Easy Air Dry Clay

What you need:
·         2 Cups Baking Soda
·         1 Cup Cornstarch
·         1 ½ cups water
·         Small pot
·         Wooden spoon
·         Rolling pin (optional)
·         Cookie cutters (optional)
·         Paint, crayons, glitter glue, other decorations

This recipe is super easy and so versatile! The final product air dries overnight so it can be used to make last minute gifts, Christmas ornaments, or doll house items. It is also great party activity. You can create shapes beforehand and have party goers decorate them or for a sleep over party, have the kids make their shapes when they arrive, dry them over night and decorate them before they leave the next day.

To make the dough combine the baking soda and cornstarch in the pot with no heat. Add the water and mix together. Turn the heat on medium and continually stir the mixture. You will notice after a few minutes that it will start to clump together and eventually will become a solid mass, the texture of play dough. At this point take it off the heat and let it sit for a few minutes until the mixture is cool enough to handle.

Remove from the pot and knead on a flat surface for about 5 minutes or until smooth. The mixture will feel slightly sticky but don’t worry, as it cools that stickiness goes away.

At this point, as long as the dough is cool to the touch, it is ready to be used. You can use it right away or put it in an air tight container to use later.

We like to use a rolling pin to flatten the dough and use cookie cutters to cut out shapes. My daughter makes gingerbread girls to use year round in her doll house. If making ornaments be sure to make holes in the tops to add hangers while the dough is still wet.

Let your creations sit out overnight to dry. We found that some of them cracked a bit here and there but felt it added to the handmade feel.

When dry use anything and everything to decorate. My littlest prefers crayons but we have tried temper paints, glitter glue, and even food coloring before. Use whatever you have around the house already.

Foamy Finger Paint

it in about a tablespoon of water before adding it to the foamy mixture. This added great color and didn’t leave a trace in the tub.

Foamy Finger Paint
What you need:
1 bar ivory soap
½ cup water, soap dye, or food coloring

Mixing bowl

Whisk

Small dishes for separating colors

Grate the soap into the bowl and add the water. Whisk  until it is the texture of shaving cream, about 2 minutes. The longer you mix the smoother the final paint will be.

If you want to make more than one color you need to separate the soap into several dishes at this point.

Whisk

Add a few drops of your choice of coloring agent to each container and mix well. For something a little different, mix the color only half way to give a marbling effect.

We set out sheets of freezer paper and let the kiddos go at it. When they had painted their little hearts out, clean-up was a cinch, we just had an early bath time. And the best part, they were already pre-soaped.

My teenagers had a great time with this project as well. They discovered that if they painted something then scraped the extra foam off the paper had a rainbowed marble effect which they could then paint something on top.

In addition, we need to give huge props to Ivory soap for really being able to get things clean. We found when color mixing that yellow and blue made green, pink and yellow made orange, but when you mixed all three together for long enough, it turned white again.

The first time we made this paint we wanted to use it as a bath tub paint but were hesitant about using food dye on the tub grout. Instead we took a Crayola tub tint and completely dissolved it in about a tablespoon of water then added it to the foam. This worked wonders.

If you manage to have any foam left over it stores wonderful in any airtight container. And on a final note, although it looks like yummy, sweet, and sugary cotton candy. My little ones tell me it doesn't taste so hot.

Enjoy! 

We set out sheets of freezer paper in the hallway and let the kids go at it. When the little ones are done painting

*

 is a cinch, just take the party to the tub, they’re already pre-soaped.

Grate the

Paintsicles

I am always in the market for new and fun ways to entertain my little ones, even better if they are mess free! I came across this little idea a few weeks back and am finally happy that we got to give it a try.   

Here is what you’ll need:

·         Popsicle tray

·         Finger or liquid tempera paint

·         Water

·         Stir sticks to mix with

·         A freeze

·         A whole lot of patience

This is simple as simple can be! Add about a tablespoon of paint to the bottom of each of your popsicle cavities. Use a different color in each one. Fill to the top with water and mix well.

Insert the handles of the popsicles and place in the freezer overnight. Our popsicle tray came with different colored handles so we matched the paint colors that we used to the color of the handle. This was especially important for our littlest one so he could see what color he was getting without having to take them all out.

When you’re ready to paint run warm water on the outside of the popsicle tray until each paintsicle pops out easily. The tray makes a handy spot to place them as well.

Right in the beginning we found the colors weren’t nearly as vibrant as we wanted but as they started warming up and melting the colors really started to pop.

This would be a great activity for a Crayola themed birthday party. Make several sets the night before, lay out large paper table clothes and let your little artists go at it.