We recently attended a 7-year-old's birthday gathering at a pottery studio and the party project was creating pretty ceramic lace plates. We love this! It looks difficult to make, but easy enough for a 5-year-old to do.

Each child received a block of clay, which they pounded out into a disc shape. The kids selected a crocheted doily and placed it on top of their disc. Using a rolling pin, they pressed the doily into the clay while simultaneously thinning out the disc.

Once the disc was wide and flat enough, the kids placed a paper plate over the clay and with a stick used the paper plate as a guide to cut a plate shape out. After that, the kids were able to paint over the doily and plate. Finally, they were able to carefully peel the doily off, revealing a beautiful imprint and colorful pattern.

We fell in love with this project and plan on visiting the pottery studio again to create more plates. Now if only we had our own kiln!