Friday

Salt Dough Ornaments

I've always wanted to try making salt dough ornaments.  I love their homemade appeal and the fact that they are virtually unbreakable is a real plus around here.  And if they do get broken it's no biggie because they cost pennies to make.  I have a small tree that I decorate for my daughter's room.  Last year I put it on a cabinet to make sure she couldn't get to it and to make sure the ornaments wouldn't get broken.  I decorated it with vintage pink ornaments that I found at a thrift store for a few dollars.  I love the variation in the shades of pink. 


However, this year she is much more interactive and I wanted her to be able to touch and see the tree without having to worry about fragile ornaments.  So, I did a quick google search for salt dough ornaments and found a simple recipe here.  I found lots of recipes actually, but they are all basically the same.  The one thing I did read was that it's better to bake them at a lower temperature for a longer period of time.  It helps them to dry out more evenly and you get less puffing.  I ended up baking mine for 5 hours.


I rolled out the dough and cut the shapes out with these cookie cutters from IKEA, they are my new favorites.  Then I just used a straw to make the hole for the ribbon.

Once they cooled, I added some glitter to make them a little more fun.  I'm convinced that gold glitter makes most things better.  You can also paint them or even color the dough before hand with food coloring or just leave them as is.

I used this spray to seal everything because it's what I had on hand and it seemed to work well.  I did two coats.


I added some vintage gold garland, a random strand of beads, and some leftover lace for texture.  


My favorite one is the moose.  I think it's because he has antlers and I'm a little antler obsessed right now.





Have you ever made salt dough ornaments?  I think it might be a new tradition around here.  They are so easy to make.  The hardest part is waiting for them to dry out.  I think they are great for any tree not just for kids!

18 comments:

  1. so creative and adorable! and, i love that you got your daughter involved.

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  2. I was just talking about these ornaments the other day. I used to make them with my mom when I was little. You really make me want to do it again with my daughter. These are awesome!

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  3. these are ADORABLE! i have those cookie cutters- we might be copycats over here. :)

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  4. love the glittered antlers!

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  5. So funny, I used to make these when I was little! I have that same set of cookie cutters from IKEA, glitter spray, and I even have similar grosgrain ribbon! I guess I know what I'm doing today!! :-) Thanks for this great DIY. Hugs, Amy

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  6. Oh my gosh I'm so sorry for the HUGE picture of myself! Gee, I'm not vain! :-) I obviously edited the wrong thing. SO SORRY!!!!

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  7. Thank you! I'm loving antlers these days :)

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  8. Thanks Cassie! Go right ahead and copy :)

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  9. You should! I'm sure your daughter would love it! :)

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  10. Thanks Emily! She was a good little helper, flour ended up all over the kitchen but we had fun making memories! :)

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  11. You so inspired me that I made a huge batch of these w/ my kids this past weekend. Here is my post: http://amykrist.org/2013/12/salt-dough-ornaments/ Hugs, Amy

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  12. These turned out so cute, Bethany! I think I have those cookie cutters too. This would be such a great snow day project...I think we may get one soon!

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  13. Preppy glam moose needs to bring his (her) friends & party on my tree!! Pinning this so Quinn & I can remember to make them!! Thanks for inspiring us, xoxo.

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  14. Oh these are so cute. I tried baking these last year, but they did not turn out nearly as pretty as yours :)

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  15. They would be perfect for a snow day!

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  16. I'm totally stealing that name for her! ;)

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Thank you for your sweet comments, they make my day!