Swelling clay absorbs water between it's layers. This makes it able to swell to many sizes larger than it's original size. This is a mineral and is not typically used in arts and crafts.
cosmotological clay used to absorb water and is used to detoxify and cleanse the skin. it is reddish brown in nature, and comes from beneathe the Atlas Mountains in Morroco.
Swelling clay is a type of clay that has the potential to absorb large amounts of water, thus increasing greatly in volume. An example of swelling clay is bentonite. In the United States, swelling clay is often found near the Louisiana Gulf Coast area and in the Rocky Mountain region.
Bentonite is the most swelling clay. The soil called Ankara clay locally bears carbonate concretions at shallow depths in the western part of the city. The clay fraction containing expanding type of clay minerals is responsible for swelling action.