DIY Ornaments

These are probably the easiest and fastest ornaments I have EVER made. 

Screw the salt dough ornaments on Pinterest. I found these online and they rock! 

INGREDIENTS

1/2 C Cornstarch

1 C Baking Soda

3/4 C Water 

IMPORTANT

Cookie Cutters

Straw (or some sort of hole maker)

Flour for the countertop

Roller (unless you're super kneader)

Oven

A creative toddler to help decorate when done!

PREP

1. Preheat oven to 175 Degrees

2. Mix ingredients in a medium sized pan, cook on medium heat. Stir the entire time until the consistency is like mashed potatoes (See photo).

Hint: If you stop stirring it all sticks to the bottom of the pan and it dries VERY fast

3. Cover the counter top, or you workspace with flour. Knead the dough and roll out to about 1/4" thickness. Then, get creative! Use your favorite cookie cutters to make the shapes you want. Lay them on a non-stick baking sheet when done. 

Hint: You can add food coloring to your dough before baking them if you want them to be colored. We didn't because we planned on painting them.

Hint- Use a little drop of water to go around the edge of the ornaments to make sure there are not any rough spots or cracks. It won't be easy to fix once they're baked!

Hint: I used a straw to punch a hole in the top of each shape (makes it easier to hang up when done!) 

4. Put on top rack in the oven for 1 hour but flip over at 30 min. Set a timer for 30 min. to remind you! 

5. When the hour is up, set ornaments on a cooling rack. They were a little soft still when I pulled them out so you can either bake longer or let them dry completely before painting or hanging! I actually put these back in the oven for another 45 minutes because they were not hardening properly... So, watch them and see what you need to do. After about 45 more mins they were perfect. I left them on the baking rack to cool and they were good to paint later tonight.

I'm super excited for Lennon to paint these and pass out as Christmas Gifts this year! So EASY! My favorite one - a round one I made with the bottom of a soup can and pressed our house key into. Our very first home ornament! Told you to be CREATIVE! Yay! Find some awesome things in the cupboards to use or just cookie ornaments work great, too.

L had so much fun painting them. She even picked out her favorite colors - yellow, green and orange. At least they turned out great and hey, look at the bright side family... They will make your Christmas tree look more like a Picasso piece. :) LOL. 

Have fun making these with your littles. :)

XO - K