Whether you’re of the Jewish faith or know someone who is, this unconventional dreidel (top) is a great gift idea for that special loved one or family. The game of dreidle is a fun way to spend an evening playing a game that’s suitable for all ages.

Here’s a brief history of the holiday and the significance of the game:

Hanukkah is a holiday that represents religious freedom. This eight day celebration commemorates the biblical story of a victory (led by a family of brothers known as the Macabees) over the Syrian invaders in the land of Judea, in 165 B.C.E.

After the overthrow of the invaders, the desecrated Temple was reclaimed. Sacred oil to relight the "Ner Tamid," or symbolic eternal flame, could be found to last a single day. Seven more days were needed to produce more oil. Miraculously, the oil burned for eight days and nights, allowing for the creation of more.

This is the reason Hanukkah is celebrated for eight nights, beginning on the 25th day of Kislev, of the lunar-cycle based Jewish calendar. On the modern Roman calendar the holiday usually falls between the end of November to Mid-December. The holiday is marked by the lighting of the Menorah candelabra that burns either candlesor oil. One candle is burned on the first night and another is added with each additional light. For this reason, the holiday is known as the Festival of Lights.

Other holiday traditions include the eating of foods fried in oil such as potato pancakes or "Latkes," and Jelly doughnuts. The game of Dreidel is a favorite part of the holiday for children and adults alike. Families spin a four-sided top with the Hebrew Letters: ?-Nun, ?- Gimmel, ?- Hay, and ?-Shin. These letters represent the phrase: "A great miracle happened there." The game begins with an ante such as candies, nuts, or pennies being placed into the center of the table by each player. Everyone takes turns spinning the dreidel. There are several variations of the game. In our family we traditionally played for candy. These are the outcomes of what happens when the dreidel lands on the following letters: Nun-you get nothing, Gimmel-you win the whole pot, and everyone re-antes; Hay-you win half the pot, and everyone re-antes; and Shin-you put one of whatever you’re playing for into the pot. No matter how you play, it all adds up to a raucous good time for all.

Materials

Fimo Soft-1 block each: Brilliant Blue (8020-33), Tropical Green (8020-53), Sunflower Yellow (8020-16),
Leather Factory star stamp # G-526
Ateco circle cookie cuter set or circle temple (you’ll use the 2¾” and 1½ cutters)
Kemper circle pattern punches for clay # PCBR and PCR1 (or ¾” and ½” circle templates)
Poly Bonder Glue
8” diameter (approx.) glass plate or pillar candle base (from dollar store).
#9 Brass upholstery nail (from hardware store)
Pasta Machine (or 12" length of acrylic rod or PVC pipe)
Clay blade
X-acto knife with new blade
2- Smooth ceramic tiles for working and baking on
Needle tool
Large gauge knitting needle
Tissue or deli paper
Scissors
Armor All® automotive protectant spray
Polyester batting
Two-part (5 minute setting) epoxy


Important! All Clay must be conditioned by kneading for a minute or slice and run through the pasta machine on the largest setting several times before use.

The Letters


1: Trace the Hebrew letters onto a deli sheet or piece of tissue paper. Cut the letters apart and place them over a sheet of blue clay that’s been rolled through the 3rd largest setting of your pasta machine. Work directly on a baking tile to prevent the letters from distorting while cutting.

2: Use the craft knife to cut through the paper outlines of each letter. Working with a new blade is very important to make the cleanest cuts. Remove the excess paper and clay. Trim the letters if needed for neatness. Bake them while still on tile at 265ºF for 30 minutes. When the letters have cooled, carefully slide the clay blade underneath them to remove them from the tile and set aside.

The Dreidel
1: Roll out green, blue and yellow clays through the largest setting of the pasta machine. Use the circle cutters or a circle template to cut out a 1½” - yellow circle, a ¾” - blue circle, and a ½” - yellow circle. Stack these from largest to smallest, centering one circle over the other.

2. Roll a 2½” long x 1/8” diameter yellow, clay snake. Wrap this around the ½” blue clay circle. Trim excess clay and blend the connecting seam with your fingertip or a blending tool.

3. Wrap a ¼” wide strip of blue clay (rolled through the 5th largest setting of the pasta machine) around the outer edge of the green dreidel base. Trim away any excess and blend the connecting seam together.

4. Place a little Poly Bonder glue onto the underside of the head and along the stem of the upholstery nail. Press the nail through the center/bottom of the dreidle until it is slightly embedded into bottom of the green dreidel base.

5. Roll a 3/8” ball of blue clay into a teardrop shape. Place a drop of Poly Bonder onto the nail tip and along the stem. Press the blue teardrop over nail end and onto the center of the dreidel. Bake the dreidle on a thick layer of polyester batting at 265ºF for 35 minutes.

6. Use the craft knife to cut a small arrow from blue clay that’s been rolled through the 5th largest setting of the pasta machine. Place it along the exposed green edge of the dreidel pointing out.

Dreidel Base

1. Roll a 6½” x 6½” sheet of yellow clay through the 2nd largest setting of the pasta machine. Center the clay on top of the glass candle holder/plate. If air pockets appear visible, lift the edges of the clay to press them out towards the edges.

2. Spray a small amount of Armor All over the clay surface (to prevent the stamp from sticking) and spread with your fingers. Impress the entire surface with the metal star stamp. Trim excess clay from around the outer edge of the plate, leaving a 1” border of glass exposed. (Note: if the plate doesn’t have a rim, create a 6” circle template on deli paper and place over the center of clay, cutting around the paper template and removing the excess clay. If using a plate with a different diameter, adjust your measurements of the yellow center base so that a 1” border is left exposed along the outer edge of the plate.)

3. Use the cookie cutter or a circle template to create a 2 ¾” circle template on deli/tissue paper. Fold the paper template in half. Repeat this step folding the template in half from the opposite direction to create intersecting (90º degree) fold lines through the middle of the template.

4. Center the paper template over the center of the yellow clay center. Following the lines folded into the circle template, mark dividing lines in the yellow clay with the needle tool. These lines will mark the four quarters of the dreidel base.

5. Cut around the circular paper template and remove this clay underneath revealing the exposed center of the plate.

6. Press a 1/8” snake of blue clay around the inner edge of the center circle. Press vertical lines every 1/8” along the snake using the tip of the needle tool. This will decorate and secure the blue border.

7. Apply 1/16” diameter blue clay snake along the four, marked dividing lines made in Step 4. Add the decorative/securing markings along this border following the directions in Step 5.

8. Roll a 15” long x ¼” diameter snake of green clay. Wrap this around the outer edge of the yellow clay and cut away excess clay. Impress with diagonal marks every ¼”using a large knitting needle.

9. Apply Poly Bonder to the back of the baked/cooled Hebrew letters. Gently press them into the center of each quarter section on the plate, following the order shown in the finished project.

10. Make a bull’s eye cane by wrapping a 2” long x ¾” diameter snake of yellow clay with a layer of green clay rolled through the 3rd largest setting of the pasta machine. Wrap this cane with a sheet of blue clay rolled through the 5th largest setting of the pasta machine.

11. Stretch and roll the cane against the work tile to reduce to 3/8” in diameter. Pinch the cane along the entire length of one side to create a teardrop shape. Cut thin slices from the cane (flipping it over after making each slice. This will help minimalize distortion of the teardrop shape). Use Poly Bonder to temporarily attach the slices (pointed outward) along the outer edge of the plate. Bake the plate at 265ºF for 30 minutes. After carefully lift the clay from the plate and re-attach with two-part epoxy to permanently secure to the glass. Get spinning!

Resource Guide

Fimo Soft clays
American Art Clay Company (Amaco)
(800) 374-1600
www.amaco.com

Kemper Enterprise, circle pattern punches
(800) 388-5367
www.kempertool.com

Leather Factory metal stamps
(800) 433-3201
www.leatherfactory.com

Ateco circle cookie cutters
(800) 645-7170
www.atecousa.com

Poly Bonder Glue
(877) 411-5472
www.heartinhandstudio.com