We’ve been making a few fun bath products for grown-ups recently, like our Coffee Sugar Scrub, so I thought it would be only fair to make something fun for the kids. We’ve already experimented with homemade fizzy bath bombs so this time we tried making Play Dough Soap – a bath time play dough that actually helps kids get clean!
Play Dough Soap Recipe
I don’t know why, but for an aspiring mermaid my daughter really tries to avoid taking a bath!
I don’t think she’s ever asked to take a bath, and when I tell her it’s time to get ready for a bath, about half the time she tries to argue that she just had a bath. (“But Mom, I had a bath just last week…” I kid, I kid. The longest I’d let her go is maybe three days. They’re cute but boy, can these kids get smelly!)
Recently, I’ve started putting more attention into making bath time fun for her. Reading stories in the bathroom as she has a bath, adding a few waterproof toys and plastic cups, and recently – with this awesome play dough soap!
My daughter thought I had lost my mind when I surprised her with these three play dough soaps for a recent bath – but she wasn’t about to correct me that play dough does not go in the bath tub! She was so excited to play with it that she completely forgot her ritual protest!
This recipe makes an incredibly soft, squishy (but not messy) play dough that when wet suds up a bit and actually cleans, while being gentle for sensitive skin.
It doesn’t leave residue on the bath and washes completely clean – don’t worry about the food dye, it will only dye your hands when you’re making the soap! (It washes off within a couple hand washings but if that would bother you, plastic disposable gloves are a great solution – or feel free to leave the dye out completely.)
Play Dough Soap is a great gift to make for a child who needs a bit of convincing to agree to a bath – or some distraction to survive hair washing! I love it as an alternative to bath toys which just add clutter to our tiny bathroom. It would also make an awesome DIY party favour, especially if the kids get sent home a little bit messy or sweaty.
I did a bit of research before sharing this recipe, and you can purchase play dough soap from specialty bath stores like Lush (or online here) that appears to be more soap-like than play dough-like, which ours is. I personally wanted something I could make with what I already had in the house and I don’t want to be experimenting with recipes involving lye or strong chemicals in the house. This recipe is mostly meant for some bath time sensory play that adds a bit of sudsy cleansing action to the bath. It’s not going to be as soapy or cleansing as a bar of soap, though it will get your kids clean!
I actually really enjoy this play dough soap for helping clean under finger nails which it is surprisingly good at.
Ingredients to Make Play Dough Soap
First, gather your ingredients:
- 1-2 cups Castile soap (I used Dr. Bronner’s)
- 3 cups + flour
- 1 1/2 cups salt
- 2 Tablespoons Cream of Tartar
- 2 Tablespoons oil
- 2 cups water
- Food dye, optional
- Mason jar or plastic container, for storing
How to Make Play Dough Soap
Start off by boiling your water.
Stir 3 cups of flour, salt, and cream of tartar together. Set aside.
Measure 2 cups of boiling water and add the oil to it. If you are only adding one colour of food dye, you can add it now.
Add 1 cup of the soap. I used lavender Castile soap because it is a pure soap and for the calming effects of lavender during a night time bath. If you try this recipe with a non-castille soap, please let me know how it turns out!
Mix the water-oil and flour mixtures until fully incorporated.
Once the dough has cooled enough for safe handling, start kneading it, adding in more flour to reduce stickiness. Once you get a good texture going, add a couple squirts of castille soap and keep kneading. Add more soap to get a soft dough but stop short of letting it get sticky again. I added just over 1 1/2 cups of soap and probably could have added more (or you can add an extra squirt of soap while your child is playing with it in the bathtub for more sudsy play).
This recipe made a giant batch of play dough soap – enough for over a month’s worth of baths! It completely dissolves in the bath and can be washed away, so I don’t worry about how big of a handful Miss G grabs before climbing in the bath.
Are you planning on giving this Play Dough Soap a try? Be sure to pin it to make your bath times a bit more fun!
Check out these other play dough recipes made with soap from my fellow mom bloggers:
Super Squishy DIY Soap Dough | Natural Beach Living
Easy Soap Dough Play Recipe | Frogs and Snails and Puppy Dog Tail
Dish Soap Play Dough Recipe | Sugar Aunts
For more amazing DIY Soap recipes from us, check our our Jiggly Jelly Soap recipe or our Mermaid Tail Soaps recipe.
Claire says
Hi this post doesn’t seem to be coming up I can only ser the title ?
Jennifer Tammy says
I’m so sorry about that, Claire! I had hit publish instead of save when I first started putting the post together. It’s live now 🙂
Buffy says
Can you use a stand mixer to make and kneed the soap dough?
Jennifer Tammy says
Absolutely!
Kristine says
Do have a suggestion for a replacement for kids allergic to wheat flour?
Jennifer Tammy says
I’m sorry – I didn’t get a notification of a new comment on this post.
I am going to be experimenting with a cornstarch version and will update you when it’s up. I just got the ingredients 🙂
Heidi B says
aNYWORD on making GF? Can you use a GF all purpose flour instead? Or would corn starch be better
Samantha says
I used corn starch and it came out perfect
Jennifer Tammy says
Yes, we have a gluten-free cornstarch version on the blog, too 🙂
Elizabeth A Smith says
I too am looking for a gluten-free option.
Starla says
Try http://www.gfjules.com/ I don’t buy any flour except hers. I even use it to make my GF 5 tier wedding cake and I got a ton kudos. If the recipe calls for 2 cups of flour, you just use 2 cups of jules flour. I don’t use anything else but her flour. There isn’t anything I can’t bake, use for gravies, it is awesome.
Jennifer Tammy says
I am going to be playing around with a cornstarch option hopefully this weekend – sorry for my delay in replying!
Retha says
What type of oil did you use?
Jennifer Tammy says
I believe I used a natural vegetable oil – if you’d prefer coconut oil, you may need to add an extra tablespoon.
Aimee says
If you are using more then one colour when do you add these?
erin says
I made this last night in 4 colors. After I combined the wet and dry ingredients, I separated the dough into 4 bowls and added the coloring then, before kneading each color individually. It worked out perfectly – hope that helps!
Jennifer Tammy says
Thank you, Erin! (Sorry, we are ALL sick in this house this week – we went to an wedding out of the country last weekend and came back with all sorts of illness, lol)
I personally will have 4 bowls on the go and just halve the recipes into each, because I dislike having to knead the colours in afterwards, but yes – kneading the colours in afterwards is the best way to only make one batch and reduce dishes. I’ll edit the post to reflect because I can see that I totally skipped that step!
We also made a gluten-free option this week with only 3 ingredients, so I’ll post that this weekend and drop the link in here.
Jessica says
Can I use a different kind of soap? I can’t find that where I live and wanted to make it today.
Jennifer Tammy says
Yes, we just experimented with using Dove body wash and that worked well. The Dr. Bronner’s is at Target and a lot of natural stores.
Blaire says
Anyone tried with baby body wash?
Rel says
I just made some with baby body wash and seems to have worked 🙂
Rel says
Since it makes so much what’s the best way to store it? In the fridge?
Jennifer Tammy says
Hi Rel!
I’m so glad it works out for you 🙂
I just kept it in a plastic bag in the bathroom and it’s done well (no mold or consistency change), but if you have room in the fridge that is a great option to store the excess. When I made the multiple colours for the pictures above I sent some over to friends’ houses so their kids could enjoy it, too
Louise says
I really want to try making this for a few gifts for Xmas. Can you please tell me the reason for the cream of tartar please and also the oil? I can only order castile soap online which is fine but I wondered what else would work well for children to wash with? I tried someone else’s recipe which involved only flour soap and food colouring and it was a sticky mess more like pastry dough ? so I’m hoping yours is better lol
Jennifer Tammy says
Cream of tartar helps with the consistency but it also acts as a preservative so I would absolutely leave it in the recipe. The oil also helps turn this recipe into a “dough” and not a gloopy mess.
We also tried a creamy body wash and it worked well if you don’t want to splurge on the castile soup.
Brandi Wilson says
Worked great for us. I need to experiment more with colours. Loved how soft and pliable it is.
Jennifer Tammy says
I’m so glad you liked it, Brandi!
Nicole says
HI! I am wondering if you could tell me about how much this makes. I am teaching a Summer class with at least 10 kids and I am wondering how man batches to make so that they each get at least 3 playdough bars.
Thanks!
Jennifer Tammy says
Great question (and that sounds so fun!)
This recipe made a ton – about 4 cups? Ours lasted awhile (longer than usual play dough) and you only need a small piece to “soap up” so doing 3 batches would be plenty.