How To Make Slime And Playdough For Your Kids

Kids of all ages love to play with slime and playdough, but rather than spending your money on the premade stuff, why not make your own? Playdough and slime can each be made using a few simple household ingredients, and making slime and playdough yourself gives you complete control over things like colour, fun additives and any possible allergens.

At Spotlight we know a thing or two about how to make easy slime and playdough - see our slime projects for reference! We've gathered together our favourite recipes for making playdough and slime, with variations for a few ingredients that can cause allergies to ensure they're safe for everyone. Finally, we've got a few tips for how to clean slime and playdough from your floors, clothes and furniture - because we all know that playing with slime and playdough means it ends up everywhere!

Please note none of the recipes in this article makes slime that is safe to eat, so supervise very little kiddies if they're playing with your homemade slime.

Quick Links

• How to make slime
• How to make playdough

How To Make Slime

Let's start by making slime. You can add your choice of food colouring, but we recommend wearing gloves when making slime so it doesn't stain your hands. You'll also need white school glue, baking soda and some contact lens solution (make sure it contains borax).

1. You'll want a big bottle of white school glue, around 300ml. Pour the entire contents into a waterproof bowl.
2. Measure out half a tablespoon of baking soda and mix it into the glue.
3. Start adding food colouring. Mix as you go and add drops until the mixture has reached your desired colour.
4. Add three tablespoons of contact lens solution and mix until the solution thickens into a slime-like consistency.
5. Remove the slime from the bowl and knead on a clean, non-porous surface with your hands until finished. Add small amounts of contact lens solution if you need to make the slime less sticky.

This will make a large amount of slime the whole family can enjoy! Once you know how to make easy slime at a basic level, feel free to add materials like glitter, sequins, foam balls or loom bands to add colour, texture and shine to your slime. Wondering how to make slime fluffy? You can add a blob of shaving cream to give your slime a softer and lighter feel!

Store in an airtight container and your slime will last a few days, although putting it in the fridge can extend your slime's life to a few weeks.

How to make slime without glue and borax

Glue is a key ingredient in many recipes for making slime, but it is also messy and can be hard to get out of fabrics and linens if things get crazy. Borax is also on many parents' radars as a potentially toxic ingredient, although only in large amounts. That's why knowing how to make slime without glue or borax is a great skill to have on hand!

For this recipe, you'll need a thick, plain white or clear shampoo (cheap is fine!), food colouring, cornstarch and cool water.

1. Add half a cup of shampoo into a glass bowl and add a few drops of your chosen food colouring. Stir to combine.
2. Measure out two and a half cups of cornstarch and stir into your shampoo until you have a crumbly mixture.
3. Add in a few tablespoons of cool water at a time, mixing in until your solution is smoother and slimy. Then knead the mixture with your hands so it is silky smooth and ready to stretch.

You can store this slime for up to one week in an air-tight container. It won't be quite as stretchy as regular slime due to the lack of borax, but it's still lots of fun to squish and roll with your hands! You can also play with this slime in the bathtub, as it will dissolve into a fun, bubbly mess.

How to clean slime off surfaces

Slime is a sticky, stretchy material by nature, so chances are it's gonna end up somewhere you don't want. Here is how you can clean slime off a few different surfaces.

How to clean slime off clothes

1. Remove what slime you can with a tool that won't catch on the fibres of the fabric, like a rounded spoon or butter knife.
2. Let the slime harden so you can safely scrape off as much as possible. Leave it out, or pop the clothing in the freezer until it hardens. Then scrape the slime off again.
3. Gently rub some laundry detergent into the stain and allow it to sit for between five and ten minutes.
4. Rinse out the detergent, then soak the clothing in warm water for half an hour.
5. Wash the clothing as you normally would in your machine.

How to clean slime off furniture

1. Scrape off the slime with a blunt tool, making sure not to rub any of the slime into the fabric. If your furniture is made from a water-resistant material like polyester, all the slime should come off here!
2. Use a clean cloth and blot at the stain with clean water until all of the slime has come away.

How to clean slime off the carpet

Make sure the slime isn't stepped on, as this can spread it further into the fibres of your carpet.

1. Scrape away the slime with a spoon.
2. Create a cleaning mixture that consists of one-third warm water and two-thirds vinegar. Apply this to the stain with a soft brush, agitating the carpet fibres gently with the bristles of the brush.
3. Blot with a clean white rag to remove the stain. Repeat adding the vinegar solution and blotting away until all traces of the slime are gone.
4. Vacuum once the spot is dry to remove any dried bits and fluff your carpet back up.

How To Make Playdough

If you've ever wanted to learn how to make homemade playdough, this universal recipe for playdough creates a compound that is soft, easy to shape and brightly coloured. It is non-toxic, although we definitely wouldn't recommend it be eaten as a snack!

When making playdough you'll need flour (you can use gluten-free flour if your child has a gluten intolerance), cooking oil, cream of tartar, salt, boiling water and some gel food colouring.

1. Combine the dry ingredients in a large glass bowl - two cups of flour, half a cup of salt and two tablespoons of cream of tartar. Then mix with two tablespoons of oil.
2. Carefully pour in one and a half cups of boiling water. Combine the ingredients using a spatula, then your hands once it has cooled.
3. Lay down a sheet of waxed or baking paper. Separate the dough and roll up into equal balls using your hands and rest on the paper. Knead them to make a small 'well' in each one, like very round bowls.
4. Add a few drops of gel food colouring into each well, then use your hands to knead the colour through the dough (wear gloves if you don't want your hands to get stained).

Now you know how to make easy playdough at home! Store your playdough in an airtight container for up to two months. If your dough starts to dry out, wrap each ball in a damp cloth overnight to refresh.

How to make playdough without cream of tartar

Allergies to cream of tartar aren't common - it's more likely you simply won't have it on hand. When making playdough, adding cream of tartar to the recipe is what helps make it feel so squishy and pliable - so you'll need a substitute that will produce similar results!

If you want to learn how to make playdough without cream of tartare, there are three ingredients you can switch it with. You can substitute it with two tablespoons of lemon juice and a little flour, three tablespoons of baking powder or two tablespoons of vinegar. Avoid using vinegar when making playdough unless absolutely necessary, as it creates an unpleasant smell in the dough.

How to clean playdough off surfaces

Playdough isn't as sticky as slime but its strong colour can stain surfaces if it is left in place and not treated properly.

How to clean playdough from clothes

1. Scrape as much of the dough from the clothing as possible using a blunt object, like a spoon or butter knife.
2. Soak the clothing in water for up to half an hour to loosen the remaining playdough.
3. Use a soft brush to scrape away any softened dough, but don't mash it into the material.
4. Add a little washing liquid onto the leftover stain, leave for twenty minutes and then rinse.
5. Wash the clothing as you normally would in your machine to finish.

How to clean playdough from carpet

If the tried and true method of using more playdough to lift bits of playdough from your carpet hasn't worked, here is what you should do next:

1. Let the dough dry and use a stiff brush to remove as much as you can, then vacuum up the rest.
2. Blot at any remaining stains with rubbing alcohol to lift the colour, or use hydrogen peroxide if your carpet is white. Let dry, then vacuum again.

You can use this method to remove playdough from fabric-covered furniture as well.

Create Slime And Playdough For Your Kids With Spotlight

Your kids will love their homemade slime and playdough - they can even join in on the mixing if you need an extra set of hands! You can find heaps of slime-making kits, food colouring and modelling dough at Spotlight. Shop online, safely pay and we'll deliver your order straight to your front door. Otherwise, drop by your local Spotlight store and our friendly team will help you get all your slime and playdough supplies in person.

Check out our glues and tapes buying guide for a rundown on all the kinds of adhesives you can find at Spotlight, and browse our kids' craft and toys and games projects for heaps of other fun activities you and your kids can make together.

For more fun art and craft ideas for kids, read our blogs on fingerpainting, making pom poms, using soft pastels and painting on fabric.