All-Natural Candy Cane Play Dough

Oh, I am so excited to welcome the Advent season this sunday. I really want to get an Advent wreath or make one so that we can talk about the significance with the girls each week and light the candles. Really looking forward to reading what the ladies have put together from She Read's Truth. Their Advent Journal is so lovely and Raechel's recipe for Peppermint Play-doh inspired this post.

"Oh tidings of comfort and joy, comfort and joy."

I've been wanting to make our own play dough forever! I just loved this post from Katie and this one from Jen. I thought it would be so fun to create play dough specifically for the season and to use some of our favorite seasonal oils: Peppermint, Christmas spirit and/or Thieves. We made half "white" aka natural dough with "Christmas Spirit" and half "red" dyed with beet juice with the addition of "Peppermint." They smell amazing and you get the added benefit of the oils while you are working with the dough.

All-Natural Candy Cane Play Dough

makes red + white dough

You will need:

+ 2 cups flour

+ 1 cup salt (I used kosher sea salt)

+ 2 cups water

+ 2 T oil

+ 4 t cream of tartar

+ Canned beets

+ Essentials Oils

Put all of these ingredients in a medium saucepan and stir constantly until the dough begins to pull away from the sides of the pan (about 10 min).

Divide the dough in half and put in two bowls. For the "red" dough take the juice from a can of beets and slowly work it into the dough. I used about 3 T at a time and kept working it in until the desired color was achieved. I then added 4 drops of Peppermint essential oil and worked that in. Make sure to work in well before little ones play with it.

For the "white" dough I added 4 drops of Christmas Spirit. You could also use Thieves oil. Both smell incredible and support the immune + respiratory systems.

We used my Mama Lou's vintage cookie cutters and a pastry board and our imaginations to create all sorts of things. You could also use this to make salt dough ornaments. Such an amazing way to welcome the Christmas season and the little ones will love smelling the dough. This would make such a fun gift for friends.