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14 Exciting Taste Safe Sensory Play Ideas for Babies and Toddlers

Sharing 14 fun and taste safe sensory play ideas with 9 recipe cards that are perfect for babies and toddlers who are still mouthing. Best part is older toddlers will love these activities too! This post includes affiliate links.

Taste Safe Sensory Play Ideas livethescottcottage.com

1. Sensory Beach: We Do This Every. Single. Day.

“Mommy, beach!” “Mommy, blue water!” the daily requests around here, and I am loving it as much as he is. This set up takes me minutes to toss out and he loves it every single time.

2. Chickpea Foam : Can You Believe This Foam is Made From Chickpea Liquid!?

That’s right – save that liquid when you drain chickpeas. We were making hummus the other day and i dove towards my husband to save the liquid! This liquid makes the most amazing foam and is totally taste safe.

The food coloring I use are here and here.

3. Rainbow Pasta: One of the Most Beautiful Taste Safe Sensory Play Ideas

Check out my post all about the five ways we played with this dyed pasta. I couldn’t get over how much fun Q had with this. I found these giant shells on clearance last summer and we’ve played with them so much.

4. Ice Rescue

Ice rescues are always a great idea. You can seriously throw anything into a bowl and freeze it. For babies choose larger items so there are not choking hazards.

5. Moon Dough : A first and a favorite

Moon Dough i feel was one of Qs first true sensory messy play experiences and he loved it. I set it out in a large sterilite bin on our kitchen floor and he couldn’t get enough of it!

6. Frozen Fruit in Water

Back to my freeze everything point – we had a HUGE watermelon over the summer and couldn’t finish it all before it started to turn, so I popped the rest in the freezer and it made for the most fun play! I currently have a pile of lemons frozen into a bowl. Frozen play is free and fun!

7. Pudding

This was the first sensory material Q was unsure about. It was a very new and very messy texture. After some time spent going back and forth to it, he got into it and every month or so I’d place some out again and now he shoves his hands right in. It’s fun to show them a wide variety of textures like pudding one day and rice another.

8. Lemon Play Dough

This was a summer time favorite. Check out the whole set up here. I set out a variety of lemons frozen and fresh and made lemon play dough. I love full sensory experiences like this!

9. Beet Play

I love playing with beets. Check out the play dough i made with it. This play here was so fun – here are fun ideas on how to play with them:

1: “Beet paint” I wanted to see if I could make a sort of beet paint, so I tossed in a few beets to our vitmix with some water and corn flour and this made the super bright pink “paint” in the white bowl.
2: Natural Colored Beet Foam: This was a few boiled beets, you can use chickpea liquid to make taste safe, and water in the vitamix and ta-da pink bubbles!
3: Beet swamp – in a food processor I processed some of the beets to make a sort of “beet swamp”
4: Beet “rocks” this was the easiest, I tossed the boiled beets into our “beet swamp” as “rocks” for the landscape

10. Chia Slime

The other day I posted 5 ideas on how to play with chia slime. Q loves this, it’s easy to make ( CRAZY MESSY ) but so worth it, I promise. See how we turned them into dinosaur eggs!

11. Taste Safe Kinetic Sand

This play was SO much fun. It was messy and amazing, I set out a whole kinetic sand party for Q. This is a really great easy recipe for it!

12. Jello – Classic Taste Safe Sensory Play

Jello is a classic. You can put anything into jello and it can lead to hours of fun ( for older toddlers) for babies you can toss some large plastic rings and cups inside for them to rescue, or even large animals. For older toddlers you can make it a really fun counting activity. We LOVE jello play!

13. Yogurt

Not much is easier then this! you can set out yogurt in a fun design, or use it as paint. We had a LOT of fun with yogurt when Q was a baby and even now.

14. Play Clay

This is also known as my air dry clay. It makes for amazing play clay, and a nice gluten free play dough alternative.

I hope you enjoyed all 14 fun taste safe sensory play ideas!

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Taste Safe Sensory Play – Stunning Rainbow Pasta

We’re on a taste safe sensory play exploration this week! One of the top questions I get are what are taste safe play ideas for mouthing toddlers and play ideas for babies. I’ll start with the safest idea which is very shallow water and some kitchen tools. Also water and oil in a taped down zip lock bag with some interesting items tossed in like frozen peas. These are a forever go to for safe baby play. Here I share a really colorful, fun, and safe way to play with pasta. This post contains affiliate links.

Rainbow Pasta Taste Safe Sensory Play livethescottcottage.com

When I expand past water as taste safe play I look to food.

Pasta is a classic sensory material. For one, it’s something most people already have in their homes. If not already at home, it’s inexpensive. It’s also easy to cook and play with, and kids just LOVE the texture. Quinn is 29 months old and I can’t get over how much he loved this play.

For younger toddlers focus on larger pasta pieces like the giant shells.

As always sensory play should be completely supervised, especially with young toddlers, with the parent or caregiver directly next to them.

Taste safe sensory play is exactly that, it’s taste safe if your toddler brings it to their mouths, and is great for beginning sensory play as an opportunity to gently remind them that this is for play, not to eat.

I recommend eating a meal or snack before sensory play, it will make it less desirable for toddlers to eat!

This is one of the easiest taste safe sensory play ideas to make!

cook your pasta and rinse with cold water
mix food coloring into the wet pasta
let sit for a few minutes to dry

That’s it! Food coloring can stain hands but it comes off so easily with soap and water. Full How To Video Below!

Now, I love to reuse our play so after Q played here for over an hour making “pasta soup” I transformed the play into something else.

Our Play Transition to Small World Play

Here I asked Q what we should turn our pasta into and he requested an ocean. I had him help me pour blue water into the play tray and we added some whales.

Sometimes play transitions are as simple as that, adding some water and a fun new element.

My secret with water is…

Adding just a tiny bit of cornstarch to it! It makes it an even brighter color as you play! You can see some very cute food color stained hands here, signs of a good play! And again, it comes right off with soap and water.

Our third play transition is freezing it!

Play is often as simple as that, something frozen. I show Q how salt helps the melting along and we play here for another hour!

The fourth play is a mix of the frozen and unfrozen pasta.

All in all, I used 1/2 of 4 boxes of pasta at $0.85 each. We got FOUR plays out of it and I have it tossed back in the freezer for another day. Reminder to save and reuse all your sensory play materials. Did you see what I did with our frozen dino eggs?

Taste safe play ideas are a staple around here. While Q is over a year past exploring anything with his mouth I still include lots of “safe” play ideas in our daily sensory play. Every day he asks me for a beach with water, check it out here. It’s cereal sand and water. So easy!

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Toddler Easter Basket Ideas on a Budget

It’s so easy to toss together a super cute sensory toddler easter basket, all with items found at dollar tree!

Dollar Tree is the perfect destination to craft a super cute Toddler Easter Basket on a budget!

Does anyone else feel overwhelmed in dollar tree sometimes? There is SO much, and it was tough deciding what would go in each basket. Hopefully this guide will help you narrow down what you put in your toddler easter basket.

I threw together three easter baskets for ages 2.5, 5, and 7 all with super cute finds from Dollar Tree! I love putting together sensory craft kits for my little guy and my nieces.

Here are some of my favorite parts.

Start with a Cute Container for your Toddler Easter Basket

I found these bunny baskets, two pink ears for the girls and one blue ears for my son. The baskets were $1 each.

This is the first time Q was seeing his cousins after months apart! I was excited to put together these little activity kits that they can enjoy across all their ages. Make sure to check out the pictures of them playing together at the end! Sensory play is truly ageless.

How I Got All Three for $19:

Baskets: $1 Each (Total $3)
Bunny Bags $1 for 4 (Total $1)
Bunny Tins $1 Each (Total $3)
Craft $1 Each (Total $3)
Easter Egg Filled with Bunny Erasers $1 for 3 eggs, $1 for 8 erasers x2 (Total $3)
Container for Rice $1 Each (Total $3)
Cookie Cutters $1 for 4 pack (Total $3)

Total $19, about $6 each!

Additional items needed if you don’t have at home, I reused materials we had been using.

Play Dough – you can pick up what you need for my recipe here, or buy premade at Dollar Tree for $1 each.

Rice – You can pick up a 2lb bag at Dollar Tree for $1

Food Coloring – You can pick up gel or liquid from really any food store

Pasta – You can pick up a box at dollar tree for $1

Paint – You can pick up some from dollar tree for $1

Beans- You can pick up a bag of white and pinto from dollar tree for $1 each

Play Dough Tins – So Cute for your Toddlers Easter Basket!

I used my play dough recipe to quickly make some play dough for the tins. I kept the colors pastel by using just a little bit of food coloring. This play dough is perfect for the cookie cutters that are in the basket.

Dyed Rice – A Favorite Around Here!

Not only is it just regular dyed rice, it’s pastel of course! I got these plastic jars from dollar tree and filled it up with our pastel rainbow rice that Q and I have played with the other day. I feel like rice is the perfect base for small world play and sensory play.

The little bunny bags I stuffed with pastel pastel and pasta beans, perfect for decorating play dough butterflies, flowers, and easter eggs.

My little hack here was the set of 4 cookie cutters came with a heart, butterfly, flower, and circle. So I just gently bent the circle into an egg shape!

All Packaged Up – How Cute Did This Toddler Easter Basket Come Out?!

Can you believe they were about $6 each?? The best part, the kids all loved them and played together. That’s the beauty of sensory play – bringing kids together of all ages. Play dough and sensory materials are ageless!

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Amazing Taste Safe Sensory Play Ideas with Chia Seeds

This week I’m focusing on sharing some Taste Safe Sensory Play Ideas! While these ideas are geared towards babies and mouthing toddlers, I promise your older toddlers will LOVE these too. First up, FIVE activities with Chia Seeds. .

Taste Safe Sensory Play ideas for babies and toddlers

What is Taste Safe Sensory Play?

I often found myself asking this question when Quinn was a baby. I wanted to try sensory play, but feared how much he still put in his mouth before 12 months old. It was honestly a matter of going back to the basics which consisted of water and food. Taste safe sensory play is using items that are OK if a mouthing toddler or baby attempts to explore them with their mouths. Sensory play should always be closely supervised and taste safe play should not be mistaken with edible play.

It’s important to introduce the concept when beginning sensory pay that this is for play, not to eat. A great tip is to eat before sensory play. We often play after breakfast, lunch, and snack time.

Q is now 29 months and water is still a daily go to. Frozen play is a great way to switch up the daily water routine.

How To Make Chia Slime – Perfect for Taste Safe Sensory Play

This is one of the easiest things to make!

Add 1/4 cup chia seeds to 2 cups of water
Optional to add some food coloring to the water, I think it makes for more fun !
Mix well, cover, and place in fridge overnight

In the morning it’s all slimey and ready to be played with! I typically repeat the recipe X4 for the below slime play ideas.

Idea 1: Easter Chia Slime

Mix up a few different colors. I chose yellow, teal, pink, and purple. First I poured in the yellow slime and then I spooned the colors around the tray. Babies love contrasting colors like this, and toddlers do too!

I like to set out some simple materials with the taste safe sensory play.

Here I tossed out some plastic easter eggs, bowls, and scoops. I invited Q to come blend the colors together to see what colors we could make and make his own “easter soup”. You can make this in a smaller amount and set out on a baking sheet on the kitchen floor with your baby to explore with fingers and toes. Chia slime is MESSY and oh so fun!

Idea 2: Frozen Chia Seed Dinosaur Eggs

In the morning we made easter soup, and then we we froze the soup into egg form for some afternoon play. Video here on how I made them!

Materials to make your frozen dinosaur eggs:

chia slime
plastic easter eggs
tape
egg carton

The egg carton works to stabilize the eggs so the liquid doesn’t pour out before they freeze.

These eggs are perfect for taste safe sensory play.

They’re slimey and slippery and look so fun! Quinn was so excited to play with these. You can place them on a shallow baking sheet or in a shallow baby pool for your younger ones to explore with hands and feet!

Idea 3: Chia Brain – SUPER Creep Taste Safe Sensory Play

This is a potentially creepy one for Halloween, or well any day! You can find any mold and freeze chia slime into it. This is a great way to reuse the slime. We all know how much I love to reuse everything!

Touching a slimey frozen brain is great for taste safe sensory play!

My toddler LOVED this activity so much. For older toddlers you can melt the brain together, toss in some twizzlers. For babies you can set on a shallow baking sheet to touch and explore together. Check out the post here!

Idea 4: Chia Slime Sunset – A Dreamy Taste Safe Sensory Play Idea

This was one of our favorite activities from the summer. Q and I explore the colors of the sunset by mixing chia slime and playing outdoors with it. As I said, this chia slime is MESSY – so take it outside!

This is a great reminder that taste safe sensory play can be as simple as this, chia slime in a baking tray with a spoon.

It’s easy to over complicate sensory play. This is a material that’s fun enough you don’t need to toss more at it then placing it in a pan and setting out with a spoon.

Idea 5: Taste Safe Sensory Play – Frozen Chia Building Blocks

Here’s another way to reuse chia slime Toddlers will love trying to stack them up and having them be slippery and fall back down. Great for find motor skills. Check out the post here!

There are endless ways to play with chia slime. It’s one of our favorite taste safe sensory play materials.

I hope this post is leaving you inspired to try some easy and really fun chia seed play!

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Easy Dyed Sensory Rice

If you’ve been following along you’ll know how much we love to play with dyed sensory rice around here! This post includes affiliate links. Here are three super easy methods to dye your sensory rice and the pros and cons of each.

Easy Dyed Sensory Rice livethescottcottage.com

I introduced dyed sensory rice to Q when he was 18 months old

It was an instant hit. I mean have you ever run your hands through rice before? It’s amazing! Since introducing to Q i’ve experimented with various methods and as our sensory play has evolved as Q has grown, so has the way we dye rice.

There is no right or wrong way to achieve dyed sensory rice

The Taste Safe Method

When Q was 18 months we had moved past the mouthing stage. I still wanted our play to be taste safe. I started dyeing our sensory rice with:

1 tbsp white vinegar
5-10 drop food coloring

I’ve used both gel and liquid food coloring. I find gel to achieve the most vibrant colors.

I would add about 1.5 cups of rice to a ziplock bag, add in the vinegar and then the food coloring and shake really well. Then I’d spread on a baking sheet and allow to dry – usually overnight.

Pros and Cons of Dyed Sensory Rice with Vinegar and Food Coloring

The biggest and most important pro is that is it taste safe. This I found to be the safest method to achieve bright rice colors for us to play with.

The cons were the smell of white vinegar and it often took a long time to dry compared to the other methods.

My recommendation here is to dry overnight in a well ventilated area to avoid strong vinegar smell.

The Paint Method

Come 28 months old, a full year beyond mouthing anything I started to experiment with dyeing rice. I had hand sanitizer left over from a photo shoot I had produced – i mean a LOT of hand sanitizer, and I decided to start there.

I love working with acrylic paint in my art. It dries fast and the colors are crazy bright. I decided to combine the two to experiment how the hand sanitizer would help spread the paint and prevent the rice from sticking together. It worked GREAT. It quickly became our favorite method for dyeing rice.

This is great Dyed Sensory Rice for your older toddler

I would add a few squeezes of acrylic paint to a ziplock bag with 1.5 cups of white rice in it. Then I would add 4-5 pumps of hand sanitizer. Video here! Shake it up really well and spread on baking sheet to dry. It dries in about 10 minutes and is ready to be played with.

Pros and Cons of Dyed Sensory Rice with Paint and Sanitizer

Pros are the quick dry time and the beautiful colors.

Cons would be you must use a high quality acrylic paint. I recommend this brand linked here. A high quality paint helps avoid the rice ” breaking” into small pieces so you can keep reusing the rice. The obvious con is that this is not a taste safe method.

The Combo Method of Dyed Sensory Rice

I feel this method is a little combination of the two. My friend over at Casa Kinsey tried this. This is the beauty of dyeing rice. There is no “right” and no “wrong” way, rather experiment and have fun with it. Basically what you’re looking for is a way to add color (dye or paint) and a way to spread the color and prevent sticking (vinegar or sanitizer). So this method is sanitizer and food coloring.

This is another great dyed sensory rice option for older toddlers

I added 5-10 drops food coloring to a ziplock bag that contained 1.5 cups of white rice. Then I added 4 pumps of hand sanitizer and shook well. Instead of a ziplock bag you can mix in a bowl as well! Once shaken I spread on a baking sheet and allowed to dry for 15 minutes and it was ready to be played with.

Pros and Cons of Dyed Sensory Rice The Combo Method

The pro is the very bright colors without having to use paint.

The cons is the obvious that this is not taste safe.

Moving forward I’ll be combining methods 2 and 3 in sensory play with Q. All depending on what colors I have on hand in paint and food coloring.

Experiment and have fun! Drop a comment if you give it a try and what your favorite method is. I am happy to not have the vinegar smell anymore! Wondering what we do with our rice when we’re done playing with it? Check out here how to redye it!

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Beautiful Easy Ice Cream Play Dough Recipe

This easy recipe makes for the softest play dough with the texture of ice cream! Your little ones are going to love this! This post includes affiliate links.

Beautiful Easy Ice Cream Play Dough Recipe

We Love This Ice Cream Play Dough Recipe!

It’s soft, pastel, easy to make, and stores great for MONTHS!

I love having Q help while I make it with mixing the dry ingredients. It took me about 10 minutes to make all 4 colors and set out this invitation to play for Q.

I’ll be sharing how to make it, what to do with it, and how to store it!

Ice Cream Play Dough Recipe Here:

🍦Add:

1 Cup Flour

1/3 Cup Salt

1 tbsp Coconut Oil

1.5 tbsp cream of tartar

🍦To a bowl

🍦Then mix a drop of food coloring into 1 cup of boiling water and pour into the bowl.

🍦Stir really well!

🍦Then add 1/3 cup more flour.

🍦Stir again really well!

🍦Then add 1/3 cup more flour.

🍦Mix in then move to a cutting board and knead well!

The key for achieving pastel colors is just using a tiny bit of food coloring. I like gel food coloring as the colors are more vibrant. Liquid food coloring is fine to use too!

I like to set out the play dough ice cream with some fun sensory tools!

We found this ice cream scoop at a vintage shop in Vermont in the fall. SO many amazing sensory materials can be found second hand and right in your kitchen.

We pretend we run an ice cream shop and then Q dives in!

He adds in his wooden ice cream, and then trucks of course. Other ways to play:

Set out with ice cream bowls and a cash register

Set out with cookie cutters and make fun shapes

Set out with absolutely anything – this play dough is so open ended!

Most of Qs trays end up as a construction site.

That’s the beauty of sensory play! I linked above his favorite trucks.

Here’s How I store it!

You can wrap in plastic wrap and store in tins
You can store in mason jars
You can store in plastic zip lock containers

Check Out Below for a Making of video of our Ice Cream Play Dough Recipe.

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14 Amazing St. Patrick’s Day Sensory Play Ideas for Toddlers

Sharing 14 super fun St. Patrick’s Day Sensory Play ideas! We’ve been having so much fun these past few weeks with St. Patrick’s Day Sensory Play! Sharing below different ideas to incorporate the holiday into your sensory play!

The post includes affiliate links.

1. Rainbow Bright St. Patrick’s Day Sensory Play

Here’s how this tray came together!

This tray took me under 10 minutes to set out! We love chickadees wooden toys for their loose parts. Click here for 10% off the shop. (non affiliate, just an enthusiast for this brand!)

I used a wooden tray from Chickadees and set out a bed of mixed dyed rice as grass. I added some moss rocks from Target, a foam cauldron and gold coins from Dollar Tree, and added a rainbow made with rainbow rice. The wooden letters are from Dollar Tree as well. This took under 5 minutes to set out and Q had so much fun counting!

2. Mixed Pasta & Beans Green Sensory Play

My son LOVES green. He has since he was little. This is a great way to make a really fun mixed base for St. Patricks Day. My secret for great coverage on pasta and beans is using a little hand sanitizer with acrylic paint. Of course, this is safe if your child is not mouthing things. If your child is still mouthing I’d stick to water play – keep reading!

3. Mosaic Four Leaf Clover St. Patrick’s Day Sensory Play

I love creating art with mixed dyed rice and black beans. Q loved counting how many four leaf clovers he could find. When it got all mixed up he grabbed his trucks and dove on in!

4. The Pot At The End of the Rainbow

As Q gets older he really enjoys small world set ups. Small World set ups differ in that they have more of a story set out for them, like this one here. I used a bed of mixed dyed rice as the base, added some flat marble stepping stones, moss rocks from target, trees from target and large trees from Chickadees. The Cauldron was from Halloween and the rainbow is made by my friend over at BeFrendLee. All rainbow loose parts from Chickadees.

5. DIY Pasta Shamrocks

I found these giant pasta shells on clearance and we’ve made so many different things with them. Here Q and I painted the pasta green and then I hot glued them together to make four leaf clovers and shamrocks. I set these in a tray and Q had so much fun counting and playing with them.

6. Gold Jello Dig – St. Patrick’s Day Sensory Play

Here is where I’ll chat about taste safe play. If your toddler is still mouthing try just a bowl of water and use green food coloring. If you toddler is newly past mouthing try a tray of plain green jello, If your toddler is many months past mouthing try this jello dig! Q had so much fun “saving” the coins from the jello.

Tray and dishes found at homegoods and west elm.

7. Redyed Rice Sensory Play

Did you know you can easily redyed mixed rice and look at the beautiful tones it makes. Do this by repeating the steps of dyeing rice. Be sure to check out my All About Sensory Rice post! I layered the redyed rice to look like the beautiful fields of green we saw in Ireland when I was pregnant with Q.

8. Lucky Charms Rainbow – St. Patrick’s Day Sensory Play

I forgot how delicious lucky charms were until I picked some up to use in sensory play. One of my main rules for sensory play is not to eat anything. So we had a bowl of them before we played with them, and this curbed any desire. Tray from Target. Blocks from Crate and Kids. Rainbow Bowls from Chickadees. Four Leaf Clovers I made from Salt Dough – adding the tutorial video here!

9. Shamrock Rainbow Road

This is the holiday of green and rainbows after all! This sensory tray had a secret surprise, gold coins buried below it! Q had so much fun here for days after it was all mixed up!

10. Lucky Charms Mosaic

This was such an awesome for language development. We talked about what we saw, what was next to , above, below, to the left, and to the right of. The colors we saw, so on and on. He Then went and matched the color of his trucks to the color of the rice charms.

11. Counting Sheep – St. Patrick’s Day Sensory Play

I made these sheep from salt dough.

Here I used a @williamssonoma cookie cutter for the body, stretched it, used the edges to make heads, used my hands to form the ears,eyes, and legs. Then I took wooden numbers from @dollartree to make letter imprints. Once baked I set them in a mixed rice bean and pasta sensory base and invited Q to find the numbers and match them to the sheep.

Salt dough is 2 cups flour, 1 cup salt, and 1 cup cold water. Mixed well and let sit for 20 minutes then knead really well. Bake at 175F for 3 hours – more or less!

12. Magic Water Play

Here I’ll chat again about a taste safe play idea. The sand here is actually ground up cheerios. Omit everything except the water and cheerio sand and it’s a perfect taste safe play. For Q he had so much fun exploring and finding all the coins. You can see how this $.99 coins went a long way these past few weeks.

13. Salt Dough Pieces in Rice

Here’s how to make these salt dough pieces. I set them in a tray of rice with some gold coins, so easy!

14. Ombre Rainbow – St. Patrick’s Day Sensory Play

It’s not St. Patrick’s Day without RAINBOWS! My favorite way to dye rice is hand sanitizer and acrylic paint. How fun is this rainbow where we start to see a hint of easter!

Easy and Beautiful DIY Easter Decor

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DIY Easter Decor Air Dry Clay Garland @livethescottcottage

How Fun is This DIY Easter Decor?!

I absolutely love this baking soda and cornstarch clay. It takes just minutes to make and has the most wonderful texture! We use it as play clay, like a play dough, and then it turns into stunning crafts and DIY Easter decor by either air drying it or baking it in the oven. Here are 22 more ideas on what to do with the clay!

The Clay is as Simple As This:

1 Cup Baking Soda

1/2 Cup Cornstarch

3/4 Cup Water

Add all your ingredients to a non stick pan and cook over medium high heat for a few minutes, stirring often. Remove from heat once the consistency is like mashed potatoes. Store right away in an air tight container. Once cool enough to touch, knead well.

Playing with the clay is the part that is the most fun!

I knead the clay really well and set it out on a cutting board with some fun cookie cutters. I’ve linked above some fun ones!

Q loves to knead the clay with me and roll out the clay. I introduced this clay to Q when he was 16 months old, it was an instantly hit. The best part is it’s totally taste safe, and gluten free! Trust me, they won’t like the taste if they do mouth it.

After we play for a while we from some shapes to turn into a garland.

The best part about this clay is you can air dry it, or toss in the oven to bake.

I prefer to bake it. I place on a baking sheet and bake at 175F for about 2 hours, flipping after 1 hour. Depending on the thickness of your designs and oven it can take more or less. You’ll know when they’ve completely hardened. I recommend keeping pieces under 1/4 of an inch . The thinner the better. This clay is prone to cracking, just the nature of the materials.

Before I bake our garland pieces I use a straw to poke holes in them.

Time to decoupage.

So, I am a huge fan of Mod Podge. I also pick up little pretty cocktail napkins all the time and constantly find myself with an influx of them. I am constantly experimenting with the clay and what works and this worked SO beautifully I want to make dozens more. They’re perfect as home decor and gifts!

Simply brush Mod Podge onto the clay and then gently place cut up paper napkin pieces, layer the pieces however you’d like to add interest to the piece! Once your piece is covered use a toothpick to reopen the stringing holes.

Leave the pieces overnight to dry. I placed mine on little glasses so the edges wouldn’t stick on anything.

Time to string them together.

Tie a piece of twine to a plastic sewing needle and have your little one help lace through the openings. You could also use ribbon!

Toddlers LOVE to lace, it’s so great for improving fine motor skills, we lace almost daily lately around here!

That’s it! Hang them up and enjoy!

Here’s a video all about working with the clay!

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Unexpected Recycled Material Easter Egg – Amazing Easter Sensory Play

I love finding new ways to use quirky recycling, especially when it comes to our Easter sensory play!

Edison Bulb Packaging turned Easter Sensory Play.

It’s never too soon for Easter sensory play. I was so excited to use packaging and turn it into an easter egg for Q to play with. We strung up some backyard bulbs to bring some light to our patio. I caught my husband moments from tossing the packaging into the trash. I didn’t know what I’d do with them at first, but i knew I had to keep them.

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Toddlers Love to Color Match.

I had constantly set out matching invitations for Quinn, starting at 18 months old, only recently has be become matching obsessed after he turned two. He’ll see a red shirt sitting in the house and run to grab his firetruck to match to it. Simple invitations like this one promote imaginative play, I’m never quite sure how he’ll choose to explore it.

I started with 3 pieces of packaging.

I used a large piece of craft paper to cut out an egg that would be symmetrical.

I used a black marker to trace the egg shape onto the back of the packaging.

Next, I grabbed a kitchen knife to shave around the packaging following the black line to create the shape of the egg.

Let’s Put the Sensory Egg Together!

Then I hot glued the packaging pieces together. The hot glue will melt the packaging, but watch the video below on how I kept it together.

Once glued together I grabbed some acrylic paint and painting the circles to be a festive polka dot pattern on the egg.

It took about 1 hour to dry.

Once done I set out some rainbow rice, loose parts, and tongs and invited Q to come play.

If you don’t have packaging like this around, you can easily do the same with a large piece of cardboard and cut up toilet paper rolls ( coming soon! )

More spring sensory ideas here!

Easter Craft – Recycled Mosaic Painted Eggs

Easter Craft - Mosaic Painted Recycled Eggs - Perfect For Toddlers and Preschoolers.

Let’s kick off spring with an Easter craft!

This is the easiest easter craft to set up and crazy engaging for little ones!

I’m constantly feeling inspired by recycling. I constantly feel like my husband is reminding me to clear out my stock pile in the basement – but it’s all SO GOOD!

A new cat food delivery led to this inspiration. I loved the circles the food left on the box and how i could use them as a guide to easily cut out some similar sized egg shapes.

This is a perfect Easter craft for spending time together.

I love crafts I can put together quickly, more time for Q and I to enjoy together.

We grabbed some plain sensory materials we had laying around like pasta, beans, and corn kernels and hot glued them in various designs on the eggs. Q watched me very carefully doing this and it’s a great time to work on some language development. We talk about gluing the pasta onto the cardboard, the shapes we’re making, what we’ll do next with them, the colors we see, what colors we’ll paint them with.

Time to Paint!

This is Q’s favorite part. I let him choose all the colors. This is another great language development opportunity, exploring different shades of greens and blues, which are lighter and darker, how they look mixed, and where he’d like the paint to go on his palette.

Q takes the lead and I follow.

Q does all the color placement and enjoy exploring the paint as long as he’d like, when he’s done I blend in the paint and add some more to mix and it truly becomes a creation from the two of us. There are ways he mixes colors that I never would have and he constantly is inspiring me!

When we were done I set them in a basket and they look so cute as decor! You can also string them up as a garland, or use as loose parts in sensory play. I think we’ll do all of this with them!

More Fun Spring Ideas here!

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