Madhubani Clay Magnets – DIY

Madhubani or Mithila paintings are one of the traditional paintings of India and are known for their bright colors and distinct style. In this tutorial here, we try to bring this beautiful art form in small colorful magnets made out of clay.

How to make Clay Magnets in Madhubani style – Tutorial:

Step 1:

Polymer clay or self-hardening clay (such as Shilpkar from Fevicryl) can be used for this project. I have used self-hardening clay fin this tutorial.

Roll the clay in your palms and make a small ball.

Step 2:

Flatten the ball with you hands to get a circular base in the desired size.

Step 3:

Draw the outline of the chosen Madhubani design on the clay and allow the clay to harden for an hour or so. It will air dry and harden.

Step 4:

Once the clay has hardened well, we start painting using acrylic colors.

As we paint..

The black outlines are painted…

And finally the white dotted lines are painted around. This dotted line gives a good finish to the design.

Step 5:

Once the paint is dry, glue on a magnet to the back of the piece.

Step 6:

Apply a coat of clear varnish to protect the paint. The varnish may require few hours to dry well.

I made a few more of these clay magnets in different designs.

This guy here is my favorite.. look he’s just so colorful!

Note : If Polymer clay is used, it has to be baked so that the model hardens. If it is M Seal or Fevicryl Shilpkar clay, then it will air dry and harden.