DIY: Homemade Play Dough

We like to make our own home made play dough at Mama & Me and often people ask us how we do it. The truth is, it's easy! Why bother making it yourself?  Home made play dough is softer than the commercial brands you find in the store, making it easier for your little one to squish between their fingers and mold into shapes. Plus, you can feel confident knowing that all of the ingredients come from your kitchen...so there's no need to stress when the inevitable taste test happens! How long does it keep?  If properly stored in an air tight container, your home made play dough will keep for about 6 months. Listed below is one of our favorite play dough recipes. Try making several batches to hone your play dough making abilities. It's a great rainy day activity or creative party favor for your child's next birthday! HOMEMADE PLAY DOUGH Ingredients (4 Cup Recipe) 4 cups flour 2 cups salt 4 cups water 6 tbsp vegetable oil 8 tsp cream of tartar food coloring Directions Mix all ingredients in a large pot. Cook and stir over low/medium heat until play dough is completely formed and no longer sticky (pulls away from sides of pot). Dump onto table or allow to cool in pot for about 30 minutes. Knead large mound of dough while adding small amount of flour if sticky until desired consistency. If you would like to add food coloring you can choose either method: Add food coloring into the pot while cooking until it reaches the desired color; or Color the playdough after cooled by dividing large mound of playdough into six equal sections. Add approx. 5 drops of color into a small hole you poke in each smaller section. Close hole and knead the dough until color distributes. Repeat until you reach desired color. Continue with each section until you have all of the colors of the rainbow. Variations: Add cinnamon, orange extract, lemon extract, vanilla extract, ginger powder, peppermint extract, almond extract, or one package of unsweetened powdered Kool-Aid to your playdough to give it a great smell. You can even make each section a different scent for each color. Try offering the playdough with small plastic animals, popsicle sticks, play dishes and utensils, beans, rollers, spatulas, measuring cups, small cars/trucks, sparkles, cookie cutters, seashells, or stones.