• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Bren Did
  • Green Cleaning
  • Bath & Body
  • Easy Crafts
  • Tasty Recipes
  • Free Printables
menu icon
go to homepage
search icon
Homepage link
  • Green Cleaning
  • Bath & Body
  • Recipes
  • Crafts
  • Free Printables
    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
  • ×

    Home » Crafts » Holiday Crafts » Buckets of Love Free Printable Valentine Cards and Homemade Playdough Recipe

    Buckets of Love Free Printable Valentine Cards and Homemade Playdough Recipe

    Published: Feb 1, 2015 · Modified: Apr 15, 2021 by Bren

    Make this simple DIY Valentine gift by filling a bucket with playdough and attaching a free printable Valentine cards. Bonus: check out the homemade play dough recipe.

    Buckets of Love Free Printable Valentine Cards and Homemade Playdough Recipe: a simple DIY Valentine craft project for parents and kids.

    Non-Candy Valentines for Kids

    I found sweet little buckets at the Dollar Tree (they are approximately 4 inches tall and 4 inches in diameter) that make adorable and affordable Valentine gifts.

    I designed a free Valentine printable that lets your Valentine know you are sending them “Buckets of Love.” 

    Fill the bucket with playdough for a simple candy free idea.

    Buckets of Love Free Printable Valentine Cards and Homemade Playdough Recipe: a simple DIY Valentine craft project for parents and kids.

    Homemade Gifts

    My favorite homemade gift as a little girl was the homemade playdough I helped my mom make and color in our very own kitchen.

    My mom was my preschool teacher so I looked up her play dough recipe in the cookbook we “wrote” as 4 year olds. It’s a simple, classic play dough recipe made from basic kitchen ingredients.

    Buckets of Love Free Printable Valentine Cards and Homemade Playdough Recipe: a simple DIY Valentine craft project for parents and kids.

    My daughter and I made one batch of play dough and colored it pink, red and lavender in honor of Valentine’s Day. It filled 2 buckets.  

    I hope you try making playdough with your kids. It’s an easy project that is cheaper than store-bought playdough.

    Easy, Non-Toxic Play Dough Recipe

    Ingredients

    • 2 cups white flour
    • 1 cup table salt
    • 4 tablespoons cream of tartar
    • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
    • 2 cup water
    • food coloring

    Instructions

    1. Whisk together the flour, salt, cream of tartar, oil in a medium saucepan. Slowly whisk in the water until it is fully incorporated and there are no lumps.
    Play dough smooth in pan
    1. Turn on the stove and heat the mixture over medium-high heat until it thickens and pulls away from the sides of the pan. Stir frequently, using a wooden spoon while you heat the play dough to keep it from sticking or scorching.
    Playdough pulling away from sides of pan
    1. Once the dough is a solid mass, remove it from heat and place it in the bowl of a stand mixer. Knead the dough for 2-3 minutes with a bread hook until it is smooth and shiny. You may also knead by hand. Divide the dough into 3 portions and add food coloring to the middle of the dough lump.
    2. Mix with the mixer or knead by hand until the color is fully incorporated and even. To make pink you need 6 drops of red food coloring. To make red you need about 12 drops of red food coloring. To make lavender you need 5 drops of blue  food coloring and 8 drops of red food coloring.
    Play dough in a bucket

    Store the play dough in an airtight container or plastic bag. You do not need to refrigerate. It lasts a long time!

    Free Printable Valentines

    Download your free printable Valentine cards here.

    Buckets of Love Free Printable Valentine Cards and Homemade Playdough Recipe: a simple DIY Valentine craft project for parents and kids.

    Like my easy crafts and free printables? Sign up for my neswletter below and never miss a thing!

    BrenDid-Blue-Signature
    Buckets of Love Free Printable Valentine Cards and Homemade Playdough Recipe: a simple DIY Valentine craft project for parents and kids.
    « We Go Together Like: Cinnamon Rolls and Chili
    How to Easily Prepare Burlap for Crafts »

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Anahi

      May 19, 2015 at 8:28 am

      Hi. I’m from Argentina and I’m browsing on your site and I find it really amazing. I LOVE your healthy muffins recipes and I would like to do this playdough one, but I can’t find cream of tartar here. Is there anything I can replace it with? Or is it absolutely necessary that I add it? Thank you very much. Kisses

      Reply
      • Bren

        May 19, 2015 at 8:52 am

        Thanks Anahi! You can use a tablespoon of white vinegar or lemon juice in place of the cream of tarter then follow the rest of the instructions as described in the post. Hope that you have fun making play dough!

        Reply
    2. christine gallagher

      February 02, 2015 at 7:16 pm

      These are so adorable I have to pin to my Valentine’s board, thanks for sharing

      Reply

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Primary Sidebar

    Hi, I'm Bren! I believe you deserve a clean home without having to compromise your family's health or safety.

    More about me →

    Popular Posts

    • Natural All Purpose Cleanser
    • How to Clean Oven Racks Naturally
    • Non-Toxic Homemade Dish Detergent for Hand Washing
    • How to Make Scented Vinegar for Cleaning

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    About

    • About Bren Did
    • Policies & Disclosures

    Newsletter

    • Sign Up for Email

    Contact

    • Contact

    Copyright © 2022 Bren Fey (Bren Did)

    All information should be used at your own discretion.

    Use of content/photos without permission is prohibited.