Fun Activities: Non-Tacky Home Made Play Dough

G2 really loves his play dough and I usually like to accommodate his messy play but the last time I left the boys to entertain themselves on their own with play dough, they had a full on war in the room leaving play dough on every visible surface. By the time I was done cleaning, most of the play dough was drying out and too stiff to use with the play dough tools we bought so I decided we should make our own play dough…

I made play dough for G1 many years ago but the recipe I used was very sticky so I went looking for a new recipe… I found a recipe on Kidspot for “Silky Play Dough” that appealed to me because it didn’t require any cooking (yes, I’m lazy like that). Unfortunately, it had the same problem as the play dough recipe I used previously – it was still too sticky to use with our play dough tools so I modified it. The end result is not perfect but it works. So if you want a play dough recipe that you can use with the tools from your Play Doh Sets, here’s one you can try…

What you need:

• 1 tbsp of bicarbonate of soda
• 1 cup self raising flour
• 1 1/2 cups plain flour
• 1/4 cup corn flour
• ½ cup salt
• 3 tbsp (any) oil
• 400ml boiling water (give or take – the original recipe called for 2 cups of water but I did not add it all in)
• food colouring

 Method:

• Mix everything together, except the food colouring, and knead until you get a smooth dough.
• Divide the dough into portions and add a few drops of food colouring to each one. Keep kneading until the colour appears even.
• The end result should be a dough that is soft and easy to handle but firm enough to be used with your Play Doh tools. It should not stick to your fingers. If it is too sticky, knead in a little more flour.

And now you’re reading to play!

If you have a play dough recipe that’s even better for using with Play Doh tools, please share it with us!

Update

I take it back. I take it all back. Do not use this recipe. It’s crap. It was workable when I tested it but once I passed it into the hands of my boys, they managed to spread it over the floor like peanut butter. Bummer.