Create your own gilded fruit sculptures

In this Lesson Joe sculpts a pear, an apple and a banana with air drying clay, and then gilds them with Mont Marte Designer Leaf. The lesson is quite easy, a lot of fun, and the fruit comes out looking fantastic and would brighten up any room!

Step 1. Creating the pear.

The pear can be thought of as 2 spheres resting on top of one another with the top one half the size of the bottom one. The steps are as follows: 1) Create a rough pear shape from Aluminium foil. Ensure it is slightly smaller than that of the intended finished sculpture. 2) Cut 3 slabs 1 cm thick, off the end of a block of Air Dry Clay. In this project I’m using a 2kg block, and I use a butter knife to cut the clay. Build the clay around the Aluminium foil. Smooth the seams where the clay joins. 3) Next create the correct shape. Ensure the transition between the two spheres is smooth, and the base has the correct curve. Create a hollow in the top and press a Kebab skewer into this hollow to suggest the stalk. Let this dry.

Step 2. Applying the leaf.

Once the pear is dry paint a thin layer of Mont Marte Size on to the bottom of the pear and continue 1/4 of the way up it. Speed dry this with a hair dryer. Lay a sheet of Mont Marte Silver Leaf on the table and place the pear onto it. Paint the rest of the pear with size and let it dry naturally*. This will take about 20 minutes. Once the size is dry, cover the rest of the pear with more silver leaf. Once the pear is entirely covered, brush off the excess waste with a clean soft brush. * Note: Do not speed dry the second application of size or it will blow the base sheet of leaf and possibly damage it. For this reason it is best to let it dry naturally. Ensure the clay is dry before you apply the size. Although Air Drying Clay can be speed dried with a hair drier, the likelihood of cracking increases. For this reason, it is advisable to allow the clay to air dry naturally. Overnight is preferable. Some people like to wear cotton gloves when applying the leaf so that it doesn't stick to their hands.

Leafing can be a little messy so ensure that you are in an appropriate area and vacuum up all cast off.

Step 3 Creating the apple.

The apple can be thought of as a sphere. 1) Create the approximate shape with aluminium foil. Ensure that this size is slightly smaller than that of the intended finished sculpture. 2) Cut two slabs of clay 1 cm thick and wrap them around the foil shape and smooth the joins where the clay meets. 3) Smooth the sphere with your hands. Create a hollow at the top of the apple and then insert a kebab skewer for the stalk. Let this dry.

Step 4. Applying the leaf.

Once the apple is dry, paint a thin layer of Mont Marte Size onto the bottom of the apple and continue 1/4 of the way up it. Speed dry this with a hair dryer. Lay a sheet of Mont Marte Starburst Designer Leaf onto the table and place the apple onto it. Paint the rest of the apple with size and let it dry naturally*. This will take about 20 minutes. Once the size is dry cover the rest of the apple with more of the starburst leaf. Once the apple is entirely covered, brush off the excess waste with a clean soft brush. * Note: Do not speed dry the second application of size or it will blow the base sheet of leaf and possibly damage it. For this reason it is best to let it dry naturally.

Air Dry Clay can dry very quickly. To combat this it can be given a mist from a water sprayer. It is also important to wrap any work in cling film to halt this drying if you wish to leave it a while between work sessions.

Step 5. Creating the banana.

The banana is probably the most tricky sculpt out of the 3 to get right. Bear in mind the banana actually has 5 subtle planes. 1) Create an approximate banana shape with the aluminium foil. Fashion the stalk by pinching the foil into a tube at the end of the shape. Ensure that this size is smaller than the intended finished sculpture. 2) Encase the aluminium foil shape with clay. Ensure the wall thickness is about 1 cm thick. Squeeze the clay onto the foil so there are no pockets of air. Using a butter knife cut away the clay to fashion 5 flat planes. Smooth the clay and put a small radius between each plane. Flatten the tip of the banana. Let this dry.

Step 6. Applying the leaf.

Once the banana is dry, paint a thin layer of Mont Marte Size on to the bottom of the banana and continue 1/4 of the way up it. Speed dry this with a hair dryer. Lay two sheets of Mont Marte Gold River Designer Leaf side by side onto the table and place the banana onto it. Paint the rest of the banana with size and let it dry naturally. This will take about 20 minutes. Once the size is dry cover the rest of the banana with more of the Gold River Leaf. Once the banana is entirely covered, brush of the excess waste with a clean soft brush. * Note: Do not speed dry the second application of size or it will blow the base sheet of leaf and possibly damage it. For this reason it is best to let it dry naturally.