Craft Recipes
with Julianne Bell

Here are some craft recipes I have accumulated or developed over the years. If you have other craft recipes you would like to share, please send them to me.

Glittery Salt:

Mix 5-6 drops of food coloring to ½ cup of table salt. Microwave 1-2 minutes or air dry on waxed paper overnight.  Store in an airtight container and use as glitter.

Soap Paint:

Mix 1 teaspoon of dishwashing liquid (preferably clear or white) and 1 teaspoon of water with several drops of food color.  Use as paint.

Finger Paint:

Mix 2 cups of flour, 2 teaspoons of salt with 2 ½ cups of cold water. Stir until smooth. Slowly add this mixture to 2 cups of boiling water in a pan. Bring mixture to boil until smooth and thick. Stir in food coloring. Use as finger paint. Freezer paper works well for finger paint paper.

Disappearing Paint:

Mix 1/8 teaspoon of liquid bluing with 2 cups of water and turn children loose to paint with it on sidewalks, driveway, or patio. Hooray it disappears!!!

Play Dough:

Mix 2 cups of flour, 1 cup of table salt, 4 teaspoons of cream of tartar, 2 cups of water, 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil, and food coloring in a saucepan. Continue mixing ingredients together over medium heat until dough leaves side of pan and follows spoon. Cool and knead. Store in airtight container and use as play dough.

Kool-Aid Play Dough:

Mix 1 cup of flour, ½ cup of table salt, 3 tablespoons of vegetable oil, and package of unsweetened Kool-aid in a mixing bowl.  Stir in 1 cup of boiling water. Knead until soft.  Store in airtight container and use as scented play dough.

Bubble Soap:

Mix 1 cup dishwashing liquid (brand names tend to work better for better suds), 10 cups of water, and ¼ cup of light corn syrup or ¼ cup of glycerin (may be purchased at drug stores). Use your imagination to make all kinds of cool bubble blowers (straws, funnels, slotted spoons, etc) You can take old wire hangers and reshape them to use as blowers too.

Crystallized Gardens:

Place 4-6 charcoal briquettes in an aluminum pan (most moms prefer the disposable so you can toss them at the end). Mix ¼ cup table salt, ¼ cup liquid bluing, ¼ cup ammonia together. Sprinkle a few drops of different colored food colorings on the charcoal and pour the salt mixture over briquettes. Make more of the salt mixture every few days to add to your garden.

Silly Willy Putty:

Place 1 tablespoon liquid starch in a bowl. Add 1 tablespoon of white kid’s glue (not Elmer’s school glue, it must be the white glue, like Elmer’s white glue or it will not work properly). Fold starch over the glob of glue until it’s not sticky. Press the glob between your fingers and pull like taffy.

Corn Syrup Finger Paint:

Mix corn syrup and a couple drops of food coloring into a container and mix well. Do this with as many colors as you need to finger paint a picture. Let the child paint and then let dry flat for a couple of days until no longer sticky. This makes a very shiny pictures when done, but may attract sugar ants, so be careful where you sit this to dry.

Clown Paint:

1/8 c. Baby Lotion, 1/4 tsp Powdered Tempera paint, and 1 squirt liquid Dishwashing Soap. 

Mix and use. Easily removed by soap and water *Note: test on skin first for any possible reactions.

Make-Believe Mud:  

Warm water (warm enough to melt soap), 1 bar dove soap, 1 roll white toilet paper.

Have the children tear up the toilet paper into little bits (the smaller the better). Using a cheese grater, grate the bar of soap into a big bowl. Add the torn up toilet paper to the bowl. Add the warm water a little bit at a time while mixing the toilet paper and the soap together. You have added enough water when the mixture begins to feel like a thick cool whip. Do not make the mixture soupy. The more you play with it the fluffier it becomes. Kids love it and so does mom (it doesn't stain clothes).  

Goop/Slime:

1 Part Liquid starch, 2 Parts Elmer's White Glue, Food Coloring to tint.

Mix and enjoy. It is a goopy, slimy concoction.