The Perfect Play Dough?

We are gearing up for yet another birthday party for one of Mia's little friends, so that meant making a fresh batch of play dough. It really makes an awesome, inexpensive gift, in my opinion. (All I know is that nobody has complained yet, but that would bad form, of course.) I really do believe that homemade stuff is perfect for children's birthday gifts and not just because I am cheap resourceful! This will keep her interest for several weeks of creative play. Plus, what mom wouldn't be happy for her child to receive homemade gifts in place of yet another Barbie doll?

When I asked Mia what kind of play dough she wanted to make, she couldn't decide between Kool-Aid play dough and glitter play dough, so we decided to combine the two. This was actually something that I had wanted to try for awhile, but hadn't had the opportunity. Our most recent batch of play dough is holding strong, you see, and we made it two months ago. To make our "perfect play dough" or  "sensory overload play dough," as I am calling it in my mind, we used the Kool-Aid play dough recipe and then added in the glitter at the end. I LOVE any homemade play dough, but this one smells delicious, has vibrant color, and it has a little something extra in the form of sparkle, so who could ask for more? It's quite possibly the perfect play dough!

To make the gift of play dough complete, I like to include inexpensive plastic cookie cutters. (After Easter, I stock piled a bunch of these that I picked up on clearance at Target. Thirty cents for a 4-pack was a steal!) Also, here is where I posted directions for how I make my recipe "label" to attach to the jar, in case you are wondering. Mia's friend, the birthday girl, will also be receiving a few other homemade goodies to round out her gift bag including: a wave bottle, a seek 'n' find bottle, some dyed pasta beads for making bracelets and necklaces (materials for that included), some bunny shaped scribble cookies plus a construction paper pad, and a batch of homemade bubble solution complete with two wands made from pipe cleaners. (This bubble recipe is a new one I have tried this year and have not blogged about since I want to try a couple more recipes before doing a post. If you are looking for a recipe now, feel free to check out the 3 I tried last year.)

Ingredients:

• ½ Cup salt                           
• 1 Cup flour                        
• 2 tsp. cream of tartar        
• 1 pkg. Kool-Aid*                  
• 1 Tbs. cooking oil               
• 1 Cup water               *I use generic drink mix packets.*
• glitter

Directions:

1. In a pan, mix dry ingredients. Add oil and water. Kids can help with this. (We used a Kroger Tropical Punch unsweetened drink mix packet for this particular batch.)
2. Cook on medium heat until a ball forms, stirring as needed.
3. Set aside to cool, and then knead the play dough. Kids can help with this. Tip: Wax paper or a cutting board or place mat will protect your work surface from stains.
4. To add glitter, I find it is easiest to make a well in the play dough, pour in small amount of glitter, cover it over with the dough and then knead until it is distributed throughout the dough. Repeat as needed until you have as much glitter as desired. Tip: Glitter play dough is not all that messy. The glitter tends to stay in the play dough quite well and not end up everywhere, as you might expect it to. So, don't be afraid to add some sparkle to your play dough! If you are concerned about the mess, just have kids play with it on a vinyl place mat, some wax paper, a cutting board, or my new favorite multi-purpose craft item: the liner from a cereal box - It's free and stuff doesn't stick to it. You can even re-use these.
5. Enjoy! Play dough will keep for several weeks in an airtight container. Tip: Cool Whip tubs, zippered baggies, and jars work well for this. My personal favorite are plastic peanut butter jars. Important Note about Homemade Play Dough: Although it is non-toxic, kids shouldn't eat it. It's very salty, so I'm not sure why they would want to, but it does happen. Tip: Personal experience has taught me to keep play dough away from pets as well. I can't tell you how many times our dog has eaten this and then gotten sick. It doesn't hurt her, of course, but it is a nuisance to have to clean up dog vomit while your kid is contentedly playing with his new batch of play dough.

DIY Glitter Play Dough

We have tried a few play dough recipes over the years and despite all the minor variations, I don't think there is truly a whole lot of difference. Really, any homemade play dough trumps store-bought, hands-down. There are a few reasons for this:
1) It always lasts a lot longer.
2) It always smells much nicer.
3) It is always softer and easier to work with.
4) You always know what is in it so it isn't too terribly frightening if when one of the kids inevitably samples some.
5) It saves you money.
6) It's fun to make it and the kids can help, too.

That said, this is one of my favorite recipes for play dough, and we've been using this recipe for over a year. The fun thing about this version is, of course, the addition of glitter. Despite what you may be thinking, this is not that messy. The dough actually holds the glitter quite well, but if you are concerned, have kids play with it on a place mat. This makes for easy clean-up.

My little guy is a HUGE fan of play dough. Even though he isn't usually too keen on crafts, he is always up for making a new batch of this stuff. We have tons of plastic cookie cutters and rolling pins that we keep for play dough tools as well as plastic cutlery, saved from fast food meals and several kitchen toy items like a plastic pizza cutter that has been given a new purpose. He also enjoys driving his toy cars and trucks through the play dough, so play dough is pretty versatile.

Play dough is also perfect for gift giving. Most kids enjoy it and will play for quite a long while with minimal supervision required, which I think most moms will agree is a great bonus. Include the recipe and a few plastic cookie cutters, and voila, you have a very affordable and quick-to-create present, using items you likely already have on hand. We recently made a batch of this glitter play dough for an upcoming birthday party that my daughter was invited to. (The birthday girl is getting a few other homemade goodies including this DIY Seek 'n' Find Bottle.)

Ingredients:

• ½ Cup salt                           
• 1 Cup flour                        
• 1 Cup water                        
• 1 Tbs. cooking oil           
• 1 Tbs. cream of tartar     
  
• Food coloring                    
• Glitter                                  

Directions:

1. Mix flour, salt, cream of tartar, water, and oil.
2. Cook in a sauce pan on medium heat until a ball forms. Set dough aside to cool.
3. Make a well in the dough and add a few drops of food coloring. Knead until color is well-blended. Tip: To protect your work surface from stains, do this on wax paper, a cutting board, or a place mat.
4. Add glitter in small batches, kneading it into the play dough.
5. Enjoy! Play dough will keep for several weeks in an airtight container. Tip: You don't need anything special or fancy. I have used zippered bags, Cool Whip containers, and my personal favorite, peanut butter jars.

{My kitchen helpers, ensuring that the proportion of glitter is just right!}

Easy DIY Glitter Ornament

Last night, at my Grace Circle meeting at church, there was a discussion of making ornaments and this technique was one that was mentioned. I thought it sounded simple enough, and then I was fortunate enough to get to make this one at my MOPS meeting this morning. Very serendipitous, indeed. And the good news is that these ornaments are truly simple to make. We moms used glass bulbs, but if I do this with my kiddos, I will seek out the plastic kind. I wish the picture showed the detail better. I used a mixture of blue and green glitter, and I was pleased with the results.

Materials:

• newspaper
• clear glass/plastic ornaments
• glue
• glitter
• paper/funnel
• permanent markers/paint pens/glitter glue pens (optional)
• ribbon/ornament hook
• scissors (if using ribbon to hang your ornament)

Directions:

1. Protect work surface with newspaper.
2. Remove the top of the ornament and pour in some glue. Making sure opening is covered, swirl the ornament around. If needed, keep adding small amounts of glue until the entire inside is coated with a thin layer of glue.
3. Using rolled up paper or a funnel, add some glitter. (You do not need a lot.) Again, making sure the opening is covered, swirl the ornament around until the glitter adheres to the glue, and you are happy with the results. Don't worry if you see white areas because they will dry clear and should have glitter as well. Put the top back on the ornament and set it aside so that glue can dry.
4. Decorate the outside of your ornament as desired. You can use permanent markers, paint pens, or glitter glue pens to write names and dates or to make designs. Allow drying time as needed.
5. Cut some ribbon and attach it to the ornament. Or use an ornament hook to hang your completed ornament on your Christmas tree. These would also make nice gifts. You can make them with your kids (I would suggest getting the plastic kind if doing it with younger children) and give them to grandparents, teachers, friends, neighbors, really anyone, because who wouldn't like something made by an adorable child? Another option if you don't want to use glitter and glue is to use paint inside of the ornaments. Happy crafting.

Easter Eggs Everywhere

Considering that nobody really ate our colored eggs this year, it seems like we are overly obsessed with Easter eggs. (Actually, I take that back. Earlier, I caught the dog standing in our outdoor trash can, which had tipped over from the wind. And she was eating -- you guessed it -- all of those forgotten hard boiled eggs that I had just pitched. Wanna bet I will not be having a fun evening when those catch up with her?) Hard boiled eggs are fun to decorate, but maybe we should stick to other goodies in the future.

For example, we made our Jell-o eggs, as we always do. They were a hit as usual. You pretty much can't go wrong with kids and finger Jell-o.

{Mmmmm..... raspberry!}

{He likes almost anything he can eat with his hands.}

For something new this year, we tried the Rice Krispie treat eggs, which weren't quite as successful. They're supposed to have M & M's inside. I was lucky just to get Rice Krispie treats that somewhat resembled eggs, and there was no way the kids could really help. It was a sticky mess, one that I will not be repeating any time soon. Word of warning: these things always sound easier than they actually are. The good news is that they taste fine, unless, of course, you ask Logan his opinion. Even though he LOVES Rice Krispies and marshmallows, he apparently does not like them together. Weird.

Okay, you can't eat it, but I LOVE this paint chip Easter egg garland that I made, so I will likely be making one or two more of them for around the house. It's an ingenious way to use up something I had been saving until I had a project idea, and so, so very adorable. This is easy, but a bit time-consuming, and definitely an adult-only project.

As for the actual eggs, we tried some different techniques, some more successful than others... For some reason, I thought that if we stamped on circles of glue, with foam paintbrushes, we could add glitter and have nice glittery circles on our eggs. In actuality, they dribbled and weren't really circles, but all that glitters makes Mia happy so no harm done. Next, we added the glitter that was left on the plate, to some purple poster paint and applied that. (I don't suggest doing this even though it was easy, and washable. I thought they were dry, but somehow they got moist again in the refrigerator, so when I went to peel some to eat, paint got smeared all over the place.)

{Purple + glitter = one happy little girl}

Here is what I think is a great idea, and I am pleased I thought of it: decorate eggs with Bingo markers. So simple, even the littlest egg decorators can do it, and it's fairly mess-free.

{Need something to rest your eggs on while they dry? Cut up toilet paper tubes work perfectly and they are very cheap!}

I wish our tie-dyed eggs came out a little clearer, but I do like this technique that we have tried in the past, and brought back again this year. I have done it two ways: dye and then wrap with rubber bands and dye again or wrap first, dye, let dry, and dye a second time. I'm not sure if I have a preference or not.

{There are only so many ways you can get a rubber band to stay on an egg.}

{Our finished tie-dyed eggs}

{My "egg-cited" little helpers}

After tie-dying some eggs, we had dye left over, so we made some coffee filter carnations. They look nice as a centerpiece.

The last of the dye went toward a science experiment. We used it to dye some real carnations. Mia loved this even though they aren't as brightly colored as our paper bouquet.

As much as I am thinking we should avoid decorating hard boiled eggs next year, I am sure we will be doing it. And more likely than not, we'll be trying out more new ideas. I can't seem to not try new craft ideas when they come along. Plus, Mia will expect it. She told me recently, "Mom, I wish you were the Easter Bunny." When I asked why, she replied, "Because you make the best Easter eggs in the whole world!" How can I not at least attempt to live up to her expectations?