The clayish tool descriptions 😂

[@user-ue5eo3qy9n]

Whoa, this panno turn out like a real coloring page somehow become 3D! And the test of different brands is really cool. I've bought DAS and then heard not-so-pleasure feedback about it, so I never used it. Maybe I should give it a chance after all. What are you going to do with all these mushroom guys? I imagine them as inhabitants of some old mossy stump, like a condominium or something like this. It would be a nice scene about one day in The Stump community :)

[@aussiecrafter]

Thank you 😊 I do plan to paint the Mushrooms at some point then I'm not sure 🤔 I like the idea of them going to live on a stump 😄

[@olasharshar9025]

This painting/ sculpture is unique. I dont think I've seen anyone do this before. I'll definitely try this later

[@olasharshar9025]

And now also I know exactly which type of air dry clay I should get Thanks D ❤

[@aussiecrafter]

I hope it works as well for you.

[@grannym2880]

A bit bummed about the Mont Marté clay. I've had a block in my art cupboard for a few years that I totally forgot about. Just recently found it and wanted to give it a try. Might use it with my granddaughter and stick to simple things. Really enjoyed this video, thanks. Merry Christmas 🎄💙🇦🇺

[@aussiecrafter]

You never know, you might have more joy with it, and it really is personal preference. 😊😊

[@carrie4910]

I’ll have to get myself some fimo to try. I normally use das but it drys out waaaay too quickly in storage no matter what i do.

[@scherre]

I haven't used air dry clay a lot myself but my daughter has done quite a bit of sculpting with it. I think she's tried anko and one other I can't remember the name of but didn't like either, and has mostly used Mont Marte as it's what is most easily available in our local shops. I'm surprised it rated so badly in your tests, and a bit disappointed as like you I thought of Mont Mart as a good all round basic but reliable brand. They are another Aussie company too. I appreciate you going through all the tools that came in the Clayish kit and giving their proper, full technical names. Sucks when you see someone use a tool in a video but don't know what to search for! 😂

[@aussiecrafter]

Yeh, I was bummed about the mont marte too.

[@jennidhue2216]

That is a lovely piece of art !! 😀 💙💜💙💜💙 😀

[@ruthbrown-eubanks9093]

Thanks

[@RebekahSue]

Any air-dry clay company that cares about its reputation should watch your video. You covered important points and made a dry topic (oof, sorry about the pun) interesting. You used a lot of technical terms for the swag that came with Clayish, but I followed along okay ;) The final piece came out really nice! I don't know much about air dry clay, so I learned something. 13:30 "When you find something that feels right and you want to just keep working with it, that is one of the most important factors in my book" - words to live by. Anyway, nicely done.

[@aussiecrafter]

Thank you so much Rebekah 😊

[@KrisWilliams81]

Would love to do a collab with you some day, Di! 😊 Been enjoying your channel and working to get mine going on a more steady basis.

[@RovexHD]

I want to make standing snakes and mosaic them. Will air dry clay hold its own ?

[@catmckay5373]

That looks beautiful! I love DAS, but I mostly use it for skulls so any imperfections when it dries kinda work out well for me. Love the names you gave the tools 😂

[@fjolliff6308]

Ooh. I didn't even think about making cracking a feature! I guess my Crayola air dry won't go to waste after all! Thanks for the idea, I'm going to try some skulls for my decor!

[@vee_tinymoose]

Have you tried the Das wood air dry clay yet?

[@micah06v8]

Since you want something that's both flexible and strong for a project like this, have you considered using cosclay? It is a baked clay, but it's flexible, it retains its shape, it's resistant to breakage, and I think you would have a lot better luck with the folds of your background, as well as strength for your flowers.

[@aussiecrafter]

Yes, I've used Cosclay and I really like it. Your right, it's a super versatile clay 😊

[@NewmNetwork]

I am struggling with the K-mart Anko terracotta clay. It keeps cracking as it dries and its driving me nuts! I am an avid DAS user, but its expensive. I thought I could save money, but I was wrong. I am sticking to DAS! How did you not get any cracks in your work? Maybe I am adding too much water? With Air dry, the slower the drying the better. Also the type of clay, DAS/Kadink are paper based air dry clays. Most of the other are mineral based only so they have to strengthening agent to help with bonding and strength.

[@aussiecrafter]

Hi. Yes the ANKO is terrible. I learnt a little hack that I haven't tested yet. You add PVA glue to the clay and knead it in. I'm not sure how much though. It's supposed to marginally improve the cracking .

[@PrinAnie]

Please can you add the names of the clays to the description ?

[@aussiecrafter]

They should be there now. Thank you for bringing that to my attention,,, I forgot to hit save when I edited it into the description 😳😆

[@PataPtichou]

I'm always so confused by clay videos in english because it seems like the same word is used for many different product, like I know that Fimo is a polymer, so a plastic and sculpey is a polyvinyl, so another plastic, some other "clays" are a mix of paper and glue, and other are actual clay -as in the soil- but I never know what is what so I really don't know how to search what I need in my language in order to recreate some stuff I see online

[@kinzdragons]

Where can I buy the Fimo clay? When I look up air dry Fimo clay I can only find Fimo clay that you have to cook 😅

[@aussiecrafter]

www.amazon.com.au/White-Staedtler-Basic-Drying-Modelling/dp/B000KSJCJW/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2OI0O13QINLB3&keywords=fimo%2Bair%2Bdry%2Bclay&qid=1707619129&sprefix=fimo%2Bair%2Caps%2C347&sr=8-1&th=1 Hope this helps

[@micah06v8]

I know this is completely off topic, but you mentioned that the kiln you might be getting soon only goes to a 1000 degrees. I'm not sure if you're aware of this, but you can change out the elements in the kiln and then it will fire to a higher temperature.

[@aussiecrafter]

Thank you 😊 I did not know this 👍

[@artmaster_19123]

Hey Di can you review the karin decobrush markers please and Merry Christmas

[@aussiecrafter]

I would like to try them. Maybe one day 😊 I know Chloe Rose used them and so did Moriah Elizabeth.

[@artmaster_19123]

​@@aussiecrafteroh ok thank you and happy New Year's

[@Kreative_Rainbow]

You need to recommend Fimo to Moriah Elizabeth, Sarah Renee Clark, and Nerdecrafter!! 🙏 I know Jackie doesn't find air dry clay easy to work with being used to polymer clay(I miss her art pieces!😢). This was a very well-done video!! 👏👏 I wonder if the results would be different in the U.S. and Canada? We've tried Crayola, and it was soggy in the tub... I've only used air dry clay, mostly with slime. Getting the right type is critical for the chemical reaction! Crayola is definitely not it. Diaso is preferred, but there are some on Amazon that work well. Clay slimes stay functional longer and are such a smooth texture. I really love that art piece!! 🌺 The flowers look like they are scattered on a tablecloth. ❤💗

[@aussiecrafter]

I miss Jackie's art pieces too. Our weather is very dry and hot atm so I wonder to if it would be different over there. I wonder if my pieces warp so badly because they dry to quickly. Slime and clay sounds fun!!

[@Kreative_Rainbow]

@aussiecrafter The weather would definitely make a difference!! 👍 It was!! Merry Christmas, and have a blessed 2024! 🎄🎉

[@saltlifegull4091]

WOW, she really spend some money to make this video--THANK YOU!!

[@edensmith206]

I do pottery, with glazes and the use of a kiln, I don't always have access or the funds to do so does air dry clay ever get as strong? Any air dry clay I've ever used just falls apart, does anyone else have this issue?

[@Dangan24]

Marry Christmas

[@benitaandweeptchis]

Cherry Mistmas