/Etc/ Oekaki Gummi

I know I've been gone for some time. I went to my friend's wedding out of state (quite possibly the best wedding in terms of sentimentality and, well, the best wedding I've ever been to period) and I was busy seeing/meeting people, dancing, sightseeing among other things. I finally got back yesterday; I'm still tired from flying around and dealing with the time zone changes. As tired as I was, I went out to pick up some things at a Mitsuwa market, finding this adorable little diy candy kit.

'Oekaki' is drawing in a scribbling or doodling sense. This gummi kit makes it possible for you to create your own shapes and characters.


you can mix colors to get different flavors! ...how does grape + lemon = orange..?


directions
It was a little difficult starting off as the directions were only in Japanese, but the illustrations were helpful. Here's what was inside:

I tried to follow the directions to the best of my ability (from my waning Japanese skills and inferring from the pictures). This is step two...(I'm missing the first step where I took out the little character cutters to use as molds for the gummi) where I put the gummi powder in the larger compartment, filled the top three mini compartments to the right with the flavored powder and water, and the last mini compartment had water.

Next I mixed colors together in the bottom with the little dropper. It was fun and it reminded me of watercolors. Or painting. Or chemistry class (but not so much).

pretty
The first shape I tried was the whale. I put the mold into the gummi powder and with the little dropper I added color and flavors from the bottom palette.

whale!!!
After waiting for the gummi to set, I used the mini fork that came with the set (I know it isn't pictured...sorry about that) to pry the the gummi out.

looks good!
When I tried other shapes I wasn't as successful...

it was supposed to be a dolphin......
All in all, it was a nice little project for the afternoon. I really liked mixing colors and tasting the different flavors (the gummies taste a little sour and take on the subtle grape/lemon/soda flavors). It was tricky to make the gummies more...cute? I couldn't figure out how, exactly, to make mine look more like the adorable characters on the packaging with the tools included in the kit.

not exactly perfect, but still cool!
I think the first whale I made came out the best. I made a little eye for it, too. The rest of the shapes include dolphins, sailboats, and musical notes. Oh! When I saw this particular product it was one of many that included making mini desserts, bentos, and candy figurines. This was the cheapest at $3 so I ended up trying it. I'd like to try the other ones next time because they're so cute and a good way to distract myself from stressful things.