Homemade Play Dough is the perfect, inexpensive play material on the block! It is not edible but can help keep your child busy for hours. This dough is made from pantry staples and kids can help make it.
Lately, my son has been having lots of hand of fun with play dough. Every day he sits on the table and plays with his dough and makes a giant mess. I realize how passionate he is about it so not wanting to hinder his creativity I suck it up.
Since he was playing with the mainstream brand all day, it was getting crumbly super fast, and I found myself buying a new multi-pack of cans every week.
In an effort to save money, and create a quick back up (since I was not able to get to the store this past snowy weekend), I turned to this Homemade Play Dough Recipe which consists of common pantry ingredients that most people have on hand.
My aunt would make it for us when I was little but I remember having to play out in the hallway with it because she didn’t want us to mess her house up. Now, as a mom to three I totally understand her reasoning!
This Homemade Play Dough Recipe is technically a better for you alternative to store bough doughs because it does not have extra chemicals or dyes in it. You can however, add your own homemade dye in or food gel to make it more appealing. I must warn you all though that this dough is made with salt, and could potentially be harmful for pets.
I kept my dog crated when my son played (it was her nap time anyway) and quickly cleaned up after him before she got up-just in case! The high salt content could be toxic to dogs-so PLEASE be careful and cautious! You also do not want to give this play dough to little ones who put things in their mouths-just in case. It does not taste good at all, but you never know!
Supplies
- 4 cups of all purpose flour -I used organic because that is what I had on hand
- 1 1/2 cups of table salt
- 1 cup of water
- *extra flour or water-depending on your consistency
- 2 tablespoons of olive oil
- coloring *optional ((a little goes a long way)).
Make it!
Using a wooden spoon mix all the ingredient thoroughly. Once a ball starts to form, flour your hands and knead the ball until smooth and not sticky. Mine worked out perfectly, but I know how easy it is to get a too sticky, or too dry dough from cooking. If your dough is too sticky, add a little more flour. If it is too dry a tiny bit more water until pliable and not crummy, or sticky. It should easily mold into balls or shapes.
To store homemade Play dough *lasts like 48 hours max in our home* I use a mason jar or little air tight containers.
Love it. We make homemade play dough all the time and sometimes we even make extra to send into the school.
I love making home made dough! This is a fun and easy recipe and lands you with lots of fun with kids!
I have always wanted to make playdough, yet never have. This is so very cool. Thanks so much for sharing… And keeping it in a mason jar is a genius idea
Looks like fun! It’s always nice to save some money by making something at home rather than buy it. ;)
I used to make this when my kids were younger. It is so much cheaper and lasts a lot longer I found.
My kids love when we make homemade play-doh. It lasts for so long and keeps them busy for hours!
I can’t seem to find what you did to color it? Seems like as much fun to make as it is to play with.
I have never tried to make my own play dough before. It looks easy to make and my friends little ones are coming over this weekend. I will have to make some for them.
I love how soft the play dough looks in your photos! My daughters and I always enjoy making play dough. I’m going to go with your recipe next time and maybe make it over the weekend. My girls are going to love it!
This is a very frugal, educational way to spend quality time with the kids!
I appreciate the homemade alternative. Also, I’m glad you mentioned that about the dogs!
Awesome! My daughter is crazy about play-dough! And this could save me a lot of money!
We love homemade play dough and make up a batch almost weekly. I will definitely give your recipe a try next!
That looks like a lot of fun! My kids love Play Dough, so I should try making some homemade!
oh this looks so much fun. i remember i used to love playing with play dough when growing up. it would have been great if we would have made it. awesome way to save money.
Thanks this was a great help!