Salt Dough Recipe

Use this for Halloween Decorations, Christmas Ornaments & Decorations, Gift Tags, Placecards, Necklaces, Lapel Pins, Magnets, etc. Could hot glue small ornaments to Greeting Cards too!

Toddler can help mix up the ingrediants, make some 'creations', and/or paint your creations. A project for any age!

½ cup salt
1 cup flour
½ cup water

1. Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F.

2. Mix together, salt, flour, and water until dough is formed.

3. Knead the dough on a floured surface until the mixture is elastic and smooth.
If dough is too sticky, sprinkle with flour, continue to do so until stickiness is gone. Do not add too much flour, this will dry out the dough and will cause it to crack before you get a chance to bake it.

4. Roll out the dough to about ¼” thick with a rolling pin that has been dusted with flour.

5. Use cookie cutters to cut out as many shapes as you want.

6. Use a toothpick to make a hole toward the top of the shape. Poke the toothpick into the shape, then holding toothpick straight up and down, make a circular motion as if you were stirring something. Keep circling until the hole is the size you want. Or insert a paperclip.

7. Place all shapes onto an ungreased cookie sheet and place into the preheated oven.

8. Bake for 2 hours.

9. Remove from oven and allow to cool completely.

10. Paint.

11. When paint is dry, use glitter glue or glitter paint to put a sparkling cover coat on your ornaments.

12. Spray with varnish

13 When dry, thread ribbon through hole and tie in a knot in the back.


Tips, Techniques, Ideas:
http://www.angelfire.com/mo/creativeclutter/saltornaments.html

TIPS ON COLOURING DOUGH:
* Food colouring (red, green, blue, or yellow). Two or more food colours can be combined to make different colours and shades or for a marbled dough effect.

* Add spices that act as natural dyes e.g. cinnamon, curry powder, saffron or paprika.

* Add cocoa powder or instant coffee for different hues of brown.

* Wearing protective gloves add a little paint to the mixture then knead the dough until the paint is uniformly distributed through the mix.

Some pictures taken from the internet as ideas & examples:

Playdough Colour Options

Tempura Paint Powder
Liquid food colouring
Paste food coloring (available in cake decorating stores, or section of craft store). They look more expensive than liquid, but you use tiny amounts to get great colors. They last for years.
Kool-Aid (unsweetened) for color and scent


GLITTER for sparkly playdough.

*************
Let the kids discover how colours are created by giving small balls of playdough.
One white ball, one green - what do they make?
One blue ball, one red - what do they make?
Etc.
*************

Playdough Recipes

** All are inedible ** - but not toxic

Store any version of playdough in an airtight container to ensure a longer lifespan.

Here are various recipes that I have compiled, depending on what ingredients you might have on hand.

*See separate post for ideas on Playdough Tools around your house.

COOKED PLAYDOUGH:

#1
1 cup flour
1 cup of water
1/2 cup salt
2 tablespoons cream of tarter
1 tablespoon of oil

Cook ingredients until they form a blob in the pan. Pour it out into a plastic container. Cover with damp cloth. Add food coloring if desired.


#2
1 cup water
1 cup salt
1/2 cup flour
Food coloring

Mix ingredients in pan. Add food coloring. Stir on low heat. When it thickens remove from heat. Put some on waxed paper or floured surface and roll out. Cut out objects. Air dry objects few days.


#3
1 cup baking soda
1/2 cup corn starch
3/4 cup water

Mix the baking soda and corn starch in a pot. Use hands to make sure all the lumps are broken up. Add water. The adult should put the pan on the stove over medium heat and stir constantly. As soon as the mixture gathers together, remove from the heat. When it cools, have your child knead it into a smooth playdough.
Note: Don't over cook this playdough or it will crumble when the children use it.


UNCOOKED PLAYDOUGH:

#1 (Coffee Scent!)
4 cups unsifted all purpose flour
1 cup salt
1/4 cup instant coffee
1 1/2 c 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.


#2
1/4 cup salt
1 cup flour
1/4 cup water

Have your child mix the flour and salt in a bowl then add water. Knead and squeeze the dough to make a clay consistency. You may need to add more water.
Note: Your child will find that this playdough doesn't last as long as the cooked recipes.


#3
1 cup cold water
1 cup salt
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
Tempera paint or food coloring
3 cups flour
2 tablespoons cornstarch

In bowl, mix water, salt, oil, and enough tempera paint or food coloring to make a bright color.
Gradually add flour and cornstarch until the mixture reaches the consistency of bread dough.

Summer Outdoor Fun

SIDEWALK CHALK PAINT:
- liquid food coloring
- box Corn Starch
- water
- 8 oz individual containers for each color

- Measure 1/4 cup cornstarch into each cup.
- Add 1/4 cup water to each.
- Drip in 5-10 drops of food coloring.
- Stir it up.
At first it will seem as though the cornstarch just won't mix in, but all at once it comes together.
- Add more color for intense colors, less for pastel shades.

Pre test on the driveway, fence, and brick to see if paint will come off - It should though.


ICE TREASURE:
Using a ice cream pail, put a small amount of water in bottom.
Add treasures. Freeze.
Add another layer of water, add treasures, freeze.
Add another layer of water, add treasures, freeze. Etc.

All these layers will ensure treasures throughout the ice block rather than them all frozen on the bottom.

Treasures:
Marbles, stones, shells, coins, plastic animals, etc.

Put in a shallow plastic bin and let the kids excavate their treasures using toothbrushes, spray bottle, eye droppers, spoons, etc.

Great cool activity for hot summer day!

Frozen Paint:
Water down some paint, pour into ice cube trays. Lay foil over top and poke toothpicks through to act as holder. Freeze.
Let kids hold their paint cubes and paint their pictures outside.

ICE CUBES: coloured or plain, they’re fun to watch melt

Bathtub Paints

2T liquid soap
1T cornstarch
Food Colouring (just a drop, mix, then see if you need more)

Mix up and put in ice cube trays.
This will float in the tub and they can fingerpaint!

if they dunk it in the water, the paint gets too watery and won't be easily applied with fingers - perhaps a paint brush would still work though.

Edible Peanut Butter Playdough Recipe

1 cup Peanut Butter (smooth)
1 cup Milk Powder
1 cup Oats
1/4 cup Honey

Mix all together!

(Makes enough for 3 kids to have a good size chunk to play & snack)

If you are tempted to add more dry ingredients, STOP! It needs to be a bit sticky and once it's all mixed thoroughly it won't stick to your hands.

**
This is my favourite edible playdough recipe. The majority of peanut butter playdough has icing sugar for the second dry ingrediant (rather than oats in this one) and since Peanut Butter is made up of lots of sugar, that is just way too much for my little one. This one is healthy and still quite yummy - trust me cause I like to eat it too!

link for ideas on tools & accessories with edible playdough: http://123mytoddlerandme.blogspot.com/2009/04/playdough-tools-from-around-house.html

Bubble Recipes & Tools

My daughter loves bubbles!

During the winter months, we enjoy bubble blowing during bath time. Now that spring has finally arrived, we'll be heading outdoors with them!

RECIPE:
1/4 cup liquid dishwashing detergent
1/2 cup water
1 Tbsp. sugar
Put the dishwashing detergent in the water. Carefully stir in sugar trying to avoid suds.

RECIPE:
1/4 cup sugar
2 quarts warm water
3/4 cup liquid detergent (Joy or Dawn)
Mix 1/4 cup sugar with 2 quarts of warm water. Stir until sugar is dissolved. Add 3/4 cup liquid detergent.

Recipe Tip: Be careful not to whip up small bubbles while mixing!


Bubble Tools:
- Plastic strawberry basket
- Pipe Cleaners bent into different shapes
- String tied in a loop to a stick - now dip in mixture and run!
- Flyswatter
- Slotted Spoon
- Frozen juice can with both ends removed
- Six-pack plastic rings
- Funnel
- Wisk
- Cookie Cutters

Edible Playdough Recipes (without Peanut Butter)

Got these from http://www.familycorner.com/:

Oatmeal Play Dough
1 part flour
2 parts oatmeal
1 part water
Mix ingredients together and form into shapes.

Note: The items made from this play dough recipe can be painted when they are dry.

**************************

Cream Cheese Play Dough
8 oz. package of cream cheese
1/2 cup non-fat dry milk
1 tablespoon honey

Combine cream cheese, milk and honey in a bowl and mix until well blended. Mold sculptures on was paper.

Storage: Unused portions MUST BE STORED in an airtight container and kept refrigerated!
Use the expiration date on the cream cheese package as your guide for how long you can keep this play dough.

Note: The shapes can then be placed on crackers or bread slices, decorated with edibles (celery or carrot slivers, raisins, dried fruit pieces, nuts, or seeds for a healthy snack... then eat!

**************************

Chocolate Play Dough
8 oz. semisweet chocolate
1/4 cup plus one tablespoon light corn syrup

1. Melt the chocolate in a metal bowl set over a pan of simmering water (a double boiler). Stir the chocolate with a spoon until smooth, then stir in the corn syrup.
2. The chocolate will stiffen almost immediately but stir completely combined.
3. Transfer the chocolate to a sturdy plastic bag and refrigerate until firm; the consistency will be that of Play Dough.
4. When firm, the dough can be worked by kneading. If it is too hard, cut off small pieces and knead until pliable.
5. If the dough sticks to the counter when rolling, lightly spray counter or breadboard with vegetable spray or lightly grease with vegetable oil.
6. Hand shape the dough into a rope or braid, making two or three long ropes and twist or braid them together -- can be used as the outside edge on top of a cake or around the base.
7. Make ribbons to cover the cake. To do this, pat your dough into a disk shape and roll dough out to desired thickness using a rolling pin or else use a manual pasta machine.Flowers, too!

Storage: When not using, MUST be stored in an airtight container and refrigerate.

Poster Paint Tips

My parenting magazine recommended storing Non-Toxic Poster Paint in baby food jars. Adding a squirt of dishwashing detergent helps take out future paint stains.

Fun & Unusual paint brushes could be toothbrushes, sponges, plastic scrubber, Qtip, etc.

Homemade Finger Paint Recipe

Found these great & simple recipes for homemade fingerpaint:
(I suggest having them wear one of your old shirts - this will completely cover their outfit or using a smock)



Fingerpaint:
1 cup Flour
1 cup Water
1 tsp Salt
Food Colouring

Stir up and let them at the paper!
(This one is quite goopy/slimey which is half the fun!)


Muffin tin works great for having many small doses of colour - also try a foam egg carton or ice cube tray!

ALSO:

Kool-Aid Finger Paint:
2 Cups Flour
2 pkgs. Unsweetened Kool-Aid
1/2 Cup Salt
3 Cups Boiling water
3 Tbsp. Oil
Mix wet ingrediants into dry. *Kids will like watching it magically change colour!

Recipes for Paint, Playdough, and FUN!

WATERCOLOR PAINTS
1 T. vinegar
1 T. baking soda
Stir for 1 minute and add:
Food coloring
4T. cornstarch
1T. corn syrup


GOOP Mix:
2 c. white glue
1 1/2 c. water
Stir in separate bowl: 1/3 c. water and 1 T. Borax
Add Borax mixture to glue mixture and mix with hands. It will take a bit. This becomes like Silly Putty and will even take imprints from newsprint!

Edible!! PEANUT BUTTER PLAYDOUGH
1 c. peanut butter
1 c. dried milk
1/2 T. honey
Knead together well. Good dough for small children as it's good to eat too! Store airtight.

SILLY PUTTY
2T. white glue (glue all type)
food coloring
1T. liquid starch
Pour glue into a small bowl. Mix in food coloring of choice. Cover with liquid starch. . .pulling away the sides of the glue. DO NOT STIR! Let this sit for 5 mins. Squeeze out the starch and knead until the right consistency.

KOOLAID CLAYDOUGH
1 package Koolaid (the kind where you add the sugar yourself)
1 cup flour
1/4 cup salt
1 tbsp oil
1/2 tbsp alum/cream of tartar
1/2 cup hot water
Dissolve everything except the flour in the HOT water. It has to be hot to dissolve all that salt. Then add the flour, mix, and knead. Resist the temptation to add a little more flour because it's too sticky just keep kneading.

SQUISHY BAG:
3c Water 4T Cornstarch
Food Colouring Ziploc Bag

Boil water. In separate bowl, add cold water to cornstarch to make a paste. Slowly add to boiling water. Cook and stir until thick. Add food colouring and allow to cool. Pour into Ziploc bag and seal.
OR: non-cooking alternatives are Ketchup, Mustard, Relish, Hair Gel, Lotion, Shaving Cream etc.

MAGIC MUD:
Put into bowl: 1 Box Cornstarch
Add just enough water to be able to stir. Add in food colouring.


Face Paint:
1/8 C. Baby Lotion
1/4 Tsp Powdered Tempera paint
1 Squirt liquid Dishwashing Soap
Mix Up. *test small amount to be sure of no reactions* Remove with soap & water

Bubble Mix:
1/2 cup Water
1/2 cup Liquid Detergent
1 Tblsp Cooking Oil

PUFF Paint:
Mix equal parts of FLOUR, SALT, & WATER. Add food colouring or Tempura Paint to colour. Put into a squeeze bottle and paint away. Drawing will puff as it dries.