4 Scented Christmas Play Dough Recipes (2024)

Inside: If you’re ready for a break from slime, then you’ve got to try our super-soft scentedChristmas Play Dough! We’ve included four easy no-cook recipes for holiday fun at home, or as a homemade gift idea!

Christmas Play Dough

Homemade play dough is so incredibly easy to make – and it smells way better than anything you can buy at the store. I love customizing ours with scents, colors and sometimes even added texture.

When my daughter was in kindergarten, I loved volunteering to send in a giant kindergarten play dough kits for all of the kids – thinking up little add-ons to put in all of the sections of the container and coming up with a few fun varieties of play dough to fit whatever theme they were focusing on that week.

In grade one, we just get to play with play dough at home – but we are definitely taking advantage of the holidays to whip up some big batches of play dough for some fun hands-on gifts!

We’re making 4 themed batches of homemade play dough – egg nog, cranberry, mint and gingerbread – and dividing them up into cellophane bags and tying it all off with some ribbon and a cookie cutter. (You could also put the play dough into a plastic container or mason jar for gift giving.)

Be sure to also include the free printable recipe (at the bottom of this post) in case they love it and want to make more! This play dough recipe usually lasts me at least a month before I think we need a fresh batch.

Check out our quick video for how to make Christmas play dough and then scroll down to grab your free printable recipe:

Egg Nog Play Dough Ingredients

• 2 cups flour
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup salt
• 2 tablespoons cream of tartar
• Up to 1.5 cups boiling water (adding in increments until it feels just right)
• few drops glycerine
• 1 1/2 teaspoons (rum extract or) butter extract
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon cloves

Cranberry Play Dough Ingredients

• 2 cups flour
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup salt
• 2 tablespoons cream of tartar
• Up to 1 cup boiling water (adding in increments until it feels just right)
• 1/2 cup cranberry juice
• few drops glycerine
• 1 teaspoon orange extract or zest

Mint Play Dough Ingredients

• 2 cups flour
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup salt
• 2 tablespoons cream of tartar
• Up to 1.5 cups boiling water (adding in increments until it feels just right)
• few drops glycerine
• 1 teaspoon mint extract

Gingerbread Play Dough Ingredients

• 2 cups flour
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup salt
• 2 tablespoons cream of tartar
• Up to 1.5 cups boiling water (adding in increments until it feels just right)
• few drops glycerine
• 1 tbsp. ground cinnamon
• 1 tbsp. ground nutmeg
• 1 tbsp. ground cloves
• 1 tbsp. ginger

Kitchen Supplies You May Find Helpful

• Measuring cups and spoons
• Glycerine
• Non slip mixing bowls
• Christmas Cookie cutters

If giving as a gift:

• Christmas ribbon
• Cellophane bags

No-Cook Christmas Play Dough

Make each play dough in a separate bowl.

Mix the flour, salt, cream of tartar, and spices for each in a large mixing bowl.

Add food colouring and oil to the boiling water then into the dry ingredients. (Note: For the cranberry play dough add the cranberry juice to the boiling water.)

Stir continuously until it becomes a sticky, cohesive dough and then add the glycerine.

Fold the dough out onto a well-floured surface and allow it to cool slightly until your can knead it comfortably. (Don’t burn your hands!)

Knead it vigorously for a couple of minutes until all of the stickiness has gone – this can take up to four minutes, but start adding a bit of extra flour after two minutes if it is still a bit too sticky.

Pin this Collection of Amazing Smelling Christmas Play Dough recipes:

Grab your free printable copy for our scented Christmas Play Dough Recipes

For more fun hands-on holiday fun, check out our scented Gummy Bear Slime or our OREO Polar Bear Cookies.