Arts&Crafts: Essential oil play dough recipe

As you all know, Charlene is our craft specialist, aunt of two and blogger. Well, she came to visit me last week and we decided to have some fun with the kids. What you may not know is that Charlene is also a qualified reflexologist. She shared some knowledge on essential oils and their value. If you are looking for the perfect activity to calm kids down before naptime- essential oil playdough is the answer.

Deciding on an essential oil with a calming effect

Charlene says essential oils are basically the essence of a plant that retains the wonderful scent and certain characteristics of that plant. Making use of essential oils in your products is therefore not only good for your body but the environment too. Just remember these are concentrated oils. Essential oils should be used with caution as certain essential oils do have contraindications and some oils should be avoided altogether for children; the warnings and instructions on the bottle should be followed and if you are unsure please consult with your doctor.

Here are a few essential oils that can usually be used around children: Lavender, Mandarin, Chamomile, Grapefruit, Tea Tree, Frankincense, Sweet orange and Cypress.

We chose to add Lavender and Chamomile to our playdough for its calming effect, pairing it with a mixture of blue and red food colouring (making purple) and then yellow.

So enough yada-yada- here is your recipe:

How to make cook free essential oil play dough to calm active kids

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour
1/2 cup table salt
3 tablespoons of vegetable oil
2 tablespoons tartar
1 1/2 cups of boiling water

Choose your essential oil and food colour to compliment it:

You will need a few drops essential oil
A few drops of food colouring
Gloves (if you do not want your hands stained)

You can get your oils from Faithful to Nature

Play dough recipe| Arts and crafts|Things to do With kids

How to make no cook aromatherapy play dough (clay)

Measure off all the dry ingredients in a large bowl.
Add vegetable oil and mix it together.
Slowly add the boiling water to the bowl and mix with a spoon or folding knife until thoroughly combined. (It's hot so be careful) Knead until it forms a soft dough.
Divide the dough into three equal portions.
Add the chosen essential oils for each individual dough portion. (Charlene and I decided on chamomile and lavender for its calming effect, thus yellow and purple food colouring.)
Knead each batch until the colour is mixed through evenly and the play dough is smooth.
And Whalaa! There you have it.

Now share it with your friends. Play , smell , have tranquil fun!