Do You Smell What I Smell?

It's really a shame this blog isn't scratch and sniff, because I'd love you all to smell what's in my kitchen right now.



The kids and I cooked up a batch of chocolate play dough over the weekend. And let me just tell you, it smells so much better than it looks. Here's the recipe:

Chocolate Play Dough

1 1/4 cup flour
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1/2 cup salt
1/2 tablespoon cream of tartar
1 1/2 tablespoon oil
1 cup water

Mix dry ingredients in a medium size pot. Add wet ingredients and stir together over low heat until a ball of dough forms. Remove play dough from pot and knead by hand until dough is smooth and evenly colored. Store in airtight container.

We also made some gingerbread play dough, which doesn't smell quite as good as the chocolate, but is still nice and spicy. To make gingerbread play dough, use the same recipe as above but omit the cocoa powder and add 1/2 teaspoon allspice, 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg and 1 teaspoon ginger.



Our little friend Luke turned three the other day, and he is rather keen on play dough right now, so we packed a half pint of each play dough for him.

While we were having fun in the kitchen, we also made a batch of stamp glue, inspired by a recipe I found over at Salt and Chocolate several months back. We added almond extract and we can't stop sniffing it.

Stamp Glue

1 (1/4 ounce) package unflavored gelatin
1 T cold water
3 T boiling water
1/2 t. corn syrup
1/2 t. lemon or other flavored extract

In a small bowl, sprinkle the gelatin on the cold water. Let it sit 5 minutes to soften. Add the boiling water. Stir until the gelatin is dissolved. Add corn syrup and extract. Store in a small jar (I used a clean spice jar).

Cut out pictures. Brush the picture on the back side with the glue. Let it dry, then moisten the gum with water or by licking and stick it to paper.

Our stamp glue was clumpy at first, so I popped it in the microwave for about ten seconds to dissolve the clumps. The glue eventually set up and became solid, so each time we use it we just microwave it for a few seconds (you will see the solid become liquid pretty fast) and shake it up before using.



Avery and I collaborated on some little designs to turn into stamps. We cut out our drawings and brushed the back with our stamp glue, let the stamps dry, then gave them a quick iron to release the wrinkles. Now we just have to lick em and stick em. I think a jar of stamp glue, a paint brush and some directions would make Avery's girlfriends very happy.



I printed out a sheet of Inside a Black Apple's gift tags to make some stickers for myself.

There is a wonderful abundance of free gift tags out there. Here are a few lists some friendly bloggers have compiled for our perusal:

Bella Dia's Huge List of Free Gift Tags
One Pretty Thing
Tipnut.com's DIY Wrap Up: 101 Gift Tags

Who knew the ingredients for sweet smelling, crafty goodness were stocked in the pantry? Go play in the kitchen - your kids will love it!