Sometimes it doesn’t take much to simply knead away everyday stress – in the truest sense of the word. With homemade anti-stress dough, you can have a little relaxation miracle in your hands in just five minutes, giving you an island of calm in your stressful everyday life. And speaking of giving: The soothing play dough is also a wonderful gift for a loved one. Experiment with scent and color and make your own anti-stress dough. We’ll show you how it works.

You need that

• 100 g Flour
• 60g salt
• small bowl
• 100 ml water
• 1 tbsp neutral oil (e.g. rapeseed oil)
• 1 tsp citric acid
• food coloring
• essential oil 🛒 of your choice (e.g. lavender or fir)
• optional: gloves
• 1 glass or other airtight container

It’s that easy to make your own anti-stress dough

1. Mix dry ingredients

Place flour, salt and citric acid in a bowl and mix everything together thoroughly.

2. Add water and oil

Boil the water and then add it to the flour mixture. Now the oil is added.

3. Knead anti-stress dough

First mix everything with a spoon – the mixture is very hot. As soon as it has cooled down, continue kneading with your hands until you have a smooth, homogeneous dough.

Tipp: The very process of making them can have a stress-relieving effect. Consciously take a moment and feel how the mass becomes softer under your fingers.

4. Add color and fragrance oil

Essential oils not only give your dough a pleasant smell, but can also influence your mood. For example, lavender has a relaxing effect, while fir oil is wonderful if you calm down at the thought of a walk in the forest. First add 3-5 drops of the scented oil to your anti-stress clay and work it in well. If the smell isn’t intense enough for you, you can add more drops of fragrance oil.

Colors can also have a calming effect. Choose a color that you like and start with a few drops. It is best to knead the color drops in the dough with gloves. Intensify the color if necessary.

Tipp: Choose a color for your anti-stress clay that matches the scent. Purple harmonizes beautifully with lavender, a rich dark green goes perfectly with the pine scent.

This is how you store the anti-stress dough

Your anti-stress dough is now ready for use. It will last up to 6 months when packed in an airtight container and stored in the refrigerator. You can use them in stressful everyday situations to relax, or you can wrap them as a personal gift. To do this, choose a decorative glass and add a beautifully labeled label. By the way, when you knead you not only relax your head, but you also train the mobility of your fingers. A little break that you can treat yourself to more often. We hope you have fun copying it, giving it as a gift or keeping it for yourself.

Reading tips: Read here how to make labels out of milk cartons and how to make cloud play dough.