The BEST & Softest Homemade PlayDough (Only Cornstarch and Lotion)
Create DIY playdough that is so silky with only 2-ingredients
With all the handwashing going around, this easy homemade playdough is not only fun to play with but also great for your skin. My children and I were calling this awesome 2-ingredient playdough: moon dough. You simply make this soft playdough by mixing cornstarch and lotion.
*Disclosure: I only recommend products I would use myself and all opinions expressed here are our own. This post may contain affiliate links that at no additional cost to you, I may earn a small commission. Read full privacy policy here. *
We also ended using food coloring to make, mix and marble colors in our playdough.
My children spent a good hour exploring this new sensory dough. In my book, that is a good activity for preschoolers!
How to make the softest playdough ever
Supplies needed:
Bowl for mixing
3 parts cornstarch
1 part lotion (unscented works best, but we just used whatever we had extra of)
Optional: Food Coloring
Steps to making our moon dough
1. Add 3 parts cornstarch in a bowl. Stir in 1 part lotion. (We used 3 cups and 1 cup and seemed to have enough for both children to play with and make different colors).
2. Mix together until the homemade playdough is soft and will not stick to your hands. I found that using the back of the spoon to push the moon dough together really helped with consistency.
3. Optional: You can add a few drops of food coloring.
Homemade Playdough Mistake alert:
When mixing the colors, I let my son just start to mix with his hands…
Right on the food coloring. Obviously, his hands were pretty blue for the rest of the day. It is much better if you use the back of the spoon to push the color in.
4. Play and have fun using this homemade silky playdough.
Playdough Clean-up Tip
So as the children played with this cornstarch and lotion playdough, it started to “dry” out. You can clump it back together. However, I found putting a little bit of lotion on your hands helped collect the dried pieces.
Also, anytime you use homemade playdough, it is a little messier than regular store-bought. However, have your children work in one space and then just simply vacuum up the rest (I ABSOLUTELY SWEAR BY THIS VACUUM)!
Related Posts about Activities for Kids
Easy Rainbow Craft (You probably already have the supplies on hand)
The Best Art Supplies for Kids
How to make Oobleck one day and then Playdough the next
I am all about reusing materials and not spending a fortune. And yes…even on cornstarch.
So to make this playdough, I actually reused the dried up cornstarch from our last time we made the DIY oobleck. I just let it dry up (it is only cornstarch and water). I used a soup spoon to turn the chunks of cornstarch into a powder.
This was a complete win in my book and we were able to get 2 activities out of one box of cornstarch.
We hope you continue to be safe at home with your family and enjoy making creative memories together.
If you are interested in other homemade playdough recipes, check out this book. And if you are simply looking for a product that is just as fun, but no-mess here is one of my favorite sculpting material for kids!
6 Comments
Krysten
I’ve never heard of using lotion! I’m going to give this recipe a try with my little one
Erin
Hi Krysten! This is totally a fun and worth it indoor activity with your little one. I hope you enjoy making this fun playdough out of cornstarch and lotion!
Rachel
So fun! I’ve never seen playdough made this way before! We used to make it all the time when we were kids. Such a fun little project!
Erin
Hi Rachel! You will have to try this playdough. I was skeptical at first, but then it was such a different feeling material that my kids just loved playing with this DIY playdough recipe.
Valerie
Why is mine so sticky? Do I need more lotion or more starch? HELP ME PLEASE LOL MY OCD IS FULL THROTTLE with doughy hands 🙌🏻 😂
Erin
Hi, I would try adding a little more cornstarch. Just do it slowly and knead together until you get the consistency you are looking for. Good luck.