Kimberly Smith has launched the world’s first certified organic sculpting dough. Max’s Mud feels and looks just like Play-Doh, but it’s 100 percent all-natural. Children with allergies ranging from asthma to wheat can squeeze, mold and — yes — taste Smith’s product with no worries.
“I wanted a product that was different from the others out there. I wanted people to feel safe getting the product. I didn’t want glitter or foam pellets,” Smithsaid.
The mother of two speaks from personal experience. The idea for Max’s Mud, she explained, stems from the fact that her 7-year-old son, the product’s namesake, suffers from allergies and asthma.
As a mother, Smith diligently sought out safe, non-allergenic products for her first-born, delivered 8.5 weeks premature. Play-Doh, a childhood favorite of Smith’s, unfortunately did not make the cut.
“I wanted to get some Play-Doh for Max, so my husband brought home some with glitter. It said non-toxic, but it didn’t make sense to me,” Smith explained. “I wanted a safe, tactile experience for Max, so I started making my own play dough.”
With a strong background in baking -— Smith’s parents ran the former C’est Cheese Deli on Mercer Island — this was easy to do.
“I pretty much experimented. There are quite a few recipes out there for homemade play dough, but ours is minus ingredients such as wheat, soy or corn that could get in the way of kids’ enjoyment. We don’t want to leave anyone out of the true play scenario,” she said, adding that Max’s Mud is also fragrance-free, gluten-free and vegan.
Earning a patent and USDA approval for Max’s Mud was the most difficult part of the process, Smith said. Determined to have her product certified-organic, Smith turned to Oregon Tilth, which certifies organic products on behalf of the USDA.
“It was really hard — a lot of paperwork and planning, down to how we receive the product and how we store the product,” Smith said.
The other issue was creating a recipe that did not already have a patent. But with a bit of trial and error, plus a dash of culinary expertise, Smith finally discovered her secret play dough recipe.
“My [Mercer Island High School] science teacher, Mrs. Guise, would be so proud right now. It’s a very interesting, fun formulation — a top-secret formula under lock and key,” Smith said with a laugh.
Although she developed the dough five years ago, Smith only began selling Max’s Mud — which includes eight natural colors — to retailers last July. Whole Foods, PCC and numerous toy stores, including Katan Toys on Mercer Island, carry the product. As of this month, Max’s Mud can be found as far north as Alaska and as far south as California.
Although sales is not Smith’s primary motive, the Ballard resident said that the business is doing quite well.
“Sales have been really great. Obviously, an investment’s been made, but we have potential to bring in revenue within the next year,” the entrepreneur said.
But most of Smith’s satisfaction comes from the joy that Max’s Mud brings to children.
“Our motto is ‘good, clean fun.’ We want kids to enjoy their imagination and create things without extraneous bits and pieces. We want kids to get back to the basics,” she said.
For more information or to purchase Max’s Mud, visit www.maxsmud.com.
