I love homemade playdough and try to make sure we always have some on hand. One of the great things about playdough is that it is so simple to change the experience by changing the accessories. Playdough Sensory and Color and Animal Print Playdough are two great examples.
Winter is a great time to have a little extra fun with playdough and playdough accessories. Anyone want to build a snowman?
Easy Peppermint Playdough
What you need: Playdough (here’s our favorite Playdough recipe), peppermint extract
Tip #1 – The recipe that I followed asks for the peppermint extract to be added after the playdough is made. I added it while the playdough was cooking and liked that better. (I used about 2 teaspoons.)
Tip #2 – For those of you who would rather not make your own play dough, store-bought can be transformed into a sensory wonderland as well! (I had to add quite a bit more of peppermint extract to cover the store bought smell, but it did work!)
Christmas Playdough Accessories
Getting creative with playdough accessories is fun! For this project, I wanted to include everything the kids would need to build snowmen as well as some extra Christmas goodies.
Accessory ideas
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- Sticks.
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- Felt cut into scarves.
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- Buttons.
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- Acorn tops.
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- Pebbles.
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- Plastic candy canes. (The little ones pictured above were part of a candy cane chain. I just cut them apart. We used the beads that connected them too.)
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- Plastic snowflakes.
- Glitter. (Glitter is not my favorite but I can handle it when it’s tucked neatly into playdough. Just let your little one sprinkle it straight onto the playdough and kneed it in. All the sparkle, none of the glitter mess.)
Do you have any Christmas playdough accessory ideas to add?
This post originally appeared December 11, 2011 as a part of Creative Christmas Countdown.
Cathy @ NurtureStore says
December 11, 2011 at 5:57 amA lovely advent activity – and top marks for sticking with the theme and drinking *peppermint* tea!
Jillian says
December 11, 2011 at 5:59 amThank you Cathy. Hee hee… It’s my new favorite drink!
Aleacia @ Dilly-Dali Art says
December 11, 2011 at 6:08 amGreat post! I love all the holiday themed items you set out to play with! I want to play with all that stuff too! 🙂
~Aleacia
Jillian says
December 11, 2011 at 3:38 pmCome on over!!! 😉
Joie says
December 11, 2011 at 6:08 amI love it. This is a good family activity. Thanks for sharing.
Jillian says
December 11, 2011 at 3:39 pmThanks for commenting. I agree, it would make a really fun family activity.
Chris Pasciuto says
December 11, 2011 at 6:37 amLoved YOUR activity!! Recognized a few of the snowman decorations too! Great job on your blog.
Jillian says
December 11, 2011 at 3:39 pmThank you Chris!!!
Brooke @ Let Kids Create says
December 11, 2011 at 8:24 amThis looks like a ton of fun. I’ve got to get to the store to get some peppermint extract and some of those cute candy canes.
Jillian says
December 11, 2011 at 3:41 pmDon’t forget the peppermint tea. 😉
Trisha says
December 11, 2011 at 10:09 amMy son will love this! Thanks for sharing, Jill!
Jillian says
December 11, 2011 at 3:43 pmLet me know how he likes it!
Anna @ The Imagination Tree says
December 11, 2011 at 12:35 pmThis is SO adorable! I’m a huge fan of play dough and we make new batches of it every other week, just to add to the range and variety! I love the idea of making snowmen and candy canes- just perfect!
Jillian says
December 11, 2011 at 3:44 pmThank you Anna! We had a blast.
crittersandcrayons says
December 11, 2011 at 12:42 pmI love this post! I ran a similar post the other day and didn’t even realize it- although, I’ve never cooked my own play dough before! Beautiful pics!
Jillian says
December 11, 2011 at 3:46 pmTry the cooked play dough… the texture is awesome. Thank you for the comment!
Chrissy @ The Outlaw Mom Blog says
December 11, 2011 at 8:52 pmLooks like it smells so yummy! Great post 🙂
Jillian says
December 12, 2011 at 6:38 amThank you Chrissy!
Ali says
December 11, 2011 at 10:05 pmMy daughters would love playdough with peppermint extract… particularly if they get to eat candy canes at the same time. Thanks for the idea.
Jillian says
December 12, 2011 at 6:38 amOhhh… good idea to let them eat real candy canes along with the activity! Thank you! 😉
Valerie @ Frugal Family Fun Blog says
December 13, 2011 at 6:16 amWhat fun! I think everyone should have 15 minutes a day of mandatory play dough time — grown ups too!! 🙂
Jillian says
December 14, 2011 at 5:20 amI should bust it out when I need a “Mommy time out”! 😉
Wynne says
December 16, 2011 at 10:59 amWe did this activity today and liked it even better than the gingerbread man hunt (also a hit). My three-year-old and his 2-1/2-yo friend had a blast, especially with the bowls of twigs and buttons and with cookie cutters. The cooked play dough recipe was easy to follow and felt great to work with. I don’t think I’ll go back to store-bought … too many extracts to try. (Though next time I need to remember to check against evaporation before starting the recipe. Turns out my full bottle of peppermint extract had, over time, dwindled to a half-teaspoon.) Glitter in play dough was a new idea for us, too. I’m not sure the kids noticed it much, but I loved it.
Jillian says
December 16, 2011 at 1:48 pmI love it!!! So glad you tried out home made. It is really the best way to go. The twigs and buttons are so fun. Did the play dough still have a peppermint scent?
Jennifer says
December 11, 2012 at 2:28 pmTerrific craft! Please share on our Christmas Crafts Linky Party and get some additional traffic to your site. And feel free to join this Blog Hop on your own site. http://thejennyevolution.com/2012/12/11/christmas-crafts-linky-party-and-blog-hop/