Playing with Clay

Yesterday was a cool day with just enough rain in the air to make you want to stay inside. It seemed like the perfect weather to cook up something on the stove. We decided to make something of the inedible variety--that being a batch of play clay. It is so easy and you can't buy the consistency of the homemade version.

Here's the recipe we used:

PLAY CLAY
1 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup water

1/2 cup salt

1 teaspoon vegetable oil

1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar

Food coloring (we use cake decorating pastes)

Mix the flour, water, salt, oil, and cream of tartar in a saucepan. Cook over medium heat until it holds together (keep mixing or it will stick to the bottom of the pan). When the clay is cool enough to touch, knead it on a floured surface and add food coloring. Store in an airtight container. We tripled this recipe which made more than enough for three eager kids.

With many of my kid's projects I remind myself that it's the process not the end product that is important and makes the little wheels in their mind spin and their creativity grow.

Play clay is all about the process--the squishing, bending and manipulating. Then there's the ease of crumbling it all up and starting over again.

A batch or three of play clay easily consumed over two hours of art time--which means no computer, tv or video games. Ahhhhh...tell me that's not worth every grain of salt!