RangoliRangoli colours and materials
Rangoli can be made from almost anything that is dry, coloured and safe to handle. The right material depends on where the design will be, how long it must last and who is making it.
Ready rangoli powder
The packets sold before festivals are fine stone powder or sand mixed with colour. They give the brightest result and flow well from the fingers. Buy white in the largest amount, because it is used for outlines, dots and corrections.
White for lines
Daily designs are drawn in white alone. The traditional material is rice flour, dry or mixed with water into a thin paste that is applied with the fingers or a cloth. Chalk powder and white stone powder give a brighter line and are common today.
Natural colours from the kitchen
| Colour | Material | Note |
|---|---|---|
| White | Rice flour | The classic base for every other colour |
| Yellow | Turmeric, or rice flour mixed with turmeric | Mixing with flour makes it go further |
| Red | Kumkum | Strong colour; a little is enough |
| Orange | Turmeric with a little kumkum, or masoor dal | Masoor dal gives a grainy orange |
| Green | Dried leaves ground to powder, or whole green moong | Dry the leaves in shade so they keep their colour |
| Brown | Used tea leaves or coffee grounds, dried | Good for outlines and diya bowls |
| Black | Whole urad, or black sesame | Use for eyes and small details |
Coloured rice, salt and sand
Put raw rice, coarse salt or clean sand in a bowl, add a few drops of food colour and a spoon of water, mix well and spread it on paper to dry. The grains are heavier than powder, so they suit windy verandas and children's hands.
Flowers, leaves, grains and pulses
Flower petals make the pookalam of Kerala and suit any festival. Whole pulses and grains give a rangoli that can be cooked afterwards if it was laid on a clean cloth or tray: rice for white, moong for green, masoor for orange, rajma for dark red.
Tools worth having
- Chalk and a length of string for circles.
- A tea strainer for even filling.
- Paper cones or squeeze bottles for lines.
- A dry paintbrush and a card for tidying edges.
- Small bowls, one for each colour.
Choosing with care
- Outdoors, prefer rice flour, flowers and natural colours. They feed birds and ants and do no harm when rain washes them away.
- Avoid plastic glitter. It does not break down and is hard to sweep up.
- Keep fine powder away from the faces of small children and from people who are sensitive to dust.
- Dot rangoliThree designs made by joining a grid of dots, step by step.
- Border designsFive strips to frame a rangoli or run along a wall.
- Easy rangoliDesigns for beginners and children, with a practice plan.
- Diwali rangoliLotus, diyas and Lakshmi footprints for the festival of lights.
- Pongal and SankrantiSun designs and kolam for the harvest festivals.
- Onam pookalamFlower carpets: designs, flowers and how to lay them.
- How to make rangoliFrom an empty floor to a finished design, step by step.
- Names across IndiaKolam, muggu, alpana, mandana and more.