Everything you’ll need to dye sensory play is here and if you haven’t noticed there’s really 3 main ways you can dye sensory items- it honestly depends on what you have, your comfort level and whether you need something taste safe. The 3 methods (from taste safe to not) are: - Food coloring + 1 tsp vinegar (or lemon juice) per 1 cup of base - Liquid watercoloring - Acrylic Paint Dyeing items: 1. Rice: my two favorite methods are food coloring and liquid watercolor. I find paint makes rice clumpy and tends to flake off so it’s my least favorite way to dye sensory bases. Dyeing rice with food coloring takes about 20 minutes to dry. 2. Beans: I have seen people dye these with food coloring but it always makes the shells of my beans like shrivel up so I stick to acrylic paint if I need to dye them. I find it lets me use brighter and more fun colors and I’m not concerned about making this base taste safe since beans cannot be ingested! If your kids are still mouthing, please don’t use beans as a sensory base. Dyeing beans with paint takes about 1-2 hours to dry. 3. Pasta: You can use paint with pasta but I tend to stick with food coloring or liquid watercolor because it’s simple and if I use food coloring the pasta is still taste safe. Dyed pasta takes 1-2 hours to dry on a tray. 4. Chickpeas: Again you can use paint, liquid watercolor, or food coloring. It’s a personal preference and one you can’t go wrong with. If you use food coloring just be ready for the chickpeas to not be completely coated since they have so many grooves! Takes about 1-3 hours to dry since you use so much food coloring. 5. Oats: Mix liquid watercolor with some water just enough to help the color spread into the oats. I dry these overnight so I can be sure they’re dry and I can store them without worry of them getting moldy! #sensoryactivities #sensoryplayideas #sensory #diy #sensoryplay #toddlermom