Easy DIY Black Playdough

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This easy DIY black playdough is sleek, shiny, and oh-so-easy to make. The no-cook recipe pairs perfectly with a snake theme as it is super stretchy. Using it this month also works well with Lunar New Year “Year of the Snake“ activities.

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Easy DIY Black Playdough Ingredients

Gather the following supplies for this black playdough recipe:

2 cups flour
1 cup salt
1 cup water
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tsp black gel icing color
½ tsp glycerin
large bowl
measuring cup
mixing spoon

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Making the No-Cook Black Playdough

This black playdough recipe can be made quickly. Here are the instructions:

Add two cups of flour to a serving bowl.
Pour in 1 cup of salt.
Add 1 cup of water.
Measure in 2 tbsp vegetable oil.
Drop in 1 tsp black gel icing color.
Add ½ tsp glycerin.
Stir all the ingredients together with a mixing spoon until it becomes thick. Then take the playdough out of the bowl and knead it thoroughly.

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The nice thing about this playdough is that you can play around with the ingredients and it will turn out just fine. If the dough is a little dry, add in a tiny bit more water, glycerin, or oil. If it is a little moist, add a small amount of flour. Kneading the ingredients thoroughly makes it moldable.

If the playdough looks more grey than black measure in more black gel icing color. Note: The playdough will get a little darker over time so it doesn’t need to look all-black immediately.

For additional shine, add a teaspoon more glycerin.

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Little hands will look greenish after making and using the playdough because of the intense black gel color. The gel color is edible, and hands should be their normal hue again after a few washes.

This easy DIY black playdough recipe is super shiny and has a lot of stretch. It becomes a little like slime when reused…how fun!

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Year of the Snake Playdough Invitation

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The homemade black playdough recipe makes a great 2025 Lunar New Year (Year of the Snake) or a reptile-themed activity. Add white beads, small wiggly eyes, and cardstock paper forked tongues. Then invite participants to create beautiful black and white snakes.

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Reusing the Black Playdough

This show-stopping black playdough can be used a few times. When finished playing with it, store it in saran wrap and put it in a sealed container. Place the dough in the fridge if you wish. Keep a little oil and flour on hand to mix in when you pull the shiny black playdough out a second and third time. The dough may be a little moist but will soon be pliable when the two ingredients are kneaded in.

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No Cook Versus Cooked Playdough Recipes

Cooked playdough is long-lasting if stored properly. It is delightful to use, and I love its properties.

When making cooked playdough, take note of the following:

You need a stove to heat up the recipe, or a kettle to heat water.
Most cooked recipes use cream of tartar, a rather expensive ingredient.
The recipe must be made carefully according to the instructions, or it will be too sticky or dry.
It is hard to fix the dough when it is too sticky…I haven’t had much luck with that!

But I love cooked playdough and have made it many times. It is a great choice if you are making a batch ahead of time.

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In the last while I’ve tried more no-cook playdough recipes, selecting ones that do not use boiling water. This is because:

It is easy to include children in making the playdough as there is no need to worry about burns from a hot mixture or stove. And children love helping!
If the ingredients in a recipe are tweaked the playdough will still usually turn out fine. Thorough kneading is key for this.
The recipes do not usually need cream of tartar, which is an additional cost and may not be an ingredient you have on hand.

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