Homemade play-dough is the best! There are so many recipes out there. But getting it right is the key when it comes to texture and durability. This is one of our favourite play dough recipes for homemade play-dough.
There are lots of different ways that you can tweak your homemade play-dough if there are some ingredients that you don’t have at hand. For this no cook recipe we used;
- Regular All Purpose Flour
- Salt
- Vegetable Oil
- Cream of Tartar
- Water
- Gel Food Colours/Regular Food Colours
Cream of tartar is sometimes hard to attain in stores. You can substitute it for corn starch/corn flour or baking soda.
Making your play-dough
Making this homemade play-dough is pretty easy once you have all your ingredients. After measuring the dry ingredients out into a large bowl the only part left is to add the water.
This recipe calls for enough ingredients for one colour. However we decided to split the mixture into two bowls to make two different colours. The food gel makes awesome vibrant colours for the play dough so we decided to use these. But liquid food colour will also work.
Boiling water takes the colour best so we added some gel and stirred into pots. Being careful with the HOT water! Gradually we added the coloured water to each batch of flour mixture. Just enough to bind it. If you find it is too sloppy, more flour can be added.
You may not need to use all the water. Or you may need to add more! Continue to knead with your hands.
This process will take a few minutes. It will feel like it’s somewhat ready to play with. However parts of it will still feel slightly sticky or dry. You will know when it feels right. 😉
Bright colours
The colours are so vibrant! Liquid food colour will do the same job. However, you may need to add more to get the same effect. Warning; if you do use liquid food colour take into consideration that you won’t need as much liquid!
We made two colours and then decided to make another batch and split it into another two colours. It was so pretty we wanted more lol!
You can even add colours to make a particular colour you want. We only had primary colours so we mixed blue and yellow to make green, which turned out awesome!
Play-dough fun!
The kids enjoyed making pretend cakes, cookies and pizzas with their play-dough. We had all kinds of tools and cutters out and I added some candles for imaginative play.
The best thing about play-dough is the endless opportunities it provides.
It can be used for educational purposes. Learning letters, and numbers.
Play-dough has many benefits for young children. It can be calming and help them develop fine motor skills. It creates creativity through play.
Keeping Play Dough Fresh
This homemade play-dough can be kept for up to 6 weeks if stored correctly. We wrap ours in clingfilm and store it in the fridge. However so long as it is wrapped and prevented from drying up, placing in a cupboard would work too. The kids will play with this for hours at a time, seriously, its so much fun!
Play-dough
Equipment
- 2-4 Bowls
- Wooden Spoons
- Measuring Cups
- Measuring Spoons
- Jug
Materials
- 2 Cups All Purpose Flour
- 2 Tbsp Vegetable Oil
- 1/2 Cup Salt
- 2 Tbsp Cream of Tartar (can substitute w/corn starch or baking soda)
- 2-3 Cups Boiling Water (adding increments to cups to split the colours)
- 2-3 Drops Food Gel (can substitute with liquid food colour)
Instructions
- Add all dry ingredients to a large bowl
- Mix dry ingredients well
- Add food gel to boiling water and stir well until dissolved
- Gradually add the water to the flour mixture
- Once combined, knead with hands
- Add more flour or water if needed
- Play & Enjoy
- Store in wrapped film or tight container for up to 6 weeks!
Notes
- *If you are making more than one colour and have plenty ingredients you can use this recipe for just one batch. We split our flour mixture into two bowls and made two colours at a time. Remember to just add water as needed. The 2-3 cups is a guide to how much water you might need for several colours.
And if you enjoy homemade recipes that are safe for sensory play, check out our cool oobleck recipe.
1
