clay recipes

Note: whenever you use any type of food coloring in these clays keep them away from carpets and other textiles as they will stain. For this reason unless you're working with older children it's usually best to just forgo coloring the clay.

Kool-Aid Clay

Materials:

• 1 cup flour
• ½ cup salt
• 1 package unsweetened Kool-Aid
• 3 tablespoons oil
• 1 cup boiling water

Mix together flour, salt, and Kool-Aid.

Stir in oil and boiling water until well blended.

When cool enough to handle remove from bowl and knead until it forms a soft dough.

Oatmeal Clay

Dries rock hard overnight.

Materials:

• 1 cup rolled oats (you can use instant or old fashioned)
• 2/3 cup all-purpose flour, plus extra
• ½ cup water
• Food coloring (optional)

Stir together all the ingredients in a large bowl, adding more flour if necessary, until the dough forms a lump. For colored clay, add drops of food coloring to the water before combining it with the dry ingredients.

Knead dough on a floured surface, adding flour as needed, until it is smooth and not too sticky.

Tips: Allow finished creations to air-dry overnight. Leftover clay can be refrigerated in a ziplock bag for up to three days.

Applesauce Clay

Materials:

• 1 cup applesauce
• 1 cup ground cinnamon
• flour (optional)
• cookie cutters, or mold into shapes.
• plastic straw, pen or pencil (optional)
• rolling pin or bottle
• wax paper (optional)

Mix 1 cup applesauce and 1 cup ground cinnamon. Knead until it feels like clay, adding more cinnamon or a bit of flour until it's no longer sticky.

If you want to make less of a mess roll out your clay between 2 pieces of waxed paper, otherwise just roll out on a counter or table and cut with cookie cutters. If you don't want to roll the clay you can mold with your hands into whatever shapes you desire.

Ornaments: Use plastic straw, pen or pencil to push a hole through your shape for hanging on the tree later.

Let ornaments or clay shapes dry on waxed paper for several days, turning every day or so.

Baked Flour Clay

Materials:

• 2 cups flour
• 1 cup salt
• 2 to 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
• approximately 1 cup water
• wax paper
• tape

Preheat oven to 250 degrees.

Mix flour with salt, add vegetable oil and water.

Spread waxed paper on table (tape edges to secure) and let children make whatever shapes they desire.

Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour (depending on thickness). When completely cool, paint.

Salt Dough

Materials:

• 4 cups of flour
• 1 cup of salt
• 1 ½ cups of hot water
• holiday cookie cutters
• Decorations: glitter, paint, beads, etc.

Knead the dough and roll it out to about ¼ inch thickness.

Press cookie cutters into dough.

Place ornaments on a microwave safe plate and microwave on high for about 2 minutes.

Paint and decorate as desired.

Play Clay

This recipe produces a soft clay that can be used over and over again and will remain pliant for weeks.

Materials:

• 1 cup flour
• 1 cup water
• ½ cup salt
• 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
• ½ teaspoon cream of tartar
• food coloring, optional

Step 1: Mix all ingredients together in a saucepan and cook over medium heat until the mixture holds together (keep mixing or it will stick to the bottom of the pan).

Step 2: When the clay is cool enough to touch, your child can knead it on a floured board.

Tips: This recipe's long drying time makes it most satisfying as a play dough, but sculptures will dry eventually. If stored in an airtight container, this dough will last, refrigerated or unrefrigerated, for 2 to 4 weeks.

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