Homemade Clay Recipe

Kids simply love to have their hands on modeling clay, rolling, stretching and giving shapes to it. You may find various brands of modeling clay in the market. How about preparing this clay at home, with some of the easily available household materials? Apart from being cheaper, homemade clay is also safe for children, as compared to the expensive ones in the market.

How to Make Homemade Clay

Easy Recipe

This is one of the basic recipes for preparing homemade clay. As per this method, you need two cups of flour and one cup of salt. Combine both these ingredients in a bowl and add a cup of water, along with 1½ tablespoons of cooking oil. Mix them well and knead thoroughly, till it reaches the consistency of modeling clay. You may add color to this clay, by adding a few drops of food coloring or gelatin (fruit-flavored ones), kool-aid, etc. A few drops of essential oil or food flavorings, like, vanilla extract, will work wonders in making the clay fragrant. In case of people with gluten allergy, replace the flour with rice flour. This type of modeling clay must be stored in airtight containers or zip lock bags, in the refrigerator and can be used for three to four months. If you want to preserve the artworks made with this homemade clay, you have to bake them in the oven for around one hour, at a temperature of 250 degrees Fahrenheit. Once done, paint the articles and display.

Recipe With Cornstarch

This is another easy homemade clay recipe that includes cornstarch as an ingredient. You may also use potato starch instead of cornstarch. In this recipe, you have to use half cup of cornstarch and one cup of salt. Mix them well and boil a cup of water in a pan. Add the cornstarch-salt mixture to the boiling water and mix, till it becomes thick enough to be kneaded, to form your homemade clay. You can use this modeling clay, for kids' art activities once it gets cool. In this case, you don't have to bake the end product, but, all you have to do is to let it air dry, before painting. If there is any unused clay, make sure to store it in airtight container, before refrigerating. In this case too, you may add the coloring and fragrances.

Other Recipes

There are many other methods of making homemade clay. In order to make oatmeal clay, you need a cup each of flour and water, along with two cups of oatmeal. Mix them well and knead to form dough. This type of homemade clay will be little bit chunky. You may also use leftover white bread for this purpose. In that case, you need six slices of white bread, two teaspoons glycerin/half teaspoon detergent, food color and six tablespoons of white glue. Remove the crusts from the bread slices. Add the glue and glycerin/detergent to these slices. Knead them well, till it reaches the consistency of clay dough. In both cases, allow the craft articles to air dry for a day, before painting them.

The above said are some of the easy homemade clay recipes. You may also make this homemade clay for making clay ornaments and other arts and crafts projects.