Life, as of Late

My kids are getting to the age where we can do arts and crafts and I am elated, to say the least! Just in time for the holidays. 

In previous years, we opted not to decorate our Christmas tree, seeing as our little ones seemed content on tearing down the ornaments. This year, they were quite helpful in decorating our tree. I mistakenly purchased miniature ornaments from Target, naively thinking I’d just scored an incredible deal on a 25-pack for only $5. My disappointment, thought, was my children’s delight. Now, I find our tree’s decor endearing, knowing they were strategically placed by my 2 & 3 year olds. 

To add to that spirit, I wanted to make homemade ornaments this year using salt dough. It’s exactly as it sounds – comprised of only 3 ingredients: flour, water, and… you guessed it, salt. The flour comes together pretty easily, with minimal kneading required, and bake in the oven for about an hour. This made for the perfect craft to enjoy with my little ones and to serve as keepsakes for years to come. I hope to, one day, have a tree filled with handmade ornaments by myself and my family. 

Salt Dough Ornament Recipe

Ingredients:

• 1 Cup Flour
• 1/2 Cup Salt
• 1/2 Cup Water

Instructions:

1. Preheat your oven to 250 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Combine all of the ingredients in a mixing bowl. Use your hands to knead the dough until everything is well combined.
3. Using a rolling pin, roll out the dough, ensuring the depth is consistent throughout.

1. Stamp your hand or footprint(s) or use cookie cutters to cut out your desired design(s).

1. Using a straw (or any small, circular shape), cut out a small hole for hanging the ornaments. Keep it around 1/4 of an inch away from the edge of the ornament to prevent it from breaking.

1. Carefully place the cutouts onto a cookie sheet.
2. Bake for 1-1.5 hours or until the dough completely hardens.
3. Once fully hardened, paint and decorate your ornaments and hang on your tree.

Tips:

• A common complaint with making homemade ornaments out of salt dough is that it becomes extremely fragile and is prone to breaking. To prevent this, some people have used varnish and a UV lamp for added protection.
• The dough sometimes puffs up for some ornaments. When stamping hand or footprints, apply enough pressure to create a clear indent to help combat this.

Let me know if you give this recipe a try and what fun designs you and your loved ones come up with. Merry Christmas! 🙂