June is certainly shaping up to be a busy month for us—my daughter’s social schedule is jam-packed with birthday parties. (Seriously were all her friends born in June?)

Of course, after each party, my girl comes home with her little bag of loot. Some are great (one really useful item such as flip-flops or a notebook with a fun coloured pen) some are not so great (big bag of candy—ugh). Whether you love these party take-aways or hate them, kids like their loot. So why not try a party activity that doubles as a take-home goodie?

One of my faves for the under-8 crowd is letting kids help mix up their own batch of no-cook playdough. The recipe is super simple—only a few ingredients and a few quick steps.

What you’ll need:
• 1 cup flour
• 1/2 cup salt
• 3 Tbsp vegetable oil
• 1/3 cup water with 12 drops of food colouring (we like the neon kind for bright colours like our lime-green dough, shown here.)

Directions:
1. Mix the first three ingredients well until it forms into a ball.
2. Add coloured water.
3. Add a little more oil if the mix is too dry, or a little more flour if it is too wet. Blend well.

You can give younger kids a bowl of premixed dough that is ready for moulding, or give older kids the ingredients, a bowl and wooden spoon so they can make it themselves. (Either way, some dollar store aprons will help keep party clothes clean.)

When they are finished playing with their dough, pack it up in small containers (with other premixed colours) and use a pretty ribbon to attach a couple of small cookie cutters and the printed dough recipe. Now they have loot that they can play with again and again. (And you get to be that mom with the cool loot idea!)

Looking for more fun DIY ideas? Check out these finger-woven fabric necklaces and these funky painted sneakers.

—Robin, CF’s executive editor