Why is Play-Doh clay so popular and what set to choose?
In order to develop fine motor skills and fantasy in children, parents often offer the kid modeling. Plasticine, the choice of which is very large in stores, is one of the most popular materials for this. Very often caring parents opt for the brand Play-Doh.
About why it is so popular, and what its kits you can find on sale, we will tell in our article.
What it is?
The brand Play-Doh is famous all over the world, its history has been going on for more than fifty years. He enters the huge Hasbro empire, which is the second largest toy manufacturer in the world. It all started with the fact that in the 1930s, plasticine was released, which could be used repeatedly. However, it was non-toxic and did not leave stains. Then he became popular due to the fact that copes well with cleaning wallpaper from coal. In 1956, the Play-Doh trademark was officially registered in the USA. And 1964 was a significant fact that they began to use this clay in schools in France, Italy and Britain.
Natural materials, distinguished by their brightness and richness of color and highly elastic structure - all this is successfully combined in Play-Doh plasticine and makes it an interesting, fun and exciting toy. This mass for modeling helps to develop fine motor skills, creative abilities and a violent children's imagination.. This brand is known to almost every parent and is in great demand.
Today, the Play-Doh trademark is the undisputed market leader and is available to customers in 75 countries. Plasticine is distinguished by its softness and tenderness, which is very similar to the dough for sculpting. Using it, you can create many different figurines and fancy objects, build entire zoos and farms. Bright colors of this product allows children to create true masterpieces.
A variety of fun kits allow you to plunge into the festive atmosphere of both children and their parents. With their help, you can imagine yourself as confectioners, doctors, farmers, hairdressers and just dreamers. Made culinary masterpieces are very bright and colorful, every kid will want to treat them to a doll. Animals and heroes from cartoons are fun and funny, sculpt them - a pleasure.
Plasticine kits are indispensable assistants in the development of creative potential. You can buy them in children's stores or order online.
Special features
The unique composition of clay is a trade secret and kept in strict confidence, but it can be said with accuracy that it is safe. Play-Doh is made on a natural basis, it consists of only natural ingredients. - this is water, salt, flour, starch and dyes, so this clay is very similar to the dough, made at home. Hasbro claims that clay does not contain peanut butter.
He will bring absolutely no harm to the children's organism. Even if a piece still gets into the mouth, the crumb is unlikely to want to eat it, because it tastes salty and slightly bitter. However, it contains wheat. This means that parents who have an allergic reaction to gluten have been identified to refrain from buying.
Plasticine Play-Doh looks very attractive and colorful, the scenes in the sets captivate young children for a long time. It mixes easily, allowing you to create new colors. It is also very soft and does not have to be kneaded for a long time. Plasticine does not leave marks on hands, furniture and clothes and is suitable for repeated use.
This product has its pros and cons. Consider more.
Pros:
- very bright and saturated colors - this is what distinguishes it from other brands of clay;
- is safe and non-toxic;
- very gentle and soft;
- does not leave marks on clothes and furniture;
- Included are easy-to-use containers that can even be played.
Minuses:
- high price;
- small parts do not fit well together;
- dries quickly in the air
Children can offer this clay for games already from the age of two. However, do not forget about elementary safety: small particles may be in the respiratory tract of a child. That is why you should not leave the kids alone with him.
Textures and tools
The plasticine structure is an unusually gentle and supple mass with a pleasant smell, packed in neat plastic containers.
There are two types of it:
- plain play doh;
- Play-Doh Plus - more tender and soft to the touch.
There are a lot of different sets for the game Play-Doh with molds, stencils, various devices and toy characters. Also, you may need a board, rolling pin, stacks of various types, which are provided in the kit.
Basic set
The package includes:
- 4 banks with a mass for sculpting different colors;
- different stencils and attributes to create unique handicrafts.
Sculpting using this kit will assist in developing the crumbs of imagination and creativity. Working with him, the kid will have to dream up. By purchasing this kit, you will give the crumb the opportunity to fashion anything using molds.
Popular Sculpting Kits
In stores you can find a very large assortment of Play-Doh clay, among which there are kits for both boys and girls. There are sets created on the basis of animated characters. In each game you can find something interesting and new. Playing with this plasticine, children plunge into the world of fantasy, develop their imagination, invent new heroes, creating culinary masterpieces and jewelry.
Let's look at some of the most popular kits.
"Play-Doh plus"
The kit consists of 8 jars of blue. The lids of the containers indicate the colors of the clay inside. This type of plasticine mass is softer and more pleasant to the touch, it is easily formed, does not stick to hands and does not leave greasy marks on clothes. It has a sweet smell, but salty and bitter in taste.
For masterpieces with fine details is the best assistant. With him, the baby will be able to create cakes with roses, ice cream, cakes with a variety of interesting decorations.
When choosing this plasticine, creative activities with your child will be one pleasure.
"Puppy" ("Puppies")
This game kit includes several containers with a mass of different colors, a toy puppy, a basket for puppies-toddlers and a plastic bowl from which the baby can feed the animals. While playing, the child will be able to prepare various foods for the little dog. Another puppy can "give birth." This process takes place with the help of a special mold on the abdomen. With its help it is necessary to crush the color of clay that you like - and a small puppy will be born. This set will help children learn to care for animals.
“Create your own breakfast” (“Flip and server breakfast”)
The most wonderful gift for a child who loves to help mom in preparing a meal will be the set “Create your own breakfast”. With him, he will be able to create his culinary masterpiece for a full breakfast of his favorite toys.The package includes 4 containers with plasticine, all necessary kitchen utensils, such as a spoon, fork, knife, frying pan, spatula, mug, press (2 parts), 3 molds, tools for serving. Using all these accessories, you can “cook” waffles, pancakes, scrambled eggs, etc.
"Cake Factory"
Cakes love and children, and their parents. Creating them from the colorful mass of your own will be for your child a pleasant pastime. With this set, the baby will be able to invent the most exotic culinary masterpieces. To do this, everything that may be needed is included in the game: molds and entertaining attributes for the game, a machine specially designed for the production of cakes, 4 containers of clay (these are 2 cans of Play-Doh — the usual weight for modeling and 2 cans of Play-Doh plus ", Which by its consistency is softer and more plastic).
Excellent sweets come out with every model, they are all different from previous ones. The young confectioner chooses what his cakes will be: the shape, color and decoration for them.
Set of 20 cans
The set consisting of 20 containers of Play-Doh plasticine of various colors is the best surprise for those who like to sculpt. A child will be able to fashion everything that surrounds us, and these are fabulous and animated heroes, flowers, trees, favorite pets, houses and cars. With this set the baby will be able to build a zoo and a farm with various animals, an extraordinary town.
"Rarity Dressing Table"
With such a game set, the baby will be able to play with the popular pony living in the fabulous town of Ponyville, the heroine of the cartoon “Friendship is a miracle!”. Miniature beauty Rarity wants to look beautiful and have a lot of jewelry. This kit for the game can help create a unique beauty for the image of a beautiful pony, to make fantasies a reality.
The set includes a table, which is the main place for practicing modeling. In the middle is a mirror. There are a lot of dimples around it in the form of various figures that need to be filled with clay. With their help, a child can easily get small details.
The pony figurine is included in the package set of the “Rarity Dressing Table” set. It also contains grooves and grooves. Using them, you can easily attach to the figurine jewelry, created by yourself.
Special tools that help to realize their creative fantasies are the roller, the stack, as well as the extruder, which is built into the table. Stars, cute hearts, precious stones, flowers - these and other shapes, obtained with the help of this Play-Doh kit, will become a suitable accessory for the sophisticated nature of Rarity.
Connoisseurs of this brand will enjoy the bright color palette of this kit. It includes 5 cans of clay of different colors, 2 of which are larger, and 3 - small.
Board game
This is an entertaining play-doh game with the inclusion of creative elements. It is suitable for 2 or 3 players.
The playing field is divided into three parts. Each player must take one of them. In the central part is located the symbol Play-Doh - Dodoshka. It is an empty container for plasticine, shaped like a little man. The player must build a plasticine projectile and throw it, using the catapult, at the little man. During the game, the board will be funny to move the handles and lift the lid. The player who hits the goal the most times is the winner. With this game, your baby can have fun in the company of his friends. Also, the baby will be able to use the clay and for its intended purpose, including its rich imagination.
In order to start playing, you will need 1 battery type C / LR14 (not included).
"Mr. Nibbler"
This is a very unusual and original set that allows the baby to feel like a real dentist. There is a special mold in the set with which you can sculpt your teeth. There is a toy drill with which to drill them, and gray clay for fillings.
With such a set it is very easy to teach a child to monitor the condition of their teeth and brush them
Instructions for use of clay is quite simple - you need to get it out of the container in the required quantity and create from it what is planned.
You need to work in a prepared place in order not to stain other things. For safety reasons, it is necessary to mold under the supervision of adults.
Storage and shelf life
Keep clay should be in a tightly closed container, as it dries quickly in the air. Shelf life - 5 years unopened.
Build Tips
In order not to turn the process of cleaning after modeling into a boring routine, you can offer the crumbs to play a fun game. Give him the task to collect the first pieces of a certain color and put them in a jar. After that, in the same way to collect other colors.
Do not remove clay using hot water or any means of washing. It is easiest to remove it from carpets or materials when it dries completely. You will only need to break the lumps. This will require a brush with stiff bristles. It is likely that you will have to use a vacuum cleaner or arrange to wash things in cold water using a mild soap. If necessary, the processing can be repeated.
Dry pieces of the mass for modeling are most often collected from hard surfaces without any problems.
You can not use soapy water, as the clay begins to dissolve and cleaning it delivers unnecessary trouble. Small pieces of plasticine, which have not yet had time to dry, are easily assembled using a large piece of mass, sticking to it.
Reviews
You can find a lot of reviews about the Play-Doh plasticine and its sets. Parents who used this mass for sculpting note that it is a pleasure to work with it. Play-Doh does not need to knead and warm in the palms for a long time, as it has to do with other brands of plasticine. A huge color palette allows you to come up with many new and interesting. All its colors are bright and colorful.
Separate plus adults consider a large variety of interesting sets. Having forms and tools, you can play for hours with them.
Mass modeling can be used many times, even if it dries. It needs only to add a small amount of water.
The process of cleaning after classes is very convenient, which is an important fact for parents. Play-Doh is not difficult to remove from any surface, be it smooth floors or fluffy carpet. The excellent consistency of clay does not stick to hands and leaves no marks on the table.
As with any product, it is, of course, and cons. The most significant disadvantage of this product is its high price. Not every parent can make such a purchase for a child, but, in principle, this clay is worth it. Also, many say that it dries very quickly in the air, but you can cope with this problem. Also, the parts are poorly attached to each other, and small children are not able to do this without help.
Some parents say that clay is not always interesting for young children, but these are already features of the development of a particular child and his interests, which should be taken into account. As a rule, becoming older, kids with enthusiasm begin to engage in modeling.
Frequently asked questions
Parents are concerned about the following nuances:
- Is it dangerous if ingested? Plasticine is safe, even if the child swallows a piece. But, of course, you should explain to the kid that you can't eat it. It tastes salty and slightly bitter. As the producers say, it is non-toxic, it will not cause an allergic reaction, unless the child has an allergy to wheat gluten.
- Should I dry crafts? Drying crafts, to keep it for a long time, it is unlikely to work out, most likely, it will be cracked. This clay is intended for reuse. Well, if after all you decided to brag about your works, then it is better to photograph them.After all, photos can be stored for a very long time.
- How to soften if the plasticine hardened? If the clay has hardened, it can be reanimated by adding water. You can also moisten a paper towel with water and wrap a piece of clay with it. After that, you need to put it in a container and leave overnight.
Review of Play Doh Clay Clay, see the following video.
An example of a game with a set of "hairstyles", see below.