Homemade dough · Playdough

Cornstarch and hair conditioner dough

A soft, smooth dough with just 2 ingredients: 1 part hair conditioner to 2 parts cornstarch. The recipe, how to adjust it, and how to store it.

By the Slime & Co editorial team · Updated

Hands kneading a dough
Photo: Theme Photos on Unsplash.

This very soft, almost silky dough is made with two ingredients from the bathroom and the kitchen: hair conditioner and cornstarch, 1 part to 2. It smells nice, molds easily, and takes five minutes to make.

Ingredients

Supplies: a mixing bowl, a spoon.

Steps

  1. Pour the conditioner into the bowl.
  2. Add the food coloring.
  3. Stir in the cornstarch with the spoon.
  4. When it gets too thick, knead by hand into a smooth ball.
  5. Sticky: a little cornstarch; dry: a little conditioner.

How do you know it worked?

It’s ready when it forms a smooth, soft ball that leaves almost nothing on your fingers. Roll a small snake: it should bend without cracking. If it breaks, the dough needs more conditioner; if it sticks to the table, it needs more cornstarch. Add either one in small amounts, a spoonful at a time, and knead for a minute before you decide. This dough isn’t meant to harden into a keepsake: it’s a play dough for shaping, flattening and cutting with cookie cutters.

The most common slime fails

It’s sticky
A little cornstarch.
It crumbles
A little conditioner.

Variations and ideas

How to store it

Airtight container; use it within a few days.

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