Play dough is a soft, squidgy material that can keep children occupied for considerabe lengths of time. Although it is available in a rainbow of colours, it inevitably ends up as grey crumbly mess¹. Play dough is available to buy under several brand names including Play-Doh. Making your own however is much cheaper, and leaves you with extra money to spend on some of those fantastic sculpturing devices. Non-toxic², brightly coloured and easily sculpted, play dough makes an ideal tool for creative play³.

It is also very quick and easy to cook...

The Ingredients

• 1 cup of plain flour
• 1 cup of water
• 1/2 cup of salt
• 2 tablespoons of cream of tartar
• 2 tablespoons of oil
• Food colouring

Method

• Mix together the dry ingredients
• Add the water
• Mix until smooth
• Add the food colouring followed by the oil
• Cook on a medium heat, stirring constantly, until the dough leaves the side of the pan in a ball
• Allow to cool before use.

The process can be repeated several times, changing the food colouring, to make lots of play dough in a variety of colours. In this circumstance, using half quantities should be sufficient, as the above recipe makes about twice the dough that comes in the average sized tub.

Usage

Play dough can be messy stuff, so it is advisable to use it on a wipe-clean mat. If the dough gets trodden into the carpet, then this isn't too great a problem, as home made play dough can be much easier to clean. Warm soapy water should be sufficient to restore carpets to their original colour.

Life Expectancy

Like shop-bought play dough, this version will dry out if left exposed to the air for too long. To keep in good condition for longer, keep sealed in a plastic bag in the fridge when not in use. If the play dough gets past its best, then simply make up some more, as this is much easier than trying to revive it.

Further Uses

As well as simply kneading into different shapes, a bit of further creativity can provide for more prolonged enjoyment. Here're a few suggestions..

• Use simple tools such as cookie cutters and blunt knives to create more interesting shapes.
• Sculpture and then allow to dry, for example shape into blocks first, creating a different play thing. You could try baking the blocks in the oven at 180 degrees to make sure the play dough is hard. Then you can paint and varnish the blocks.
• Use as a mould for other craft activities, for example candle making.
• There are several board games that involve the use of play dough, for example 'Grape Escape'.