I know the recipe may seem a little overwhelming and have a lot of ingredients, but this was like dough I had never seen before, it is worth the effort. They said it is a craft from 1500 years ago. If you have a cold rainy day, I suggest trying it.
Preparing the dough
(no matter what measurement you use, the ratio of the amount of flour, rice flour, and water is always 4:1:2)
Ingredients: (for making 200 small figures)
Flour 10 cup
Glutinous rice flour* (increases the viscosity of the dough) 2 1/2 cups
Cold water 5 cups
Salt (prevents the dough from hardening) 4-5 TBS
Alum powder (protects against moisture and insects) you can find this at an Asian grocery
4-5 TBS
Water-based preservative (you can get this at a craft store) a pinch
liquid water color paint for coloring
shish kebab skewers 200
Procedure:
- Add first six ingredients in a bowl, mix well into a paste like dough
- knead the dough evenly in a pan until the dough has achieved a balance of flexibility and firmness. add some water if it gets too stiff, or add an appropriate amount of flour, rice flour and water (4:1:2) if it gets too soft.
- Form the kneaded dough into lumps about the size of your palm.
- Put them into a pot of boiling water and after they float to the surface, take them out and get ready to add colors.
- Add the watercolors (paste like paint) to the dough while it is still warm and knead the dough until the color mixes evenly.
- Now you are ready to make the dough figures
- After you are done, insert a bamboo skewer through your finished dough figures.
- paint the finished dough figures in a well ventilated place and let dry for 2-3 days.
- paint a layer of clear varnish, or clear fingernail polish over the dough, and let dry for about 1 week.
- Repeat the procedure 6 times to preserve the figure.
7 comments:
I am so not artistic (at least in this sense of the word) -- but I have friends who are and will steer them to this. It's beautiful -- and how fun to have it be an ancient art.
How did visiting the Chinese Branch come about? What an interesting activity.
Those are adorable! Maybe sometime I will get the gumption to try that, maybe for now I should search your archives for the home-made playdough you made for your TN Primary Class and stick with that!
I can't believe you are making time for another branch and activities. You are a Rockstar!
Ooh, I totally want to try this! Quite a few years ago, my oldest daughter Brynlee astounded us by making the most amazing roses out of Play-Doh. But, you can't really keep play-doh roses. This would be great to make a batch of before Christmas vacation or spring break when they need a fun creative outlet. Thanks for sharing this.
These are very cool. So glad you got to take part in this presentation and activity.
When I was in YW my parents, sister & I were put in an asian branch. It was such a great experience. This post reminded me of that.
Your little dough figures are great!
I am emailing this post to myself so that I can have this idea at my fingertips. I feel a kids Christmas craft coming on!
Post a Comment