On Monday morning Wilf and I set about making something I've been wanting to make for ages. We made playdough. Not just any old playdough though, it was playdough which later on would form the base of the most beautiful miniature gardens I've ever seen.

I remember playing with homemade playdough as a child and used to love it, there's something about the salty feel on your hands after using it. We have plenty of dry, mixed up pots of shop bought playdough already but I fancied having a go at a scented, more natural dough. I found a SUPER easy recipe for fresh Mint dough from The Imagination Tree (which you can find here),  got a Peppermint Teapigs bag out the cupboard and popped the kettle on.

The playdough itself was really quick to make and Wilf enjoyed helping to knead the dough after it was mixed.

In the afternoon, when his sister was sleeping, we headed out into the garden to find flowers and foliage to stick into it. Obviously rocks and stones were gathered and added to the trug for good measure too.

We then set about rolling balls of dough and crating miniature gardens with our cuttings. I have to admit I did close my eyes at one point and pretend I was a lady from the WI in a flower arranging class.....

Amongst our cuttings were sprigs of Thyme, Rosemary and Sage as well as Sweetpeas. Along with the Mint that I'd added to infuse the box, the smell coming from the table was amazing.

My Mum visited later that day and was presented with her own garden to take home with her. I'm not sure how long the poor flowers lasted in the salty 'earth' but they left the house looking very pretty.

It was such a simple activity but one that I'm looking forward to recreating in different guises time and time again. Next time I'm getting the glitter out.

I've shared a photo from this post over on Instagram with the hashtag #summerholidaysideasswap

If you're on it, I can recommend a browse of the gallery for some great ideas.

Thanks for reading today, I hope a wonderful weekend awaits you. x