40 Ingenious Uses For Flour That Prove It’s So Much More Than A Baking Ingredient

That bag of flour sitting in the back of your cupboard? It’s good for a lot more than baking. Yep, you can make just about anything with this humble ingredient, including some money-saving hacks that’ll save you a trip to the store. So here are our favorite ways to get the most out of this household staple – from natural make-up to nifty cleaning hacks!

Seed starter pots

Got green fingers? Then we’ve got the flour hack for you! Add torn-up waste paper to a blender, cover with water and allow it to soften before blending into a paste. Then strain off the mix and mash together the paper until it feels like wet clay. After that, sprinkle over two tablespoons of flour, blend it in, then mold the paper-flour combo into pot shapes in a muffin pan. You’re going to need to bake these at 400 ºF for an hour. Once your new containers are dry, simply add soil and get planting!

DIY playdough

Young or old, we all love playdough! To make this enduring boredom-buster, just mix two tablespoons of warm water, one tablespoon of vegetable oil, and some food coloring in a bowl. Then grab another deep dish and combine two tablespoons of flour with a tablespoon of salt. Finally, add the dry mix to the wet one and stir together until you get that famously doughy consistency. Why not get creative and add glitter stars, too, for a galactic twist?

Glue sticks

Glue sticks, right? Never there when you need them. But don’t worry. Combine half a cup of flour with some water and a pinch of salt, and you’ll have a natural glue in no time! Spread your sticky mix with a paintbrush, or add more water and put the liquid into a bottle to make a spray adhesive. Even better, this alternative is non-toxic – making it perfect for craft sessions with your little ones.

Fight acne

Zits getting you down? Well, there’s no need to rush out for some Proactiv! Simply mix up two teaspoons of gram flour with a third of a teaspoon of turmeric powder and one and a half teaspoons of water. Then slather the paste on your face with a brush or your fingers, being careful not to get any in your mouth or eyes. Leave to dry before washing off, and your acne will have met its match.