How to Make Dominoes

Gather twenty-eight smooth, oblong stones of approximately equal size from a nearby creek bed or river bed. Wash the stones thoroughly in warm soapy water to remove any dirt or dust, and lay them out to dry on a towel.

Paint all of your stones black or gray with acrylic craft paint. Lay them out on a piece of newspaper. Paint one side of the stone and allow it to dry before flipping it over to paint the other side. Alternatively, leave the stones their natural color if they are all similar.

Paint a white horizontal line across the width of each stone using a small brush, and allow the paint to dry completely.

Line the stones up into seven rows with one stone in the first row, two in the second, three in the third, four in the fourth, five in the fifth, six in the sixth, and seven stones in the seventh row.

Paint white dots onto the bottom half of each stone, leaving the stone in the top row blank on both sides. Paint one dot on the bottom half of the stones in the second row, two dots on those in the second row, and so forth, ending with six dots on the bottom half of every domino in the bottom row.

Paint white dots on the top half of each stone except for the single stone in the top row and the first stone in each row below. Beginning with the second domino in each row, paint one dot, then two, then three, all the way up to six. Each row has one more stone than the row above it, so each row will use more dots than the row above. Once the paint on your domino set dries it will be ready to use.

Create twenty-eight rectangles of equal size out of polymer clay. Form each domino individually or roll out a large piece of clay and cut the dominoes from it. Each domino should be twice as long as it is wide.

Create a horizontal depression across the width of each domino by pressing the side of a toothpick into the soft clay across the center.

Line the dominoes up into seven rows with one in the first row, two in the second, three in the third, four in the fourth, five in the fifth, six in the sixth, and seven dominoes in the seventh row.

Create the dots on each domino by pressing the end of a small paintbrush into the soft clay. Begin by making dots onto the bottom half of each domino, leaving the one in the top row blank on both sides. Press one dot into the bottom half of the dominoes in the second row, two dots on those in the second row, and so forth, ending with six dots on the bottom half of every domino in the bottom row.

Press dots into the top half of each domino except for the one in the top row and the first domino in each row below. Beginning with the second domino in each row, paint one dot, then two, then three, all the way up to six. Each row has one more domino than the row above it, so each row will use more dots than the row above.

Allow the dominoes to dry; then fire or bake them according to the directions included with the polymer clay.

Paint or glaze your domino set as you desire. You may use the classic design of a black background and white dots or you may choose your own color scheme. Fire or bake your domino set a second time if the paint or glaze you use requires it.