Metal clay is a clay-like meium used to make jewelry, beads and small sculpture. It consists of very small particles of precious metals (such as silver, gold or platinum) mixed with an organic binder and water. Metalclay can be shaped just like any soft clay, by hand or using moulds. After drying, it is fired in a kiln, with a handheld gas torch, or on a gas stove. The binder burns away, leaving the pure, sintered metal. Shrinkage of between 8% and 30% occurs (depending on the product used), but this is exploited by artisans to produce very fine detail.