How to Make Playdough (Play-doh)

Playdough (aka Play-doh) is easy to make at home, and fun for kids of all ages.  Here's how to make your own non-toxic toy with custom colors and fragrances.

This is the classic method that involves a bit of cooking on the stovetop - I prefer it because cooked playdough has a better texture than uncooked varieties.  If you want the kids to be able to do it all themselves, try this uncooked playdough recipe.

Warning:  Keep away from dogs and other pets.  Playdough smells like people food but contains lots of salt, and a hungry dog can eat enough to cause a dangerous salt imbalance.

Step 1: Ingredients

Playdough is a classic childhood toy everyone can have fun with, and it's so easy to make at home you'll never buy that stinky store variety again.

Basic ingredient ratios:
2 cups flour
2 cups warm water
1 cup salt
2 Tablespoons vegetable oil
1 Tablespoon cream of tartar (optional for improved elasticity)

food coloring (liquid, powder, or unsweetened drink mix)
scented oils

Comments

[vhata]

I used this recipe and mine turned out great! check it out...

[vhata]

Here is a pic...

[dsaavedra]

cool! i made a monster :)

[DrWeird117]

pwnage! i like that! its godzilla!!!!!!!!!! aaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!

[canida]

Sweet!

[dsaavedra]

heres another:

[codongolev]

EAT THE BUNNY!!!!

^{(or whatever the small thing is)}

[jimmy bobb]

cool animals

[Sunny124613]

it looks like a head a eating a rabbit, just like Bambi! except even more bad I mean who would eat a small hare???!!!

[mrsszek]

lol

[Sunny124613]

yah!! i closed up on it and it looks like a buny

[frenzy]

have great news!

This posting has won today's "I Made It" Challenge. For winning you will receive a 3 month pro membership!

Thanks for using instructables!

http://www.instructables.com/community/June-is-I-Made-It-Challenge-Month-Win-a-Pro-Mem/

[airrikajswan]

I used neon food coloring. The Playdough turned out great!

[gordon.arber]

In my (almost 2 year old) sons stocking for Christmas this year he received a package of cream of tartar and a box of neon liquid food coloring. When he unwrapped it, he looked at me like... umm ok? I then tried to explain to him that I was going to make playdough with him. He had no idea what I was talking about. So thankfully this weekend I was able to make it for him using this recipe, It turned out great and he loves it! He enjoyed helping me too. This process is not messy at all! Thanks for the memories!

[tadobbs]

I LOVE this recipe. I just got done making it for my 2 yr old she helped me make it (by stirring the dough until it was to hard for her). She is now having loads of fun playing. She even too a taste of it and said ICKY.

[mgregory5]

i was a little over ambitious and doubled my dough... Took a little more elbow grease than if I would have just stuck to a single order. None the less, this was amazing and worked out great!!!!

[Cat2014]

I only have to say it's super!

[NiCaam]

I have to admit I love the smell of store bought play-dough. Just brings back childhood memories, but I love that I can make this with the kids at home. We make slime all the time, and this would be a great addition. Thanks.

[MrsOwens]

Awesome! This is perfect! I cant wait to make this with my kids! Also would you mind if I shared your post on my blog? http://simplysassyscreations.blogspot.com/

[mameshiba bean]

The salt burned my fingers

[mameshiba bean]

I did this for a market day project at school, and got lots of customers. Great recipe.

[ILoveOwls]

Is there anyway to use less salt?

[ILoveOwls]

Is there anyway to use less salt?

[RiyaWorks]

works perfectly! just took 6 minutes from start.
I forgot oil :) but still outcome is excellent!

[salokcin]

Not sure how to search comments, so this may be a double post.

I made this last night with my 2.5yr old and he absolutely loves it!

The main problem I had is that the dough is still very grainy from the salt. I think next time I will dissolve the salt into the warm water before adding it to the rest of the dry ingredients.

Thanks!

[i_own_swag]

will it still be a little elastic without the cream of tartar

[ctschudi]

This looks like the recipe I used when the kids were kids. A friend suggested adding scents like cinnamon but I think this might encourage eating.

[ruthebebe]

Hi, I made your playdough this week for a very grateful toddler, it worked really well, thank you!

[rdixon10]

for madison

[Bluefur]

how long does it bake in the oven?

[vini101]

did you color die them?

[super.girl]

how long does it take being cooked? Mine took about half an hour and it's still sticky, so i've wacked it in the fridge.... any tips?
Great website though!!!!

[hi_lol]

da dumby keep cookin it !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Shiply_Spain]

I really like the concept! I will pass this link to my girlfriend who works as a baby sitter. I am sure kids love ie

[hi_lol]

oooohooohoooo someone is in love did you kiss her yet

[mvillett]

mine grew mold

[mistymoocow]

mine turn out good thanks

[decentbookreader]

hi this is really great recipe but can any one tell me are they turn dry after some time ?or remain smooth n elastic ?

[courtneyinnz]

arh don't add cinnamon it makes you want to eat it and believe me you don't want to eat it!

[wolfoxx]

Hey there. I'm really interested in this recipe and due to there being over 500 comments before me and looking through them all I thought it would be quicker to ask. The salt in this recipe is used as a preservative in this mixture correct? And possibly to keep children/animals eating it. But what if I want to eat it. Personally it looks quite edible and something of this texture is really what I'm looking for. I'm sure there are other doughs out there I could use but, play dough has such a marvellously unique texture. Anyway, as I said before, salt is used as a preservative here, but sugar is also a preservative. Have you tried this recipe with sugar instead? I think the quantity would have to be reduced a bit because it would probably be a little too sweet, but none-the-less I think It would work. I'll probably give it a go in the near future at half the quantity to try it out but I thought I'd ask before hand in case you, or anyone else who may read this has tried and it failed miserably. Thank you for this wonderful instructable, you explained it thoroughly and precisely with well-taken pictures.

[zehan814]

this is really very nice idea. specially my son always wants dough to play with and every time i have to buy it from shop.
by the way what can use instead of cream of tartar or more precisely as a substitute of cream of tartar what can be used?

[ellie00]

I used this recipe yestarday and it worked good

[ashlii]

doesit work with sunflower oil as well

[ppeach1]

im just writing a list

[lfarrar06]

I highly recoomend this recipe. My stepson loved making the play-doe.
thank you for sharing

[slipz]

instead of warming it on the stove i used the microwave for about 3 mins butr check in between.....took less the time. :) turned out great and i substituted drink mix and food colouring for about half a pack of jello.....

[Hi_lawl]

Would it still be the same without the cream of tartar

[toRiattack]

bahaha if i put flavor in mine i would want to eat it =D

[pntknanny]

For the scent I added ground cinnamon, it smells awesome and adds a brown coloring.

[Rayven666]

adding grounded cinnamon is a great idea i love cinnamon xD

[JuliaPotter123]

Helped so much! So fun! Thanks!

[threelunecats]

This recipe looks great. I can't wait to try it. I want to bake the play dough so I can paint it afterwards. What temperature should I use and for how long should it be baked? If I don't use food coloring, what kind of paints are best for painting play dough figures. Thanks!

[jooj]

wawo this was fast and easy! and my daughter loves it 20 months its perfect i was looking for something to keep her busy while i study! just the thing i was looking for its ten times better than what my mum made lol i guess she used the raw one she did not cook it. I will try it with tartar next time better get back to my studies..fantastic really thanks for posting.

[katie1212]

this is my frist time on here and doing the play dough

[isaaaaa]

niat de mal emana te bgion hihahiihahihahihahihahijhhhhjhgggggggggggggg

[ShayeM.98]

hey do u need the cream of tar tar??

[taria]

there's like over 537 comments and to be honest. I'm to lazy to read them all so I'm going to ask a few questions I'm sure has been asked before.

will this dry hard or do you have to bake it? and if so what temp do you put them in? do they crack once dry? and can you paint them?

I have a project that I need clay type of stuff for and if play doh works then I use it, but if not then is there a way to make clay that will dry and be hard but won't crack?

I can't afford the one they have here, it's expensive and it has to be fired to make it hard. Don't have that opinion where I live. So anything cheap that works just like the one that has to be fired would be great.

[ReadsInTrees]

Fantastic recipe and instructions! I've never made play dough before, so I was a little apprehensive. The mixture was so gloppy in the beginning that I was convinced it would never work. Then as I kept stirring it started to form lumps and before I knew it the dough was setting up. This turned out great! Very smooth and pliable, not like the grainy salt doughs I remember my mom making.

I made one batch, and then split it into 4 balls that were just under 1 cup each (I had 1 cup plastic containers for storage). Then, I used 1 package of unsweetened Koolaid for each ball. This seems like a lot, but they needed the whole package for the scent to really come through.

I use "lemonade" for yellow, which needed some yellow food coloring to bump up the color.
I used "blue raspberry" for blue, which only needed a little blue food coloring to make a nice bright blue.
I used "lime lemon" for green, and it really didn't need any food coloring because the mix alone made a nice bright lime green.
Then, I used "cherry" for red, and I would NOT recommend it. The cherry mix made the dough turn a sort of dull red, that even with food coloring stayed a dull brick-red sort of color. Next time I'll use strawberry for red.

[go90feet]

This is so much fun with my kindergartener! We had a blast making "cookies" with her own cookie-cutters and tools. I cut the recipe in half, as I only have 1 kid and it makes PLENTY!

We played with half of it, and wrapped hte other half in a pretty (plastic) container to give the neigher kid (1 yr. old). We also made another batch to give as a gift to some friends (3 kids) with whom we have a play day next week. What a great (an inexpensive!) gift and afternoon activity!

We scented and colored with ground cinnamon. MMMMMM!!!

I am also planning to make as a treat for my daughter's kindergarten class and give each kid their own for Valentine's day. She suggested red food coloring and cinnamon scent, but I am also thinking brown coloring and chocolate scent. What a treat!

Thanks for reminding me of this activity!

[jacfon]

My boy's teacher gave us a playdough recipe, so the moms take turns and once a month, one of us brings playdough in for the kids to play. My turn is coming up and my color is white. I tried her recipe three times and it was just a dissaster!
I was about to order some playdough online when I run into your recipe and decided to try it out. The recipe you have here is much easier and the playdough turned out great! I am saving myself some money!!Thanks!!!!!!

[CraftyCritters]

To help the smell : if you like cinnamon add it SMELLS GREAT!!!! :)

[missys2]

I pulled out all the cookie cutters and mats before realizing we were out of playdoh...I googled this recipe, threw all the ingredients in a saucepan, mixed and heated. I put a bit of coloring in the wet mix since I was only making pink dough. In 5 minutes my kids were playing! I have no idea how you could mess this up...it was FAST, EASY and a LIFESAVER! Kids are quietly playing right now :) Thank you!

[my_chemical_romance]

i made the play do , and i kept stiiring and stiring and it didnt get less sticky. i let it sit for a few hours and checked it again, and it was more sticky! i pit it back on the stove and tried again. no luck.

[possom pie]

I have noticed that most recipes call for veg. oil and regular sal, what are the benefits for sea salt and canola oil? thanks

[dhooves]

They'll also probably work but, Veg. oil and Regular salt is recomended.

[ksouthard]

I am making this playdough for school because we are making a claymation video, I was wondering if I could make the dough thicker with any thing so that it stays up better but we can still move the parts of it??

[ksouthard]

I made this for a project in school where as we are doing a claymation video. We are making it into Purple Banana people but, with the legs it won't seem to stay standing, I don't want to dry it because we need to still be able to move the clay around so what should I do??

[rtruong]

does it dry up quicky and do you need to like cook it?

[possom pie]

when do you add the scent and is the bottle ones you can get at crafts stores that are used for candles.

[dlynn4]

I have tried cooking it longer but the dough is still sticky......how can I fix it? I am actually in the process of trying to cook it again at this very moment

[awong17]

1. 2 cups wheat flour + 1 Tablespoon cream of tartar = Sieve them first
2. Add in 1 cup of fine salt
3. stir in the warm water + 2 tablespoon of vegetable oil with a fork until there are no more lumps. You can sieve the mixture again to remove lumps.
4. Pour into a non stick pan. Then stir over low heat. Keep on stirring. Within minutes, the dough will become playdough.

I did it this way, and it worked! For yellow i used, tumeric powder. For brown, i used cocoa powder. For green, i used pandanus leaves. And for blue, I used blue pea flower.

Hope this helps. :)

[mrussell101]

I had the exact same problem - spent hours waiting for the concoction to thicken. But today I discovered that the dry and wet ingredients need to be mixed separately and then combined. That made all the difference. It literally took me about 10 minutes, from start-to-finish, to make play dough.

[mrussell101]

I discovered one more thing today -- the water needs to be HOT!

[awong17]

Thank you! I tried it, it turned out great!

[aerayne]

I loved this recipe!!!! I started out making one batch but then saw I would need at least two. My husband misheard me and thought I said "4 cups" of water instead of two and it was too late by the time I noticed, so even with the scrambling around to accommodate the blunder, it turned out PERFECT!!! I did add a little bit more salt and flour to it for less stickiness, but everything about it, even down to adding the color was perfect. The kids couldn't put it down, and by kids, I mean even the teen! Thank you for such a great recipe!!!

[aerayne]

The colors are still very vibrant the second day and the kids still can't stay out of it :D

[ohtrees03]

This is the best play dough recipe I've come across yet! I've tried about 4 different ones, and this is by far the best. Just make sure you cook it long enough :)

[kk_awesome]

mine turned out awesomely awesome!!! thank you :)

[katie1212]

did you maake of the ones i put up if you did what one did you do

[katie1212]

i have find this on a wed sit but not this one and i am going to put all of them on here let me know you like them

\Oatmeal Buddy Dough

2 cups smooth peanut butter
2 cups rolled oats
2 cups powdered milk
2/3 cups Honey
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Optional-Rice Krispes, Coconut Sprinkles, Chocolate chips, Red hots, etc...
Mix ingredients until combined. Wash hands. Lay down wax paper. Let them play. Store in air-tight container.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Peanut-Buddy Play Dough (eatable)

3 1/2 cups Creamy Peanut Butter
4 cups powdered sugar
4 cups powdered milk
3 1/2 cups corn syrup
Mix ingredients by hand. Share. Can decorate with sprinkles, M&Ms etc.


Kool Playdough

3 cups Flour
1/2 cups salt
2 Koolaide packages
2 cups Boiling water
Mix dry ingredients together. Add boiling water. Knead on floured board can add flour by sprinkles until desired consistency. This playdough will last for a long time when stored right.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

yummy playdough (eatable)


2 cups of honey
3 cups of peanut butter
3 packets powdered milk
Stir all ingredients together until smooth. Add more powdered milk if desired. Is sticky.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------Cloud Playdough


1 cup water
1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
6 cups flour
Add a few drops of food coloring to water.
Combine water, oil and flour in a large bowl. Knead well.
Add more water if necessary in small amounts until the dough is soft and stretchy. Cloud dough should be used on a washable surface for it is very greasy.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Coffee Playdough


4 cups unsifted all purpose flour
1 cup salt
1/4 cup instant coffee
1 1/2 cups warm water
Dissolve the coffee in the warm water. In another bowl, mix the flour and the salt. Make a well and add 1 cup of the coffee water into it. Mix with a fork or with your hands until smoother. Add more coffee water as needed: dough should be smooth not sticky or crumbling. Store in air tight container. When your done making figures, bake in oven for 1 hour at 300 degrees or until hard. A coat or 2 of shellac keeps it well preserved for longer lasting gifts. Enjoy!

Fruit Playdough


2 cups flour
1 cup salt
4 tablespoons cream of tarter
2 cups boiling water
2 tablespoons of cooking oil
3 oz package sugar-free fruit flavored gelatin
Mix dry ingredients in pan. Add the water and oil. Stir over medium heat until mixture forms a ball. Pour onto a sheet of wax paper. Enjoy!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Salt Glitter


1/2 cup salt
6-7 drops food coloring
Add food color to salt adjusting to desired color shade. Cook in the microwave 1-2 minutes or you can also air dry your product. To keep soft store in air-tight container.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Frosting Playdough (eatable)


1 can Frosting Mix
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 cup peanut butter(smooth)
Mix together until it reaches your wanted consistency. Enjoy!

[katie1212]

do you need the creamof taaral

[jbaldwin7]

We live at a high elevation - over 10,000 feet - and I have been avoiding trying to do this because generally speaking, any recipe for anything combining baking ingredients and heat doesn't work up here. The recipes are created and written at sea level, and the chemical reaction is just different. That being said, this recipe was AWESOME. My two year old is a little ill with a cold, and we needed something to entertain her during a long day inside... this was the perfect answer. She's been playing with it for over an hour and shows no sign of stopping any time soon. The only adjustment I made was to add just a bit more hot water as it cooked to get the right texture/consistency. Thank you so much! We're happy up here in the mountains!

[miadroni]

how long should it cook for

[peis4everybody]

I made this with my 7 year old for school. They are making land forms. The teacher sent home this same recipe. But it was half the ingredients and it makes a smaller amount. Use this if you want a smaller batch:

1 cups flour
1 cups warm water
1/2 cup salt
1 Tablespoons vegetable oil
2Tablespoon cream of tartar (optional for improved elasticity)

we used blue food coloring.
Turned out great. You have to let it cook long enough. It looks like OMG this is going wrong but when it is like thick mash potatoes put on wax paper and let cool enough to knead and refrigerate. Daughter said it was awesome.

[samki]

Wow that is so cool my daughter loves it to and its free!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :) I love this site

[ksimpson6]

A friend and I made this for some kids that we watch often! Turned out great!

[PixyMcCrafty]

Made this for my kids, they loved it, and I didn't have to worry to much about them taking a bite.

[heidii19]

when do you add the scenced oils?!?!?!?!? :/

[mo'chickenstrip]

I would add them after it cools a bit- if you heat up the oils they break down and lose their strength

[kycalgal]

My 9 year old requested we make this, complete with 5 colors. It turned out well. We learned that Kool Aid makes MUCH better color. We bought some store brand packets, and some Kool Aid, and the name brand in this case gave brilliant color, compared with the dull semi-color with the other.

[abambi']

I got bored so i decided to make this, i didnt have the Vegatable Oil so i used Olive oil and it worked out to be just as good! It is extreamly easy as im only 12 and i found it easy! It is a really fun thing to make when your on your own :) Even the cooking was easy as it took a very short amount of time to make :) Defanantly reccomend this! Thank you!

[sshaffer2]

Here is a picture!

[sshaffer2]

We used this recipe and it turned out great. The kids had a lot of fun with it!

[amandababy831]

If you add the color in the beginning when your mixing everything together that works just as fine and not as messy :D

[faithfish900]

this website is a godsend really! I do a mainly music class in New Zealand and I was looking for things for kids todo after trhe music session :)

[missgracie900]

Wow!

[dukeolson]

I went to I think a different website and it said to put it in the freezer and it is now frozen

[klightbringer]

I found that the gel food colors work better than the liquid. I's less mess and goes farther. ;) My kids loved making it!

[krazymonkey5454]

does it ruin the pot?

[kadams10]

my mum (this acc) says she did this long ago and it CLEANED the pot

[Spidamonkey610]

YES! you have to wash out the pot with hot water, and dish soap imediatly afterwards or else it does ruin the pot.

[spideee]

yes

[sgsidekick]

All ingreds are regular "food" ingredients.  At worst, you'll have to soak the pan for a bit in water and soap, so you'll be okay.  I wouldn't use a teflon pan or anything, since you may end up doing a bit of scraping if you let it set up on the pan *lol*.  I've made this before, and had no problems.

[kperson]

mine turned out sticky and lots of grains i think i did it wrong

[SterLuMan]

Looks yummy! xD

[DippyDaisy]

I've used virtually the same recipe loads of times but made it in the microwave - super easy!

Unfortunately, I've lost my recipe - which is why I came online ot look for one - I will use this one but give the microwave a try!!

I remember bits overheating sometimes and you'd get dried out crispy bits but you just pick those off - still super easy and better than having to stir, you can also use a glass bowl so easier to clean than a pan :-)

[rwhitfield]

I remember licking play-dog when I was little... it's really salty! :P

[thallisey]

Thank you so much. I needed a large amount of playdough for a party game. I made 3 batches. One batch didn't work (as I expected) since I used wheat flower.
The other two are perfect. I immediately washed the pan and it cleaned right up.

-- babs

[Phoghat]

I just moved to Mexico and our house keeper has a son about 10, Just for fun I made him a big batch and now he thinks I'm Play Doh King.

[joanna12]

i have tried making this an copel of times but when i make is it just goes hard but still not quite hard is it best to put it in the fridge

[Spidamonkey610]

yea i put mine in the fridge, but it also helps to add some baking soda

[Spidamonkey610]

great recipie, but rerfigerate for even better results.

[wizard21]

can you eat it because its made of real food ingreident s spidamonkey

[Spidamonkey610]

i woldnt recomend it, it doesnt tast very good, but their arnt any chemicals in it.

[joanna12]

but how do u get it to go hard

[arrmkr]

I made this dough quite a while ago and the kids absolutely love it. Has held up well, but now it smells terrible! Any suggestions to get rid of the smell, besides making a new batch?

[Nelson_Yepez]

well remember that after all it is food, unlike the store brand this does not have preservatives and all the extra stuff but they are made almost the same way, so eventually its is going to spoil.

[lotusduck]

the salt is a pretty good preservative, but i agree that it doesn't last forever.

[wizard21]

thts my birthday

[lofidelity]

I made some ornaments out of it for the grandparents for christmas ....so i rubbed it with peppermint extract. smells great! You can also use essential oils (but some oils can be caustic to the skin so be careful)

[Air_Assassin]

Ingredients

2 cups flour
2 cups warm water
1 cup salt
2 Tablespoons vegetable oil
1 Tablespoon cream of tartar (optional for improved elasticity)

or

20 cents
wal-mart

[mhannu]

lol

[Air_Assassin]

lol

[lstclair]

Wal-Marts price where I live is .59 a can.
When some children love mixing the colors together( when their parents did not pay for it) is very costly.

Give it a try, you might find you like this better than store bought.

[Air_Assassin]

Ok sure thing ! :)

[lotusduck]

Is that a real price quote?
Assuming you can get a small amount of five colors out of one batch, this is comparable to a 2-4 dollar purchase, of play doh, on sale. Of course you get the little containers thrown in, although it's easier to get the stuff out of ziploc bags.

If you want more than just a little play doh, it can add up. Big gallon tubs of the stuff run like 16 dollars? These ingredients are much cheaper. If you don't have time to burn stirring, and hanging out by your stove, this may be the wrong website for you.

[Air_Assassin]

that's mean :(

[lotusduck]

Not at all! I'm just adding depth to your cost benefit analysis. Time has value, and instructables take time to follow.

[Air_Assassin]

ok

[Billiegrrl35]

2 things... when was the last time you went into a wal-mart and only spent 20 cents?
the initial output for these ingredients might be more, but to make an actual batch of this recipe would be half the cost AND you get to have fun in the kitchen with your kids. you could get 4 or 5 colours out of a single batch, increasing your savings several times over.

[Air_Assassin]

I got those for 20 cents last year.

[arghhh]

i made it and it wrecked my pan but my friend did it and it was fine
:)

[spideee]

mine too kid nice name arghhh

[sgreg]

I tried this recipe without the tartar and it worked great! I saw a comment about scented playdough and I wanted to add that you can also use a packet of koolaid. It smells great and adds colour too!

[canida]

Thanks for the koolaid tip! The cream of tartar just makes it a bit more silky and stretchy in texture, so you can easily get by without it. I'm glad you enjoyed it!

[spideee]

your welcome kid

[sammydog123]

cool

[bob the slob]

we used this to make a exploding baking soda volcano....... it started to peel off the base. we took it off and used papper mach'e .( or how ever you spell it.) but any ways, we just use it to make screaming guys

[spideee]

wat up im new here tell me about this thing

[Naome]

Thank you so much - I cant believe I have never made this before. My 7 year old loved helping to make for his little sister (2yo). I'm now sorted for the school holidays. ya

[hstephens]

I just finished making this with my 4 year old, and it turned out GREAT! We've never made play doh before, so I was a little worried about how it would work. It was super easy and pretty fast! She's playing with it at the dining room table as I type. :) Thanks for sharing, and we will definitely be making this on a regular basis!

[love2die100]

Sounds great but I don't have cream of tartar here in Germany anything else instead.

[kseay]

mine frld

[SavageAngel]

This was a great, quick, fun and easy recipe. I colored the dough using edible gel paste coloring and flavor oils that matched the color!

[ShemySheza]

wow,definitely gonna try this

[Air_Assassin]

but still cool

[hellokitty4u]

HOW DO YOU MAKE THE COLORS =)

[nemoskull]

Cool! i am using this trying to cast a GWS3020 propeller. we will see how it comes out. if suscesfull, i will post back here.
nemo

[Dilbitz]

Well, I was able to fix the stickiness problem. After mixing it and cooking it as long as I could without burning it, I lightly floured a counter top and kneaded it by hand. This worked to make it more of a play dough consistency. However, now it has the dusting of flour over it and the color is no longer vibrant. Not only did it not turn out correctly, it also made cleanup very difficult. My pan and spoon is coated in a layer of salt and sticky goo. Even soaking in hot water hasn't loosened it up.

[Dilbitz]

I tried cooking it longer, yet it is still sticky. I'm gonna try to add more flour and see if it helps. I'm trying to make a volcano for my daughter's science experiment and I'm hoping this dough will work.

[pgithembe]

Just found this recipe and plan to try it out next week. just wonder if anyone found out how to preserve the play-doh?
Please let me know.

[agis68]

What is Creme of Tartar? I live in Greece and i don't think we have such of thing..any substitute???

[jeff]

Well that's ironic, since the greeks invented the stuff.

fwiw, cream of tartar = κρεμόριο

ref: http://www.proz.com/kudoz/english_to_greek/food_dairy/1784704-cream_of_tartar.html

[agis68]

;)))) thnx

[mamafox]

hi,
i also live in greece. did u find a substitute?

[sosassisosweet]

1/4 tsp. of white vinegar is a good substitute.It`s a little smelly so I use apple vinegar.Good Luck:)

[mamafox]

thanks for the suggestion :) i will try apple vinegar as i don't think they have white vinegar here in greece either, white wine vinegar is the closest i think.

[agis68]

we have all kind of vinegar thank God!!! :)))

[agis68]

thnx dude i will try it

[agis68]

nop!!!...do you know where we can find something like this??? speak Greek also??..

[mamafox]

i have no idea i can't even find the baking powder lol!
i think i'll just leave it out and see how it goes...have u tried it yet?
i speak a little greek but i'm working on more :)

[agis68]

well I am Greek, so the Baking powder you may find it in supermarkets...its easy, but the tartar creme it's impossible.. in greece tartar creme is a the tartar dip!!!

[mamafox]

finally found the baking powder!!!! but ya no creme of tartar here i don't even think it's in europe lol next time i go home to canada i'll pick so up along with all the other things i can't find here :)

[agis68]

brink some extra pack for me please...lol (well I mean it!) ;)

[mamafox]

will do!! i wont' be back til january or so. i found this stuff called kremorio or kremortho do u know what that is? it's a white powder and all the girl told me about it was that it was a spice?!? but i was thinking that that might be close....maybe i'll go back to the store and get the proper name. :)

[agis68]

hold some for me also.... thnx

[lofidelity]

Cream of Tartar is a white powder spice. Its used in baking/cooking. You'll find it with all the other spices. It looks like flour actually. But what she was talking about sounds like the right stuff!

[agis68]

well... now iam totally confused about it...is like the yast?

[lofidelity]

No, its not like yeast. I don't know how much its used in Greece, but its used in North America for things like stabilizing egg whites to give them more volume or to help make some frostings creamier.

Its a kitchen acid (in the same way that vinegar is an acid) that is also a type of salt. Its found in some candies, soda pop and baking powder. Its made from the sediment of wine making.

But you can always find it in the spice section of grocery stores and its always a white powder, not actually a cream.

And you can even use it to clean with.

[canida]

In case you missed Jeff's post above, here's cream of tartar in Greek:
http://www.proz.com/kudoz/english_to_greek/food_dairy/1784704-cream_of_tartar.html

[jccamero]

you can order it online...http://www.amazon.com/TARTAR-FRESHLY-PACKED-spices-seasonings/dp/B000NCWRGK

[allylim]

I added glitter and mixed in the color only halfway for an awesome marbled-sparkly gift (it added to the presentation)! ALL my friends, ages four to eighteen, loved it!

[lahna.love]

Wonderful!! I made this with 4 of the 5 kids I sit for today ages, 11,6,4,3(the youngest is 8months). Some wanted to make ornaments & some just wanted to play with it..... WONDERFUL for either! Thank You!

[rogerrabbit321]

Does it dry quickly? or does it take like 2 days to harden? or will it just stay soft forever?

[danica]

oh, pictures would help, you can sort of see the sparkles, I think I'm going to make the colors richer though. We added a caramel smell from body shop.

[canida]

Whoa, and pictures too! They look good, agreed that richer colors will be even better.

*wishes we had a scratch-and-sniff option*

[danica]

I just made some for my daughter, we added sparkles, and didn't have gloves so it looks like I killed a smurf.

[canida]

That's awesome. ;)

[yelknip411]

My two daughters and I made a batch, and then used an Angel cookie cutter to make our own Christmas Ornaments as gifts to our family. We used a small straw to poke a hole at the top, then baked at 300 for about 30 minutes. Then we glittered the wings, and I used a fine point sharpie to draw pretty eyes and smile. Just varnish with a light oak, or color of your choice, let dry, and hang with ribbon, string, or a decorative ornament hanger. Everyone loved them !

[airrikajswan]

We tried baking, but maybe our creations were too thick? The outside got hard and the inside oozed out. We were left with a some what squishy and hollow monster :-/

[canida]

I think you and yelknip are both right - since your creations were extra-thick, they needed a bit of time to air-dry before baking.

On the other hand, squishy hollow monsters may be super-scary!

[yelknip411]

Try letting them air dry for a day before baking. It has been several years since we made ours. Ovens and altittudes can vary. Try reducing the heat to 250 or maybe even 225 degrees. It sounds like they baked too hot, too fast. Sometimes trial and error is necessary. So, sorry yours burnt tho. Let me know if you try again, and your results. Thanks and Happy Holidays. P.S. I have a grand daughter that is almost 8, and this year I think I will get her involved in making some for her gifts. :) Will repost our results. And, as far as pictures. I will take one when I get all the Christmas decor out. Right now they are buried. I have alot of decorations. Stay tuned.

[canida]

That sounds beautiful! I'd love to see pictures.

[katiekat009]

I Used your tips and recipe and it didn't seem to work for me

[airrikajswan]

No one told me how much arm power Id need with all that kneading and stirring!

I used neon food cooling and the play dough turned out great!

[ezginori]

First of all thank you for the instructable. But i have had some troubles. First day i made the dough, just like you described, without the tartar. But next day the dough started to feel more and more stickier. I put the dough in to the pan again and cooked and cooked and cooked. It got worse. I had to throw it away, and it was a icky prosses. :( Where did i go wrong??

[ezginori]

No one cared to answer but I figured it out by myself :(. I live in a very humid town. So since salt basically sucks out the humidty out of the air it never dries and gets stickier every day. So salt-dough no good at seashore :)

[rothpullers]

try adding half the water or add two more cups of flour. i found this recipe made the playdough way too runny. my kids are loving the playdough right now. i thought they could shape it and we could bake it, then they can paint it.

[jojo289]

My play dough turned out very sticky! I did what you said and cooked it alot longer but it got worse. i didnt use the cream of tarter, would that be the problem? 

[yayunmars]

COOL

[4paws]

That was great! Took me 10 mins tops, and now one happy 3 year old! I used a big wide based aluminium pan to help the dough dry out faster and more evenly, put the heat on low, and ta da! Super. Thanks a million!

[27222712]

does this stuff dry hard?

[KimFuruyama]

this is the best playdough! no smell, if it gets a little dry, just make a ball of the dough and put a little water on it and put it in a sealed container and it rehydrates! the kids loved making it with me and play with it ALL the time!

[CraftChick]

I made this with my toddler sis and 11 year old bro and they were dissapointed that they couldnt eat it. in the recipe substitue half of the salt content for sugar.if the kid must, they can eat it without gagging on the saltiness

[CraftChick]

I just made this and i was great! Some of the most common questions I have seen are things that I was worried about as well, so I jus wanted to assure those newcomers that the pan doesnt get ruined at all. Just put some luke warm water in the pot when you are done and wipe it with a sponge gently. Let the playdough cool after you cook it, I am currently holding ice to my hands because I know the recipe says it doesnt get to hot but I made the mistake of cooking it on high and I burned myself really badly. if you dont have gloves put your playdough in a dish and drop in the coloring and mix with a fork. I think thats about it....Other than ifyou add cream of tarter I was a bit worried at first because it seemed a lot thinner than usual but after you need it its just more flexible.
well anyway my recipe turned out great....heading out to colorr it ;) Thank you!

[JobieAshes]

I'd say you'd add the scent the same time you added the color.

[hellogoodmorning]

thtts wierd yo wierdo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[sparkleponytx]

Great Instructable. I like the clear photos and the bright colors. I have made PlayDoh before but it's been years. I'm going to give it another try. Thanks!

[canida]

How did it go?

[rosemary gillespie]

Thank you so much for giving the recipe. The next time I see my grandchildren makeing play dough with your recipe is going to be our activity.

[canida]

Excellent! Let me know how it goes.

[LevLiveDotCom]

By no means do I mean to disrespect this instructable, but I'm not too concerned with how it feels and it's consistency as I am with HOW DOES IT SMELL?! To me, play-doh is all about the smell - does it smell similar?

[canida]

This smells like flour and salt. It doesn't have that chemical smell that commercial play-doh has.


I'm not fond of it myself, but I bet you could buy some fragrance additive that will give you that same scent!

[CHECK IT]

I'm tryin this recipie for the first time today hopefully my neaphew don't eat it.

[canida]

How did it go?

[gracenthekraken]

i made some awesome playdough from your recipe!! thanks a lot!

[canida]

You're welcome!

[sabou12]

does it harden if you put it in the oven?

[canida]

Yes!

[mike.x535]

i don't think i have any food coloring  , so can i add some paint or anything else as a replacement for the food coloring . if i can't from where can i get some food colorings.

[canida]

Only use food-safe colors! Kool-aid packets (the kind with no sugar) make great coloring substitutes.

[DrHoppe]

No you can't use paint. Food coloring is in the baking isle at any grocery store.

[bankersgirl]

Do you think fabric dye would cause problems? The funny thing is most people have food coloring at home, I have fabric dye.

[DrHoppe]

If you are making it for children to play with you should automatically assume they will eat it or put in in some orifice with thin membranes as a matter of course. Better safe than sitting in the emergency room. Drop the 99 cents at the grocery store for food coloring...

[raybkchan]

Great instructable, I followed the instructions and made great play dough fresh off the hob! However, when I stored it overnight in a plastic airtight tub, the dough turned back into a sticky mess. Anyone know why and how can I get it back to normal?

[canida]

Just cook it a bit more to drive the water out. You probably live in a humid area, and the dough reabsorbed water!

[zilcho]

I have used a recipe like this for years, I usually cook it on a wok and i love the fresh dough when its still hot off the pan

[nittymom]

I tried it and the dough came out well, though I think I went overboard in the heating part :) Theres always a next time.. Thanks for the instructable...

[redcore4]

my mum used to make this for us when we are little. if you like the models you have made with it, you can dry them in a low oven so they go hard and you can then varnish them to keep them. we also used to use them (baked) to make salt licks for our pet rabbits.

[bankersgirl]

Mine too!!!! She would make all the colors in the rainbow and we would make all sorts of stuff including the Christmas ornaments. Never thought of using them as a salt lick though, that was very inventive. Then again I never had a rabbit, so the issue never came up.

[Ecchin]

This was made with different types of food... Doesn't it rotten? :x I don't want mole on my play doh

[rebeljohn747]

did you forget that salt is a preservative as well?

[adelie]

According to the wiki page on play-doh, borax is used as a reasonably non-toxic preservative. I expect that not much more than a teaspoon would be plenty to have the desired effect. Of course, look into it a bit. Borax is used as a preservative in many noodles, but also illegal in some countries (as a food preservative) for potential health risks.

[sharlston]

NO THIS IS NORMAIL PLAY DOUGH BUT THE MANUFACTURERS JUST PUT CHEMICALS ON THE CONTENTS TO MAKE IT LOOK COMPLICATED

[adelie]

No disrespect, but I find that to be an exceptionally ignorant thing to say. Also, yes, this recipe will mold over time. According to US patent #6713624 (the patent for playdoh Hasbro got in 2004) adds borax (a kind of salt / soap) that is not very toxic and used as a food preservative in countries where it is legal. The "big scary words" like amylopectin is just a very specific name for a certain type of starch that helps keep the playdoh from naturally breaking down for other reasons. They call this a "retrograde inhibitor". Another big word like "surfactant" just means "something that helps make the oil and water mix better", like a soap. All these things help make the playdoh smoother, elastic / stretchy, consistent, and well protected from mold / bacteria, and keeps it like new for as long as you remember to put the lid back on after you are done playing with it. As for Flash Gordon's comment about the "spelling errors", I think he was actually referring to the entire structure of the sentence. While I think I know what you meant to say, what you actually said instead is pretty hilarious if you can imagine it. Not to mention that the use of caps is simply priceless. Play-doh(tm) is a premium product for which many people would be willing to substitute with a cheaper slightly inferior alternative, however, their success shows it is a product for many people worth paying for. And can I kindly request that you not ever force me to defend a patent for a major corporation ever again? Thanks.

[Stephen D. Alverez]

if this was at all science related, I would have said the same thing. And to sharlston, 1 out of 19 words is in fact, horrible, for me grammar is pretty big, being that my father was an English teacher, and that we have a wonderful, helpful device called spell check, and its just a click away.

[SEANandJUDE123]

Considering your father was an English teacher, you have a two sentence paragraph. In other words, there is a tremendous run on sentence going on from And, to away. Your father would be disappointed... ;-)

[sharlston]

ok sorry but im not the best at typing on computers

[sharlston]

oh ok but companies do do that when i bought some sticker removal stuff and all it was was wd40

[Flash Gordon]

Awesome spelling errors.

[sharlston]

i spelt 1 word wrong in 19 words better than a lot of people

[dwright8]

Sharlston, ignore these a!!holes. I'm an absolute grammar and spelling fanatic too but that doesn't give people like Stephen the right to be an elitist knob, especially as this is about Playdoh and not spelling! A lot of people who are much smarter than you are sitting in the corner and not trying to be centre of attention Stephen. Thanks for your input on the Playdoh Sharlston, and don't apologize to w@nkers in the future honey :D

[Flash Gordon]

Hahahahaha.... Haha

[suzanne97205]

In the ingredient list, did you mean _unsweetened_ drink mix? Kool-ade, or Wylers, or whatever is easy to blend in, and they make lots of colors.

[david5565]

Nice Instructable... now we can make edible play dough, play with it all day and eat it as dinner.....LOL

[leslinsm]

Hi Everyone, this is the usual recipe I use in the UK, It's quite Fabadababoo. Kids making all kinda wierd and wonderfull creations, when it's time to pack up and tidy, Easy peesy, no hassle. Stress free playtime !!

[ruby 22]

it got stuck to my ceiling

[apples22]

how long does it take?

[angie420]

only about 10 min all together and its really simple and doesn't get to hot- i recommend just a lil above low and it works great- i used canola oil and that seemed to work awesome! have fun!

[angie420]

omg this is the best playdough ever-its so easy to make and not messy at all- i didnt use the tarter and it seemed to work just fine! i recommend this for any moms who want quick easy and it doesnt take but a few min to cool off and even then right out of the pan it should be ok to knead- the kids and i are making chocolate playdough pizza cake and its so much fun! great idea!

[jennabanana]

So my mom has a recipe for play doh that doesn't require cooking. Its so EASY! I'm making it for a demonstration speech in speech class. Here's the recipe: 3cups four 1/3 cup salt 2tbsp oil (veg) 1cup water 7 drops food coloring. mix dry ingredients with oil. add food coloring to water and mix together. add water to flour/salt/oil mixture slowly~about 1/4 cup at a time and mix together with a spoon. once you've added all the water, knead the dough with your hands. Basically this playdoh kicks butt ha ha. try it out and let me know how it worked for you!

[KelseyEwing]

 You should make an instructable out of this. It would be short but people could find what theyre looking for more easily

[cowdude]

BEST PLAY DOH EVER!!!:D

[angie420]

agree

[brittaniwilliams]

do u have to cook the play dough this is my 1st time makeing it

plz reply

[Chromatica]

oh my that was the best recipe for playdoh thx jennabanana

[someoneyoudontknow...]

o my gosh I'm doing the exact same thing! pretty cool :)

[Syn-D]

I tried it at first it was soggy so i got frustrated but kept molding and it worked fine

[snikhitha]

thanks jennabanana it works awesome it kicks the butt.

[angelaka]

Thanks so much for the recipe. My six year old daughter made a batch today and she is having so much fun!

[strangebike]

Hi ya Jennabanana, Just made your palydoh as I work in a preschool and when we make our normal dough there is a disconnection between the manufacture and the product, so a non cook option looks good. Only comments I have on your recipe is the mixture ends up a bit sticky and due to the food colouring it stains the hands (yes I have red hands but not badly) the addition of a small amount of flour in the kneading process brought the sticky ness down to sensible levels. But this doesn't seem to bother my guinea pig (my 4 year old) who is even at this very moment battering it into submission and cutting it in to pieces. On the positive side( Especially for those who work in the preschool environment ) our daughter seems to be having more fun with this over the cook method.I think this is that she has made and got it with no interruption so has really engaged. It might be Monday morning doh when you need the stuff as soon as and the kids can play with this while the cooked stuff is cooling and getting beaten into submission. The colours are much more vibrant then the cooked stuff for the same amount of input. cheers Richard

[getknown]

This sounds great for my class of kids I`m teaching in Japan. They are only 3 years old so the non cooking method is better. I will try it tomorrow. You`re a life saver!

[channy1965]

can you add cream of tartar to this to make it more elastic as in the cookable play-dough.

[love2makeit]

OK, I am lovin' this recipe. TI was so fast to make, and no heating which is a bonus. The kids loved it. Thanks for sharing it.

[wmcquill]

I have to do a speech also. How exactly did you do yours and how did you grade? Did you use power point? Send some more info. This sounds interesting.

[Lineve59]

Jenna how much does this recipe make??I am doing it for rec therapy at some group homes so i need to buy the ingrediants.......need to know how much to double or triple the recipe

[solopach]

Yeah Jenna, your recipe rocks.

[dodo91]

did you mean 3cups flour?

[flirtyrae13]

Thanks for the no cook version! I just made it for my little boy in less than 5 minutes and it turned out great!

[plzspoilme25]

wonders if it hardens the same....if ur looking more for a clay? an even easier way includes only 3 ingredients flour, water, and salt, and add color if u want. measure twice.....i'm bad at exact measures, make sure u use dry cup measure for the dry stuff, and liquid measure for the liquid stuff, trust me a little bit can make a big diffrence. i'm guessing they all work for diffrent kinds of things, tnx for all the info on this. seems to be as many diff ways to do this as there are for making cake, LOL

[sharlston]

IF YOU PUT HOMEMADE PLAY DOUGH IN THE OVEN TO HARDEN THE WATER IN IT EVEAPORATES AND THEN IT GOES HOLLOW

[JAMJAMJAM]

this was so fun to make when i had a friend sleeping over, we got it a bit wrong because we added too much water but in the end it was great, BABY PINK playdough..
THANKS =]

[hello12]

hi jammmmmmmmm for short recipe was sick its great but it came out sticky for sum odd reason aniway reply b

[jasmine-leah]

Hi Jennabanana. Thanks for the recipe. My daughter wanted to play with playdoh & it had dried up so I wanted a quick recipe. I was busy & this took me like 3 mins. This one's amazing. We now have loads of pink playdoh. So quick & easy ~ thank you !

[chelSEAbee]

hey Jennabanan i tried this recipe... guess what i liked it alot more than the one that requires cooking its less exspensive and no cream of tartar that stuff is exspensive tanks so much!!!

[yoyorocketgirl01]

I was wondering the recipe says salt and the picture is sea salt is there a difference, or can I use reg. salt?

[madhops0620]

lol im assuming that where it says " 3 cups of four" that you meant, 3 cups of flour

[Hellokittybaby1206]

What I would like to know... Is there a way to make this with out Making 3 Cups of one color? Maybe I can make 1 cup each of different colors. How would I go about doing this?

[Redgerr]

just dont add the color right away, make it-- then break it into little bits. then you can color what you want with whatever you want :)

[headphoned]

Umm.... That's just a recipe for dough. Take out the food coloring and throw in some yeast and you've got your basic bread/pizza dough. Still cool, though.

[cutienxtdoor]

i think this recipie rocks so much more than the one you have to cook, thanks

[zoundsPadang]

dude i've been looking all over and i just cant find a bag of four any more! I have no idea where i'm going to get three whole cups of it. ;)

[DrWeird117]

giant eagle or acme ; )

[seniorbch]

you know how you said 3cups four did you mean flour i hope u did

[seniorbch]

your right that ingrediant really works

[teenaanne]

hi is it just plain flour u use

[canida]

Yes. Stay away from wheat or self-rising, as they completely change the process.

[Marrie21]

Dang that does work good thankz I used it a project

[Marrie21]

Dang that does work good thankz i used it a project

[gweneviere97]

I really am interested in your recipe for playdoh but I am a teacher of 14 kids and wanted to know how many balls of playdoh can I use with this one recipe? Thank you very much

[canida]

Hey Jenna, Sounds like lots of people are interested in this one. You should put up a separate Instructable for no-cook playdough to make it easier to find!

[cativa]

Sounds good jennabanana. I am going to make it now!

[peach rose]

thanks! im going to try it

[stinkbutt]

thanks i deaf and me like this better it faster i go to ISD in iowa and i going to use yours for my demontration speech (in sign language) haha lol how old r u?

[jenniferzeledon]

I use sugar free jell-o for the color and it makes a SUPER yummy smell! also, i mix all the liquids first and then the jell-o, mix it up, and then add all of the dry ingredients... this makes the colors VERY vibrant... i have found if you add the food color at the end you get pastel colors, unless that is what you want!

[sondraj32]

i can't wait to make this play doh for my little guy!!

[craftytoo]

I want to know if it can be used as "mosaic tiles"? Can it be molded & left to dry or does it need to be baked, like "Sculpy"?

[canida]

It can be left to dry.  If humidity levels are high, you may need to put it in an oven on low heat to speed things up, but you won't need to actually bake it.

[Amber_Bonvillain]

how would it come out if i dont use thee tartar sauce??

[canida]

Cream of tartar is a white powder sold in the spice area - not the same thing as tartar sauce.

It helps make the dough more elastic, but you can certainly skip it.

[Mariapaguio]

i really like this play dough thing

[heymissmurder13]

i think i made this wrong, because it smelled RANCID!!! still does, i didnt add the tartar too so i dont know what i did wrong :(

[isaberg]

I bet it's your oil. Cooking oil goes rancid very easily, and heating up rancid oil only makes it a lot worse.  Oil should have no sent at all.  And don't use olive  oil - it goes bad way faster than any other kind. 

[watchingandhi]

This looks terrific. What do you use for scents?

[FunkNattidelic]

extracts. i used vanilla for mine. =P
my sister wanted mint though.

[Stephen D. Alverez]

That makes it even more tempting to eat! I remember I used to munch on play-doh, and now with it being filled with kool-aid and vanilla, it seems like a decent snack!
     
I:D->---<
        

[tbird2340]

We did this last night with my 4 year old.. She was SOOO excited during the whole process and had a TON of fun!

Play-doh turned out great!

[kretzschmar]

Fantastic recipe. We made 3 batches for all the children in my preschool, they loved it! Finally a play doh recipe that’s worth keeping! (for those of you not successful... keep on stirring... it really works!)

[stonycreekfarm]

Hard slog and in the end (half hour hard stirring) still sticky and unusable. Never cooked anything that has made me cross. kinda put me off cooked playdough

[feralina]

thanks jennabanana u helped sooooooooooo much with the really easy play doh. its really soft. would i be able to use corn flour with it instead of plain flour cuz im running outta flour! thanks!

[Holly Beeson]

This dough turned out awesome! I cooked it a bit longer then I thought just to make sure it wouldn't be too sticky and it's wonderful! Thank you!

[basia dabrowski]

 tried it , it doesnt work try 3 cups of flour, 1 cup of water, 3 tablespoons of oil (add more if you want soft play dough) , 1/2 cup of salt, add 10 drops or more, and mix well. that way you dont have to buy cream of tar tar

[wixx]

 i have tried making dis once and it came out good but den these boys ruined it and mixed the 2 play-doughs together and it was ruined
but besides that it was good

[chillifilli]

sweet im gunna try makin this 4my 2 n 3yr olds mite get sum peace 2day!! lol

[iteachart4u]

Everyones suggestions, comments and ideas are great. I will have my students mix their own ingredients in a ziplock bag as well as they dye so that they don't go home with colorful hands. In addition, I think the ziplock bags would be great for students that are tactile sensitive. Once it is not too sticky, they can take it out of the bags and knead it on a sheet of wax paper. The ziplock bags can be cleaned out and used again for them to store their play dough. Thanks everyone.

[lily-bell]

my daughter uses powdered kool-aide, flour and salt i think.....

[geeklord]

My sister says thanks for the great recipe, it helped out with a school project (I have no idea what it was). She says it took her about 10 minutes, probably less.

[whites]

this worked amazing, best recipe ever

[shenz1011]

it worked grate but i had to add alot more flower

[D.L.H.]

Good for when I'm taking care of my cousins.

[CrystalLee]

Hi,I made the cooking recipe earlier today and them i put it in plastic sealed bags and put it in the fridge whwn i took it out a little while ago it had a funky smell to it. Is it suppost to stink????

[snikhitha]

Hey i love it but mine is way too sticky and it wont stick togetether. please help me out my email is [e-mail].

[danajs85]

I've just made this playdo, and it turned out brill, I've got 3 small children happily playing in the kitchen and there's plenty to go around, thanks

[frog873]

im going to try this!!!!!!!! it sounds great! also, how much does it make??? reply plz!

[hypersaiyan 7]

call me crazy but i LOVE that smell ^_

[ThEbLoB!]

I just looooove playdough so much that i just had to make a huge blob of it today! Thanks 4 your advice on the scented playdough. I'm sure it will make my playdough smell better than the salty, floury smell of it's original oudor. By the way, did you know that playdough was originally made 4 cleaning wallpaper??? ByE ByE!!!!

[luvit]

is this toxic? cause i eat it when my mom is gone.

[jakobboegsted]

I dont know if i did anything wrong, i only cooked it for like 5 mins but i have G.R.E.A.T Play-Doh :D

[patinose]

This is amazing!!! I love it it always turns out very well!

[solarblade90]

Thanks it worked!

[strmrnnr]

Here is a lot of recipes for ya. Some sound more like no-cook cookie dough to me though. Pretty tasty ingredients.

http://www.after-school-care.com/Replies.aspx?Post=51&ReplyPage=1

[heygurlhey!]

hey whoever wrote this recipe and posted it was a life saver!!! I needed to write a how to essay for English and i thought i should do play dough! i made the play dough and i love it!? how do you make it teal or a pink!?? just wondering!!! :)

[toogers]

use cominations of colors. use less red for pink, use less blue and a drop of green for teal.

[sammydog123]

i treid this and got it wrong

[lizapest]

I work in a child care and make play dough all the time... if you don't have access to a stove just boil the water dissolve the salt in it and add the food colour. Then add this to the rest of the ingredients, mix and knead when its cooler and voila its done. You can also substitute alum powder for the cream of tartar which can be pricey.

[Anja12345]

I love this recipe it is very cool.

[dr_tono72]

I just made the no cook recipe. It came out great. It made a bunch of the same color. The only thing was that it was still a little stickier than the original and you need much more food coloring to get nice solid colors.

[zascecs]

Now you can make art and when everyone's awed by it, you'll just jump in and eat it all! they'll be tricked by thinking that it's real toxic playdough; so when you don't die, people will think that you are awsome and immune to poison!

[didiisbored]

This was awesome! It worked and i didnt use tar tar thingo so yeah IT WORKED IT WAS QUICK AND EASY :P

[itsmeagain08]

Wow! This recipe is really good, my sister loved playing with the playdough... It is good to let her mix the colours, she had never played with purple and orange play dough before! Also we had the same problem with the stickiness of the dough, but we heated it up for a little while and now its fine!

[amandakaye17]

The first batch I made was still a littlite sticky and i cooked it forever. However the 2nd was much better. You can watch the dough turn a little darker it just really takes forever. I don't know the results yet but the first batch I have already colored but it is still sticky, so one color at a time I am reheating it to see if i can fix it. Amanda

[melisolana]

how sticky was the play doh

[melisolana]

do you really need to use 2 cups of flour!!!!!!!!!!????????????????

[dmbart1967]

I have a very young grandson, and I think the non-cooked play doh will be a great project for us to make together the next time he comes to my house! I can't wait...this is the stuff that my grandma made for me when I was a kid...I dont think they even HAD play doh back then! LOL Things are so commercialized anymore....how sad.

[pepkate]

I tried this its works! At first mine got sticky and sloppy...but I read the directions again and cooked it for 5 more minutes on the stove and tried to mold it. You have to kinda mold it for it not to stick.:)

[cuti3xpie8]

I made playdough and I put -2 cups of flower -2 cups of warm water -1 cup salt -2 tablespoons of vegetable oil -1 tablespoon of cream of tartar and then I mixed all the ingredients I stirred it over low heat it began to get little chunks and I didn't have food coloring so I put kool aid in it and then like it had little chucks and its not play dough so hopefully when I put it in the refrigarater in a glad bag and it might get hard like play dough.... Did i do something wrong?

[joeshaggy]

what you did wrong was that you didnt stir it long enough mine took 10 minutes with about medium heat

[Ecchin]

If it had little chucks, then you didn't stir too well. Just like in a cake, if you don't stir well, the flour will create chucks.

[c3j1s6girl]

Mine came out way sticky. I don't know what went wrong :(.

[Seifpic]

I just made it now, but it is sticky, I put it on the stove and mixed it forever! oh, i used 1/2 cup of flour, 1/2 cup warm water, 1/4 cup of salt, and 1/2 tablespoon cooking oil, is that ok?

[duke1102]

Hey. Very nice. I made this ago some minutes. It's still warm and I'm waiting for cooling down. :] Thanks, great Instructable.

[babu1314]

i <3 play do o and that is a heart i luv this web site!!!!!!!!!

[Stringbandmama]

I used vegetable juice in place of water in this recipe. It gave the dough a beautiful orange color. I want to try using other juices like grape and so on. It would be a great alternative to artificial dyes. And is good if you don't have any lying around!

[FaqMan]

Intersting ible i might make this and give it to my moy aunts kids to play with.

[Murdok]

I just made this, and unfortunately GEL food coloring doesn't work. It is still fun none-theless, and I learned quite a bit from it as well. Just thinking, but you could use this for something like C-4. Not as deadly, but it sticks to things well, so load up some gun powder and a wick, and light it up! Just saying though... O_o

[suzak]

I always add a some liquid disinfectant to mine. The one that is used in first aid kit.

[bgca-S]

I work in a community center with parent toddler programs and have made this recipe on many occasions. It is quick, easy and great quality.

[andy-kho]

I've made this recipe twice, and at first they turn out really ok. Problem occurs after about 2 days, the dough became sticky again. On the 1st time, I didn't tried to cook it again, since i thought the dough might be decomposing since I live in tropical country. Last Sunday I made half recipe for the 2nd time, color it, and it resulted very well as the 1st time. And to avoid the 'decomposing' issue, I add 1/4tsp natrium benzoat as preservative. But today, my lovely 2 kids got disappointed again, since when they were very enthusiastic to pay dough, they immediately found that the dough is sticking to all over their hands. Anybody else with the same problem & can suggest any solution?

[LeaHawksWald]

I had some similar problems years back with clay products when we went on vacation. You said you are in a tropical climate. I would suggest adding a bit more salt. you can just mix it in little by little as it starts to get sticky, that will suck up the extra moisture. Good luck. Hope that helps :)

[cowscankill]

I had that same problem! All I did waas make a second batch and cook it longer to get some of the moisture out and make it less sticky. Hope this helps!

[andy-kho]

Actually the dough was looked like the commercial cough & very playable for the 1st day, after that it became sticky. I haven't tried to re-cook it.
After discussing with a more chemical-savvy friend, we think that the salt is doing the water absorbing part and makes the dough to be sticky after 1-2 days. Actually what is the salt doing in this recipe? Have someone tried to reduce the quantity of salt significantly?

Thanks to Strawberryholt for sending the alternative recipe, haven't try it though, since I haven't also look for the sand & alum...=p

[cowscankill]

You NEED salt. It's like bread dough, it will mold. The salt keeps the dough from molding after a while. About the stickiness: Yeah, that happened with me. I stored and was going to play with it the next day, but it was really gooey. That's why I made another batch and cooked it longer, fixing my problem.

[Strawberryholt]

try this instead it does well in tropical climate Sand Clay > Ingredients: > 1 cup clean sand > 1/2 cup cornstarch > 1/2 tsp. alum (find in spice section of your grocery store) > 1/2 cup water > Method: > Pour the sand into an old cooking pot. Add cornstarch, water and alum. > Stir. Place on stove and cook at medium heat. Stir constantly. > As it gets warm it begins to liquefy. In 2-3 minutes it will get thicker. > As it stiffens and clumps like stiff cookie dough, remove from the > heat and keep stirring for a few more seconds as it cools down. > Put it onto a cutting board or tough surface, spread it slightly for > further cooling. When comfortable to touch begin creating.

[hootiegirl1]

Hello strawberryholt...is this like clay or will it harden. What I am trying to do is make cookie cutter Christmas tree ornaments. I need something that will get hard and we can paint and sprinkle with glitter. He is only 3 years old. ????????? Thank you.

[nmhomeschoolmom]

Have you tried making your Christmas ornaments with Cinnamon dough instead of play-doh or clay?

[Strawberryholt]

yes this will work but shape it soon as it is cool enough to touch and let them dry for 2 days. When it is completely dry, it will be like concrete, but looks just like beach sand. Then spray clear matte protector over the whole piece. When it is completely dry, it will be like concrete, but looks just like beach sand Don't forget a loop or hole for hanging. and don't make them two slim or the may be brittle. But I used salt dough with the kids for ornaments. so I don't remember how well the sand clay works for tree ornaments but it works for wall art. I also remember using cinnamon spice dough with them for ornaments.

[purplenurple08]

this wuz awsum me and my kid made sum it feels more smushy than store bought but that make it the bast thnx for the cool recipie and steps

[Hannah7547]

I'm just signed up so I don't know what to do

[Monopolymaniac123]

You put we can use scents, like perfume or whatever, so when would you add those?

[KreaKatri]

How resistant is it when dried up?(both canidas and Jennabananas) Could you fx use it as pearls? 'Cause it could be cool customizing your own pearls and stuff.

[stingraysrock]

Wow, what a memory! My Grandma used to make this up for me all the time back in the early 70's!

[cman23]

so i can't eat it

[Storm950]

Tasty! ;)

[SyreetaCC]

This Cooked Play Dough is great and super easy. It takes like 5 seconds to cook it. It's worth it to cook it, too. It lasts longer than the non-cooked kind IMO.

[Loosewire; SOE Operative]

Hi canida, I was wondering if you knew how to thicken the consistency because at the moment mine is being deformed as soon as you touch it.

[PKTraceur]

This was the first instructable i ever saw.... YOU R AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (x999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999)

[mrsszek]

Helppppp Iam on my 3rd batch of playdough & its still sticky! I hav cooked it & cooked it! I microwaved it, I added more flour its still sticky. Its perfect at 1st then once left to sit it goes sticky. Do u think its cause i live in a tropical climate? Im in north Queensland if its not raining its hot as hell. ta

[popomaster]

i think its the humidity. its soaking ur playdough with moisture and its causing it to get wet. i dont think u can make the playdough (unfortunately). if there is a de-humidifier, than you could but otherwise there no hope

[mrsszek]

Thanks. I have solved my problem with a sachet thingymygig that keeps the moisture out. I now hav beautiful playdough that my 3 yr old daughter cant get enough of.Thank again Nat.

[morningsun]

what sachet thing did you use? I have had the same problem with sticky playdough

[mrsszek]

Hello, I can not think of its name but it is the sachet thingy that you get in your new shoes to keep the moisture out. I live in Australia so maybe we have them and other places dont? Also try heating the playdough in pot on stove for longer,some batches I have made take 3 times longer to drive water off than other batches due to weather. I have just had a brain wave & I think their called decedant sachets???? Sorry I cant be a better help to you. Nat.

[morningsun]

hi, thanks, I'm also in Australia & I know the things you mean, but aren't they poisonous? I have tried heating it for longer & adding more flour as most people suggest, also left it out on the bench for a while to try & dry it out & it seems to be better this morning after last night in a container in the fridge. maybe next time I'll just put less water in.? thanks again, Claire

[emygirl797]

Thanks for the instructable! This stuff is awesome! I remember making this with my mother when I was young, and now on days that I'm bored this always keeps me occupied! Juvenile, maybe, but still fun and creative!!! And the brand Play Doh really isn't too good. You make it how you want to make it at home, without paying the huge price! I just made a set of orange, pink, blue, and green! Again, thanks for the instructable!

[Badrang The Bad!!!]

THIS... IS... FREAKIN AWESOME!!!

[Rivkasmom]

I add baking soda as well as salt. It helps keep it from spoiling, and makes it taste terrible. This way, my daughter and my dog won't be tempted to eat it. :-)

[Goodhart]

That's a good thing....that is packing a lot of "sodium" in them :-)

[ShacaZaM]

this is so cool it totally work..... THANX SO MUCH!!!!!!!!!!

[SoapyHollow]

Igor and I made a batch, and used essential oils to scent them. So we have purple lavender clay, eucalyptus mint green clay...etc. It's been fabulous. Thanks again for such a clear, well demonstrated instructable. Go you!

[F1X0R]

Very good, at 17 I still love playing with this with my young cousins. I'm more into it then they are I think! Great ible by the way. Oh the uses of this stuff.

[Chromeanator]

I'm no Martha Stewart by no means but would it not be easier to add the food coloring to the water so that you have a even color and less trouble? I know this would make only one color per mixture but hey...it's PLAY-DOH!

[arne hendriks]

My kids also love it and Martin Butler made a Heather Mills Action figure out of it.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/arnehendriks/2265068716/
Eric says your venison Asparagus is incredible. I've put it in the wish list for
http://www.instructables.com/community/Open_Source_Instructables_Restaurant/

[chloe2]

my kids loved it thanks

[SoapyHollow]

We made a batch yesterday and it turned out perfectly. Great instructable, thanks. :) (I'll post the pics when I can find my camera cable. Hee.)

[iq_abyss]

Can I use rock salt? Like you would use to deice your driveway or deck. Please help! Thanx

[mrsszek]

What the??? Does salt deice??Wow you must live in a cold place I have never seen ice on a driveway!! No dont use rock salt in playdough only cooking salt.

[Trogador]

You didn't know that salt can deice roads? Wow O_o

[lawizeg]

I know....WOW.

[iq_abyss]

Ya, it melts the ice quite well, the city even spreads it on the streets, if the plows (snow plows, on trucks) havn't run in a while (probly because the diesel jelled from the cold)

[amandar]

um noo

[canida]

Short answer: you probably shouldn't.

Long answer: the salt is not purely necessary for making playdough- it acts as a preservative (keeps bacteria from growing if you want to store the playdough) and discourages children from eating it. While the rock salt will work perfectly for the first use, you don't want anyone eating it as it's not food-grade. If you plan to use the playdough for adults only it's OK to use the rock salt, but if kids will be anywhere near it you should only use food-grade salt.

[iq_abyss]

I used the rock salt, it worked. The rocks didn't desolve entirely. It made for an interesting texture, and it photographed weird, sort-'a sparkly. And I disagree the salt is a necicary component, it feels all wrong without salt (table or otherwise).

[mrsszek]

I agree. Salt is necessary. I'm glad you proved me wrong & found that rock salt does work.

[canida]

Sounds like a neat effect! I'd love to see pictures- you can post them directly here in the comments. Salt shouldn't change the consistency much, though, if it dissolves entirely.

[chardster]

Good 'Ible. Nice pic's. Thx for posting.

[mnkyluver11]

i think it is easy forget the cream of tartar its expensive

[mrsszek]

Yes I have made some without cream of tar tar. I think its only necessary if u cook the playdough.

[wuany]

How long does this take to make? I have to do a demonstration speech for my communications class and it has to be between 5-6 minutes long

[mrsszek]

prepare the ingridents in the pot first then cooking & kneeding would only take 6 mins all up. Prep.

[Lily_Wee]

It Work out perfect, my kids like it, save me hundred of $$ , i spend hundred of dollor to buy from the store..Now i just have to do it with my kids, it also fun..thank a lot for sharing.

[freakmonkey]

why would you spend hundreds on play-doh? lol

[mrsszek]

I have a friend who does the same. She refuses to make her own & wont let her kids play with the store bought stuff for more than a couple of days before its thrown out. Add it up & she would spend hundreds!!! Crazy hey!

[popomaster]

moms nowadays

[proffesor cuddles]

I made this yesterday and it was great! the only problem was that I only had one color of food coloring, so now I have a giant blob of green playdough.

[popomaster]

lol, wonder what it looks like

[popomaster]

if u have a slingshot, this is great ammo (dont make super big spheres like shown) it sticks to stuff if it hits hard enough, even without the stickiness of the playdough normally, the impact just smashes it in :D Nice instructions btw, my dog thought i was making doggy treats XD

[mzstriker]

I just made this and it came out great but I was wondering if you could use icing coloring if you didn't have food coloring???

[Redgerr]

sweet-- nice to finaly know how some playdoh is made ;) thanks for the instuctable

[Sunny124613]

anyways this is great!!!

[codongolev]

I remember playing with playdoh and being all like "nomnomnom playdoh tastes salty" lolz

[Sunny124613]

I also have a recipe for salt dough:
1/2-1 cup of all purpose flour
1/2-1 cup of salt (not rock salt)
11/2 cup of water

I am going to put this up on Instructables later
Anyways I love the lil' scene that you made!

[amandar]

hay your play dough didn't work out ill just go buy some

[Lithium Rain]

Sweet! +1 rating Added to favorites!

[La_Dominicana]

the play-doh recypy

[La_Dominicana]

Thnx 4 the recypy i need it 4 a science fair project.

[mrsszek]

Horahhhh Its perfect now just like store bought stuff. Cream of tar tar does make a big difference especially if u live in a tropical climate!!! Thank you!

[mrsszek]

Well I feel a bit silly now because I thought baking powder was the same as cream of tar tar so i used it instead. Is this y my playdough is sticky? I tried driving more water off like sugested but I only managed to burn the but out of my pot, & the dough is still sticky!! Helpppp my girl needs playdough!!

[sampearson]

WOW it really works!! and it only take minutes. I only needed a small amount to stick twigs in a tub to decorate for easter. Thanks xx

[Lotto]

I had a little problem i put it in an air tight container and it became all sticky and gluish...help me ><

[canida]

You just need to drive a bit more water off. You can do this by cooking the playdough again. It sounds like your storage conditions were too humid. (Has it rained recently?) Adding a desiccant pack or a couple of paper towels to pick up the excess moisture can help.

[Lotto]

dam hard to mix >< my hand is hurting me >>anyway nice instructable!!=)

[doob]

nvm i did it anyway and it works =D it came out fantastic!

[doob]

hi, i need a quick and easy way to make play-doh. so i looked jennabanana's no heat play-doh, will it work with self-raising flour??

[locofocos]

I had made this a while back. Let me say that technically this is edible, but if I wasn't told so, I would think it wasn't.

[canida]

That's the point of all the salt! It prevents bacteria from growing, and kids from eating.

[locofocos]

i know, but they said it was supposed to be edible. pretty much the same recipe here. it was on the kool-aid website i think.

[canida]

Yeah, it's technically edible, you just don't want to eat it.
Right up there with drinking seawater. ;)

[fredricksburgthethird]

i heard that play doh is flamablle, is this flamable also?

[canida]

It should be moist enough not to be particularly flammable. Try it and let me know!

[rAsTaManN240]

ya my gramas gonna do this with me :)

[canida]

Awesome! Have fun. If you make something especially cool post some pics in the comments, or put up a slideshow. ;)

[cherrykiss]

um.. i bake it before i paint colors on it. you can try to bake it with colors, i don't know why it wouldn't work! i'll see if i can take pics for you. whats your email?

[canida]

You can just post pictures in the comments. ;)

[gnomination]

this was a very helpful article I made a lot of playdoh and it turned out really well...i have green fingers now though...i guess some of them is red
=D
thank you!

[daellio]

Hey.. I googled "make playdoh" today to find a recipe to make with my daycare kids. Yours was the first one I clicked. We made it, and it turned out really good. I made a double batch and it took about 20 minutes on the stove to get it good and thick, but it's wonderful! I used my kitchenaid mixer with the dough hook to mix in food coloring, the kids have been sitting at the table for 45 minutes playing. Thanks for easy to follow instructions!

[selaja]

I tried it, it worked really well! thanks for the great instructable!

[cherrykiss]

i made this and baked it in the oven at 350 degrees, i made all kinds of crazy art crap. necklace beads and even paintable projects. give it a try. cook it til its toasty brown!

[canida]

Neat. Do colors still show up when you bake it? I'd love to see pictures!

[kurst76]

I have just made this playdough for the first time and it was sooooo easy. I used 2 cups of cornflour and canola oil as that was all I had and it came out as what I can describe as plyable silicone. It's just like the real deal. Thankyou very much as my daughter is extremely happy.

[SWSOE]

This recipe looks great. I love how any ordinary joe can make this. Will this harden if you leave it out for a while?

[shearbear]

I made playdough today and i used kool-aid for the sent and colour and it work really good and i substidued the vegetable oil for margirine and it worked great now my playdough smells like raspberry lemon and its blue i love it lol

[SpinWard]

I just made this for my 3 year and his friends coming over tonight. I look GREAT! And doesn't smell horrible. The cream of Tartar must really make a difference. I has the springyness of play doh. I've seen other recipes for it but they wound up being glorified paste. Thanks for this instructable! Worked great!

[kouraf16]

I think you will be more excited to know,that this landscape,is actually a Board Role Playing Game landscape! And well,i made brownish one for mountains,and green one for flora...you don't want to know HOW i made that brownish one...you also don't wanna know what happened to that pot afterwards ;)

[canida]

Of course I want to know! Pictures, please!

[anngel369]

worked out great! easy to make..thanks!!

[kouraf16]

It is a great recipe.I came up with it,and it worked out fine. These days,I'm making a 3D landscape and i had figured out it would take much money to buy such a big mass of plasticin,but then i remembered your playdoh recipe.IT FITS JUST GREAT! Thanks!

[canida]

That sounds like fun! Please post a picture of your landscape when you're done- I'd love to see it!

[prekmom]

I have made playdoh at home a few times, but never 'scented' playdoh. Looking to make strawberry scented playdoh for a birthday party in a few weeks - your instructions list scented oil, but not when to put it into the playdoh. With the food coloring (after cooking), I am guessing - but not sure? Any help with adding the scented oil would be great. Thanks!

[charissa636]

try adding kool aid packets it is colored and scented and non toxic.

[canida]

After cooking, since the heat could damage the scent. Good luck!

[confusedd]

i made this and i turned out really sticky, i just checked the ingrediants and it says 2 tbls of oil and i used only 1 would that be the cause?????

[canida]

No, you just didn't cook it long enough! Keep cooking a bit longer, and it will thicken up nicely.

[confusedd]

does it matter if i put food coloring in it already?

[canida]

No problem- just keep cooking until it's dry enough!

[greggles14]

can you show the difference between if it has cream of tartar or not please or does any1 suggest any 1

[braydon85]

Greggles14 - I didn't put any cream of tartar in mine, and it came out great - My daughters playschool was impressed - i also added the food colouring to the water rather than knead it in the dough and get coloured hands. I hope this helps

[greggles14]

thanks!

[braydon85]

I made this playdough last night, and it came out great. I have put myself forward to make this for my daughters playschool. I might try the non cooking one next

[Jirachi127]

I made this recipe and it came out GREAT! It came out just like Play-Doh.

[mommy_of_four]

I had to add to this. At first all dough will come out like the pink mess at the bottom. If you put it in a container with a lid(I use plastic coffee cans) with some extra flour and shake it, it will coat it so it won't be so sticky. Coat your hands with flour and kneed it,add flour until it is the right consistency. Store it in the refrigerator with the lid on it and it will last quite awhile ! Thanks!!

[jess1]

okay guys, i need help!! it looks really easy on the internet and i thought it was going to be easy but it turn out so wrong... it came out like pancake mix and its just not getting to the playdough part. can someone please help me..thanks

[canida]

Cook it longer! The mix thickens up as it cooks, it just takes some time. This seems to be a common problem- I'll make a note in the recipe above.

[sadiya]

hi can i use all purpose flour to make the play-doh...can someone reply fast pls....

[Pie_eata]

i imagine since the flour in the pic is

[canida]

Yes! I used all-purpose in the recipe above.

[sshoue]

I am going to use this to give a demostrative speech for my college class! Thanks!

[canida]

Hi sshoue, How did your speech go?

[qwertyem]

I just made this today with my 3 and 5 yr olds. Turned out great. I added 2 T cream of tartar instead of one. (not on purpose...I just didn't have the recipe in front of me when I tried it.) It may be a little too soft with the extra cream of tartar, but the consistency is very nice and my kids are rolling it out and having a good time. Its a lot like colored pie dough. Since I was making it with the kids, I really didn't want them near a hot stove, so I used the microwave to cook it with great success. I started with hot water and dissolved some red Kool aid in it. I put all the dry ingredients into a glass bowl, added the water, then the oil and mixed it up until smooth (note I added a little baking soda to make it taste bad...so they wouldn't be eating it! This did make it foam up when adding the liquid, but it quickly dissipated.) After mixing smooth, I microwaved for 2 minutes. Took out stirred up again, then microwaved for another 30 seconds. After that, I took it out & kneaded it a bit, and the consistency was great!!

[canida]

Great! Those sound like smart modifications. I'm glad you and your kids enjoyed it!

[mikey1216]

Hey guys, im a grade 8 student from Ontario Canada. Me and my friend are doing a science project on playdoh. And we were wondering if any of you can help us out. Any information on this subject would be great. My email is [e-mail] if you would like to contact me there. thank you so much.

[PetervG]

Gah, the playdoh came out like shit.

[albf1]

that is exactle how mine came out

[Loosewire; SOE Operative]

hahaha, it looks like your hands have mutated!

[crestind]

Nice! I have a sudden urge to buy some Laffy Taffy.

[bicyclelifestyle]

Kinda silly question, the instructable says vegatable oil, will olive oil work?

[canida]

Probably; give it a try and let us know! Extra-virgin olive oil is somewhat acidic, regular olive oil less so, while vegetable oil is neutral. (This is why you shouldn't use olive oil in cast iron pans.) I doubt it would change the relevant reactions in playdough, though the only way to know for sure is to test it.

[Biopyro]

I used corn oil, and it seemed quite oily

[PetervG]

I used soy oil.

[zachninme]

Well, just leave out the Cream of Tarter!

[FrenchCrawler]

That's just too funny :P

[PetervG]

Shut up . . . : ' ( It was so hard to get off : (

[safdar]

HAHAHAHA MAN THAT IS JUST TOO FUNNEH

[FrenchCrawler]

Better then getting super glue all over your hands.... now that is annoying.

[Loosewire; SOE Operative]

yeah and then you peel it off and a chunk of finger comes of too

[canida]

It's still too wet! Cook it some more until it dries out and gets thicker.

[lilmizang]

I made this play dough last night and was really pleased with myself. I coloured it too!! When I got up this morning and checked it, it was really sticky. What do I do? I've added a little more flour but it doesn't seem to make a difference. Can anyone help???

[Gina Rupley]

I just made this playdoh with my kids. It worked great. After cooking the mixture and letting it cool for a few minutes, I put it in my electric mixer with the pizza dough wand. The mixer kneaded the dough in about 5 minutes. I divided it up and put small amounts back into the mixer and added food coloring. Talk about easy clean up job and minimal work for me. Thanks for the recipe!

[CerealKiller]

Literally just got done making some of this and even though the drink mix just added blue streaks it turned out really well. I'll be making this again that's for sure, and might i add that adding flower to your work surface while kneading help really well.

[danakay]

I tried the boiled water and it worked a dream. I only used 2/3 cup of salt and it still worked out well (the kids I've made it for are a bit older so they shouldn't be trying to eat it anyway). I also added some coloured rice for texture and extra colour. Managed to make some great play dough. Thank you, Dana (Down Under)

[X_D_3_M_1]

omfg freakin awesome man came out perfect! i made shatter targets with this, ill post later

[donna.boyle]

Excellent, excellent playdoh! I am a PreK teacher and have made plenty of playdoh over the years. I forgot my recipe at school, and I had to make playdoh for my class for next week. I came across your website and decided to use your recipe. I am glad I did! This recipe makes a softer, more pliable playdoh than I have ever made before. The only difference in this recipe, from what I usually use, is that it calls for more salt. I also used a different oil than what I usually use called Enova Oil. Enova Oil is a more expensive oil than Vegetable Oil, but what a soft, smooth playdoh I got from using it! One thing I do is mix all of the ingredients together until the mixture is smooth, without lumps. Then I put it on the stove on medium high and stir (and then turn) the mixture over several times as it heats up. This makes sure that all of the mixture gets heated, and it keeps you from burning the playdoh (brown stuff in your playdoh!). As soon as it clumps, I put it on a table that has some flour on it (just a small amount)and I put some flour on my hands as well. Then I knead the dough until it cools or near cooling. If the playdoh is sticky, add a small amount of flour and work it into the playdoh. Continue that procedure until it doesn't stick to your hands or the table. Don't go overboard with the flour. Just add a little at a time(as needed) or you will end up with a stiff lump!

[matfu]

Hey never mind about the comment before. I figured it out. This play dough is awesome it is way better then the store stuff thank you!

[matfu]

Hi i was trying this activite and it just dousint seem to clump. Ive sterd it for more then 5 minutes could you help me here a bit thanks

[yvonne4christ]

I just made the play dough and it turned out great! To the one who had the sticky mess all over your hands you didn't allow it to cook long enough. It will pull away from the pan when it is ready I tested it by pinching off little balls and if it didn't stick to my fingers it was ready. I had a blast making it. I plan to take some of it to church. Yvonne

[zachninme]

Hmm... just looking at this, since its so popular.
Ideas:
Add coloring at beginning. If you have to do multiple batches anyway, its fine. Otherwise, you'll only get one color.

Also: Adding a lot of extra salt, maybe an extra 1/4 cup. This will keep kids from eating the stuff.

[kathynv]

Fifteen or so years ago, my daughter and I made this and gave a good sized blob of it to each of her preschool classmates - all 50 of them. If you use unsweetened drink mix, the color range is fairly small, so we made some batches with paste food colors (meant for cooking professionals and available at cooking stores). Paste food colors allow you to make a huge range of colors and are very concentrated - a little dot of paste will color a batch. If you want the distinctive commercial "doh" scent, the patent for this item calls for denatured turpentine. The turpentine is meant to keep the "doh" from getting moldy, is not dangerous in the small amount used, and the odd, enticing scent is merely a side effect. (All the turpentine stuff is according to a William Poundstone book, "Bigg Secrets." He claims that the doh is non-toxic, which is not the same as edible.) When I made modeling dough with the kid, we did not use turpentine. Canida is right when s/he tells everyone to keep cooking the glop! It will turn into a nice, smooth modeling dough in a short time. The glop stage means you're almost there. To package this as a gift for preschoolers and their parents, we put a fist sized ball of dough into a sandwich bag, then the child zipped up the bag. She then added a bow and a tag with the recipe, in case her friends' parents wanted to make the dough for themselves. It went over very well, and stood out from the crayons and candy given by other kids.

[canida]

Denatured turpentine- yuck! No wonder they keep it a secret. Definite vindication for those of us who don't like the smell of the commercial stuff. Nice suggestion with the unsweetened drink mix! I'll add it to the Instructable.

[tallulah3]

Does this work UNcooked? Does uncooked last as long as cooked does anyone know? Thanks!

[canida]

I've seen recipes for uncooked versions, but haven't made them myself. The ingredients are a bit different, and I've heard it's not as nice to work with as the cooked variety.

[Rivkasmom]

I've never cooked mine. It takes a bit of kneading to make it not be sticky, but it works fine and lasts for ages at room temperature. No problems yet.

[jethrow815]

neon food coloring, way cool.

[- creative name -]

this is why play doh always tasted like salt. 1 cup of salt seems like a lot . maybe if I put enough vanilla extract or something that smells good it would make an air freshener.

[derekmac]

If you want to keep your play dough for a really long time, substitute mineral oil (I buy mine in the Wal*Mart drug section) for the vegetable oil. Your dough will not get rancid as it will with veggie oil. Mineral oil is considered a "food grade" product, although it is of no nutritional value, and often used as a laxitive. Wikipedia says "It is occasionally used in the food industry (particularly for candy). Some studies suggest that prolonged use might be unhealthy because of low accumulation levels in organs. It has been discouraged for use in children's foods, though it is still occasionally found in candies in China and Canada.". I also knead in a tablespoon of artificial vanilla just before removing from the saucepan. Adds a great smell and seems to improve the consistency.

[daycaremom]

Add the food coloring to the liquid ingredients before mixing them with the dry ingredients. Easier and better color saturation. You can cook this in the microwave. Heat on high for 2 minutes, mix with a spoon, microwave again for 30 second intervals (stirring in between) until it is still shiny but not liquid. Then LET COOL A BIT and knead it well.

[hfw01]

My wife, a preschool teacher for 10 years, recommends substituting 1/2 - 1 cup of non-toxic washable (tempera or Biocolor) paint for the same amount of water. It is much easier than trying to mix food coloring in after the dough is finished, and you get a larger variety of colors to work with. (Biocolor is a brand of flexible kids paint. Only takes 1/2 a cup. Most kids tempera will take one cup of paint to get good colors.)

[a11en]

Hahaha. Mom used to make this here and there. I used to eat it. :) Yum! Hahahaha... [And no, *I* was not the one who ate paste in class... that was the weird kid.]

[aligotskind]

I saw one receipe it did not call for cooking. Can I just knead it without cooking...it is going to be a project for 3-year-old kids.

[sarahteacher]

It does need cooking, but with an adult to add the boling water, this could work with a small group of 3-year olds. I made it with my 2 1/2 year old cousin last month, and it turned out well. Have them use wooden spoons and just keep stirring until it is cool enough to touch. It may be a bit too hard for them to stir alone though. Or make it your self and let them add the colour.

[wishbone]

This one needs to be cooked. It's a horrible mess that can't be kneaded when first mixed but don't worry. It doesn't take much more than five minutes on the heat.

[sarahteacher]

A few people asked about avoiding the cooking step ... I made this last week with my 2-1/2 year old cousin and instead of using the stove I mixed the dry ingredients, then added boiling water from the kettle. If you use a wooden spoon to stir, the heat from the water is enough to cook the dough. Also, buy small amounts of cream of tartar at a bulk food store (Bulk Barn in Canada always has it) Sarah

[unstatusthequo]

AS FOR THE SCENT:

http://www.demeterfragrance.com/Product.aspx?ProductID=1025

[Paul_Strauss]

Easy as can be. I only had two colors of food coloring so I halved the recipe and it turned out great.

[Woo Doo Doo]

this recipe works great.....i used cream of tartar and all the rest of the suggested ingredients.....i even tried cooking it to make it harden.....that worked better on the smaller items i made, but i usually left them in too long You should cook your playdough at 175 F in the toaster or big oven until they are somewhat hard play dough is wierd stuff and often (especially in big pieces) it doesnt cook all the way through experiment for a little while with baking play dough

[Vater Araignee]

You could use Cool-Aid to scent and color it all at once. AND FLAVOR IT. Remember eating play-doh? mmmmmmm gaggy goodness.

[teh darkcloud]

Oh wow. Haha, I was thinking just yesterday "Why hasn't anyone posted the recipie for salt dough on Instructables yet?"

This is basically the same thing but with color. :)

Oh, and I should add that unlike play-doh, you can bake this stuff so if you really like what you've made then you can keep it that way permanently.
..or at least I don't think you can bake play-doh. But when I was searching I got distracted and found <a href="http://www.hasbro.com/media/default.cfm?page=release&release=478">this</a> o.0
Who would want to smell like Play-Doh?

[Loosewire; SOE Operative]

i baked mine, i made mini apples and sandwiches and cups and stuff and then a rat got in to my garage and ate it all :(

[andy60]

nice 1! i shall try this one thanks ; D

[automaton_be]

For all international playdough-makers, Cream of Tartar is also called 'crème de tartre' or 'cremortart' and has the following chemical formula: KHC4H4O6. Its E-number (EU standard for allowed food additives) is E336.

[Trimaster]

looks cool ill have to try it sumtime

[strarry eyes]

HEYA IM NEW 2 ALL OF THIS LOL SO CAN YOU TELL ME WHAT IS CREAM OF TARTAR AND WERE CAN I FIND IT????? FROM STARRY EYES

[howboutitbru]

contrary to popular belief caps lock is not cruise control for rawsome

[esotericguy]

i'm stealing that =]

[canida]

Cream of tartar is usually found at the grocery store, shelved with the spices in one of those little jars.

[sodarnrandom]

Great idea, but mine came out to be a huge sticky mess! I used slightly less salt, and no cream of tartar, since I couldn't find it, and people did it fine without. It's like a huge sticky blob.. HELP!

[canida]

Cook it longer! No, really you just need to keep cooking and stirring, and it will pass through the gross sticky blob stage and thicken up.

[Trammel05]

I love this. It works great and the kids 6,5,and 3 had fun adding food coloring to it and making different colors. So thank you I have shared this with my sons teacher also.

[sociosec]

Hey there ,
I think making my own play doh is a very good idea :D
By the way ,if u are interested in creating something with play doh U can check my play doh maniacs group in flickr .It is a very funny group and there ll be competitions for our playdoh works and suprises for the winner ...
Check it out http://www.flickr.com/groups/338330@N24/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/8147018@N07/

[wambolicious]

This \sounds like fun; I think I'll give it a try later. But will the color or scented oils rub off on your hands?

[gamewhiz88]

since it is edible if you flavor it can you eat it like food?

[grillz203]

nice and easy to do fun to i have a lot of it but no food clor!! lol

[13MarineGeologist]

I made this for a school project, b/c my family was running low on cash and playdoh is usually alot of money (for us right now) so this really helped, and i got an A+ on my science report! Thanks - Jenni

[canida]

Great! I'm glad to be of help. There are lots of other good science projects on the site for next time, too!

[casvandegoor]

looks nice!

[JuliaGlass]

Mine didn't turn out well, I couldn't get it to the right consistancy. It was way too sticky, even after I left it out to dry. It was fun to attempt, but I was planning on making something out of it. Looks like I'll have to go buy some clay.

[canida]

You just need to cook it a bit longer. Keep heating and stirring, and it will eventually be the right consistency.

[astateson111]

Well I am 13 and it just sounds so kewl. So is the cream of tartar really nessecary? It says optional but that guy who showed the picture about his disaster then he did it without cream of tartar and it came out beautiful. So when you did yours was it easy the first try? Not to sound so corny or what ever. :)

[canida]

Cream of tartar gives it a more springy, elastic feel. It shouldn't affect the way it cooks down- I think the fellow below just cooked it longer on the second try. You really want to continue cooking until it's stopped sticking to the pot. If you pull a bit off and find it sticky, keep cooking! The dough will eventually turn into that wonderful playdough texture we all know and love. Yes, it worked for me the first time. ;)

[casvandegoor]

nice, idea. I think I`m going to make it! thanks!

[Mascimo]

Nice, I always wanted to do those when I was a kid! I'll try to do that when my mom isn't home, so she won't beat me up, LOL

[emmyylouu]

i tried it but it didn't work very well. I think i did it wrong

[canida]

How did it go wrong? If you describe it maybe we can figure out how to fix it next time.

[pantherswr89]

it was so cool but my dad had to go to the store and buy salt!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ps i m 14

[elmosgirl]

how can i make playdough?

[canida]

Click the "view all steps on one page" button at the left near the top. You'll see the other steps.

[!Andrew_Modder!]

How long does this stuff stay good for??? Ive made some before and put it in a playdough can and about 3 weeks later it rotted! It was odd it turned grose brown color (from white), and smelled like red wine ..!?!!?! It was flammable,i think i made ethonal!? Odd eh?.......But for the oil part use USP mineral oil (in the laxitave isle) lol , (non rottable,clear,needs less, and scentless)

[flipflopflee]

If you substitute baby oil for the veggie oil, it works great and smells good, too!

[cafeboy]

Goody! Now I can have an unlimited supply of playdoh for my soda can pen holders.

[Skaterman13]

Hi im new,how do i add an instructable as a favorite,i cant find any button

[canida]

Check out the top right corner of the Instructable, in the right side of the box with the Instructable's name. You should see two boxes, a + and a -. Click on the + to add the Instructable as a favorite. Now it should appear on your homepage. Let me know if you're still having problems.

[caliguiri100]

Is there anything i could use to substitute the salt???

[canida]

You can make it without salt, so long as you throw it out at the end of the day. Salt prevents organisms from growing in/on the otherwise-tasty floury dough.

[mythreekids]

after storing it for the day, (it was perfect when we made it) my kids and i took it out to play again and it was VERY sticky.....why and how do i fix it?

[canida]

Normally we worry about playdough drying out, but it sounds like your playdough absorbed some water overnight. Is the air in your home particularly humid right now, or was there water in your playdough storage container? Storing playdough in tupperware is usually intended to keep it from drying out, but if (as in your case) the problem is moisture getting into the playdough it may be equally important. You could add a dessicant packet (found in many food containers, such as seaweed wrappers for sushi, metamucil, and other things that are gross if wet) to your tupperware to prevent extra moisture from being sucked into the playdough, add a dry paper towel, or just find a container that makes a better seal. To solve your current problem, I'd suggest gently heating the playdough in the oven to drive off the extra water. Turn it to somewhere between 150-200F, convection if you've got it, and check periodically to see how dry it's gotten. Make a nice pancake to create maximum surface area, and flip it as needed. Work the playdough as it dries to make sure you don't get overly-dry crackly edges. Simply adding flour won't work; remember that you needed to cook the mixture to make it set to begin with, so adding raw flour will change the consistency. Drying it in the oven is the way to go. Please let me know how this works out for you! You could also add some pictures & descriptions of your own either in the comments or in a linked Instructable so others can learn from your efforts.

[mythreekids]

Thank you for your advise, I will try it if it happens next time. My kids ended up playing with the sticky mess and then there was really nothing left to attempt to salvage. If it does happen again I will certainly take pictures to share my experience.

[pantherswr89]

nice

[pantherswr89]

heyyyyyy

[Biopyro]

Took me all of 10mins, fantastic, however I did find that it was quite greasy, also did need cooking a bit longer than when it first clumped in the middle

[Biopyro]

Will it go moudy, degrade etc?

[canida]

There's so much salt in it that nothing can really grow. The standard failure mode is drying out.

[zachninme]

May I suggest adding something bitter after it forms? After it comes together, throw in some baking soda or something so it tastes horrible. This way the kids don't eat it :-D

[canida]

Have you tasted this stuff? I tasted it; the salt content alone should be sufficient to stop further nibbling.

[PetervG]

Ha Ha, Victorious! This is half the recipe without the cream of tartar. Garrrr, it's exactly like real Play-Doh! And yes, it tastes the same aswell.

[lebowski]

Nice work! I'll have to try it with the kids. I just have to keep them off the carpet and out of their mouths...

[TheCheese9921]

ahh it looks and feels the same but does it TASTE the same lol

[FrenchCrawler]

Nice Job.... now only to replicate the new "Moon Sand".... Anyone up for the challenge?

[canida]

What's Moon Sand?

[FrenchCrawler]

It's a substance like sand, but molds like dough and never dries out. It's also supposed to be waterproof so that it will float:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B000EULZRS/yahoo-toys01e-20/ref=nosim

[vatosupreme]

maybe you could use your iron filings harvester to get a tub of iron and coat it with wax.. then you could clean it up with a magnet

[FrenchCrawler]

I don't think that would work since the wax would hold the pieces together...

[Crash2108]

I've seen that. It's just wax coated sand. Melt some wax and pour it over some sand pasta style and mush it together.

[PetervG]

C = Cup
T = ???

[PetervG]

WHATS A T?

[canida]

Thanks for the comment- I'll edit the recipe to spell it out.

[jgm532]

Under standard recipe abbreviations, Capital T is a Tablespoon, lower case t is a teaspoon.

[PetervG]

Thanks.

[zachninme]

Tablespoon, or 15ML So 30mL of Oil

[PetervG]

On the "Mix and Heat" step, it says put everything together, but the pictures shows the last one first? I think that pictures should be at the end?

[canida]

I try to make the main picture for a step the most representative, thus here it's the final product. You can then click through to see the rest of the pictures. I'll add a tag to clarify.

[ve2vfd]

I make flesh coloured playdough for wound simulations in my boy scout troop. It's quite realistic, and dead cheap.

[Crash2108]

I am surprised nobody posted this before.

[canida]

I was too, thus the post.