Lavender Playdough

This started as an experiment, and my attempt to connect my two worlds — therapy and lavender farming. I recruited my son and his girlfriend to help me make lavender playdough. We wanted to see what a few drops of essential oil and some lavender buds would be like in our homemade playdough recipe.

Ingredients

• 2 Cups Flour
• 2 Tbsp. Canola Oil
• 2 Cups Water
• 1 Cup Salt
• 2 Tbsp. Cream of Tartar
• Red & Blue Food coloring
• Lavender Essential Oil
• Dried Lavender Buds

Directions

In a saucepan, mix together flour, canola oil, water, salt, and cream of tartar. Add red and blue food coloring to get your desired shade of purple.

Place saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly until play dough thickens to desired consistency.

Remove from heat and allow to cool completely.

Add Lavender Essential Oil — start with 6 or so drops, and add more for a stronger scent.

Flatten dough. Add dried lavender bud, enough to create your desired texture. Knead until the lavender bud is worked into the dough.

Play, play, play!

Store in a sealed container. Ours lasted a very long time.

Taking it One Step Further

Turn your play with playdough into a sensory activity to increase mindfulness.

Ask yourself or the child you’re playing with:

• What do you see in the playdough? (Bubbles, specks of lavender bud, is it shiny?)
• How does it smell? (Sweet like flowers, or something else?)
• What do you hear as you squish it in your hand? (Squeaking, popping, is it silent?)
• What does it feel like? (Smooth, lumpy, squishy?)
• If you could taste it, what do you think it would taste like? (Sweet, salty, bitter?)

With love & lavender,