With a few common materials that are easily found in a craft shop, a little bit of ingenuity and the ability to have some fun you can make a Pottery Barn Skeleton Vase for Halloween or everyday decor!
How To Make A Pottery Barn Skeleton Vase
Difficulty | Cost | Time | Age | Person | Event |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Easy
|
$25 to $50
|
30 Minutes
|
-- | -- | -- |
Inspired From:
You Will Need...
- A package of Sculpey, Fimo or Premo Polymer Clay - Transparent is best
- Sculpey tools or make-shift ones found around the home
- Glue (depending on the type of vase you use) I used Elmers China and Glass Cement
- Aluminum Foil
- Heavy Duty Elastic Band
- Toaster oven or regular oven
- Spray Paint Satin Finish in Ivory
- Van Dyke Brown Acrylic Paint
- Paper Towels
- Vase of your choice
- Plastic to protect while painting
Step by Step Instructions
Step 1
Lay the vase down on it’s side and wrap a thick layer of foil over it but not around it as you will have to remove this later. The thick layer is meant to hold it’s shape when you remove the foil for baking.
Step 2
Condition your clay by kneading it until it is soft. I used a half a package for my skull. If you would like to have a skull closer to that of Pottery Barn then you can use less.
Roll the clay in between your palms loosely so it forms a sort of UFO shape.
Step 3
Place the ball on your vase and begin to push down to flatten the edges while pinching the bottom to make the jawline.
Use your finger to smooth the surface.
Step 4
Now take your tools and begin to shape the face as so:
Rock the tool back and forth facing away from the nose to create a more almond shape for the eye sockets.
Step 5
Do the same for the nose
Step 6
“Cut” Three lines for the teeth making sure the top teeth are a bit bigger than the bottom like so:
Step 7
Then cut the teeth vertically also making sure the top are larger than the bottom. Carefully remove the aluminum foil and place on a baking sheet with some balled or rolled up foil underneath to support your skull.
Bake according to the directions on the package. Usually 30 minutes for each 1/4 of an inch at 275 degrees F. Mine baked for over an hour.
Step 8
After your skull has baked and thoroughly cooled adhere it to your vase. Hold firmly for a minute and use a strong rubber band to keep it in place as the glue dries.
Once the glue dries take your vase outside and give it a few coats of spray paint. (Just make sure it is not too windy or buggy. I had to do some sanding and fixing of little buggy corpses)
REMINDER: Several thinner, even coats from further away are best when spray painting. Too close or too thick a coat will cause drips.
Step 9
Now here comes the fun messy part. To antique your vase add a fair amount of water to your acrylic paint. It should be soupy but not too thick. Take a paper towel and drench it in the mixture then daub it on the vase working in small sections. Take a second paper towel and using a combination of pats and wipes begin to remove the paint. Do not remove all of it and try to keep the aging effect inconsistent. Take your time but know if you mess up (Are there really any mess ups?) You can wait for it to thoroughly dry and re-spray paint the vase to start over
Step 10
Well, there you have it, A Pottery Barn Knockoff!
For a few extra tips visit my blog at:
How To Make A Pottery Barn Skeleton Vase
I know it has been a while, a very, very long while but for those that may not know I am in the middle of rebuilding my life. On January…
Gallery




Leave a Reply