This recipe for easy DIY cloud dough may contain affiliate links.
One of my favorite things to do is play with cloud dough or other sensory play toys with my son. Play dough, cloud dough, moon sand, kinetic sand, there are so many great options. But this cloud dough is easy to make, really affordable, and only requires 2 ingredients. One of my favorite things about it, though, is that it is 100% edible, so if your child accidentally eats some, it’s okay. (It won’t taste great, but it is safe-to-eat). Here’s how to make it!
To make your cloud dough, first measure out 8 cups of flour. If you do think your child may consume it, you may want to bake the flour on a cookie sheet for around 5 minutes at 350 in order to reduce the risk of salmonella. If you’re certain your child won’t eat it, feel free to skip this step.
Add in 1 cup of melted coconut oil. This will help the DIY cloud dough do its moldable thing where it sticks to itself, but it also softens your hands. Why coconut oil? It’s edible, unlike baby oil, and it makes the cloud dough softer as your hands knead it and play with it.
If needed for texture, add in either coconut oil or flour one teaspoon at a time until you get the moldable consistency you’re looking for. If desired, you can add some drops of food coloring. However, it won’t color the whole dough at this point. It will simply make for fun little speckles.
The great thing about this dough is that it can be cut, shaped, kneaded, and molded. We love to use our DIY cloud dough with cookie cutters to make sweet shapes for each other.
So what’s the difference between cloud dough and kinetic sand? Cloud dough is a softer modeling dough, making it perfect for kids who need or want the sensory experience of kinetic sand without the coarseness that sand brings. It’s a great, soft play tool that is perfect for play therapy or sensory experiences.
My son also loves to press it into various molds to make sand castles with his DIY cloud dough. It’s so soft and fun that it’s the perfect sensory bin filler. It’s also great for allowing him to play while I read aloud.
Because it’s easy and affordable, you can always make more whenever you need it, too!
What’s your favorite sensory bin filler?
We have so many favorites– cloud dough, kinetic sand, water beads, and more! Let us know your favorite in the comments below. Don’t forget to scroll down for the full recipe for this DIY cloud dough!
Fun Cloud Dough Toys
If you want to have tons of fun with your cloud dough, add in some simple toys. Here are a few of our favorites.
Coconut Oil for making DIY Cloud Dough
Plenty of Cookie Cutters to keep you entertained for hours
Molds for Shaping Kinetic Sand and Cloud Dough
More Sensory Play DIYs
DIY Unicorn Kinetic Sand
DIY Soap Dough (Play dough for the bath that gets kids clean!)
Arctic Play Bin
DIY Cloud Dough Recipe
- 8 parts flour
- 1 part coconut oil, in liquid state
- If desired, bake flour for 5 minutes at 350 to reduce salmonella risk.
- Combine cooled flour and coconut oil together, kneading with hands until it sticks together when grasped.
- If too dry, add coconut oil 1 tsp at a time.
- If too soft, add flour 1 tsp at a time.
