Modeling Clay - Ganesh

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This is the one made out of natural clay:



This one is made out of mess free clay :


Every year we buy the clay ganesh idol from near by store or temple, for celeberating Vinayagar Chathuri or Ganesh Chathurthi . But since im not satisfied with the idol they make here in US, i thought of making one on my own. So i planned to buy crayola modelling clay from near by store like Walmart/Target/Kmart .


There are several different types of clay available in the market. Earth tone clay is best for making ganesh idol. Since the store i went did not have one, i bought the white color and mixed crayola paint to get the natural eart tone color .


If expense is not an issue then you can go for "no mess" or " mess-free" clay that is available , you get in different colors or you can buy just plain white and add some redish orange -crayola paint to it and knead the dough and make it into an idol. This mess free clay is an excellent option for begginers, as it would leave no mess in your hand. Very easy to clean.


Another type of clay is the natural earth clay which is also in white. So as i said before , you can just add any water or acrylic color to it ( the reddish orange or browinish orange tone - to give it a natural earth tone look. ) . Its little bit sticky but not that bad as a real clay that we buy in our country... You can always sculpt the idol and incase if it gets dry u can touch up with water and then keep going.

Also i would like to give you a small suggesstion of how to celebrate an ECO FRIENDLY Ganesh Chathurthi without harming our environment:

1. Traditionally, clay was used to make Ganesh idols. Over the years however, plaster of Paris (POP), which is lighter and cheaper, has become the favoured material to mould these idols. POP contains chemicals such as gypsum, sulphur, phosphorus, and magnesium. The dyes used to colour these idols contain mercury, cadmium, arsenic, lead, and carbon. Plastic and thermocol accessories are used to decorate these idols. Such materials are not biodegradable, hence are toxic.

Solution : Use natural clay and nontoxic paints.

2.With the immersion of these idols in the sea or inland water bodies such as lakes and streams, the chemicals in these idols dissolve in the water veru slowly, gradually releasing its harmful components. The water experiences a rise in acidity as well as traces of heavy metal. The toxic waste kills plant and animal life in the water.

Solution : Immerse the idol made of natural clay and non toxic paint in a bucket of water and sprinkle around the house and plants.

As the basic concept of immersing Ganesh idol is nothing but -what ever the world has offered to us is offered back to the world!

So i did 2 ganesha idol using mess free and the natural clay, but after i finished making the idol my 2 year old son came running towards me @ 200 MPH and made them shapeless !!! :))

Have a happy and Eco-Friendly ganesh chathurthi all of you!