‘Tis the season to have some fun and make some memories in the kitchen. Today I'm sharing a complete tutorial and FAQ for a classic Christmas craft. These are ideal to create with children but also delightful to make with a group of gal pals for a Christmas Crafternoon! So read on for How to Make Salt Dough Ornaments!
Did you ever make these when you were young? I sure did! My mom is a wonderful pottery artist and so she would craft and create these beautiful and elaborate creations. I'll be sharing a more advanced Salt Dough Ornament post this season so pleasestay tuned for that – with tips from my mom too! – but for today, we're keeping it simple.
This is a Christmas craft that anyone can do, so grab your supplies and let's make some Easy Salt Dough Ornaments!
Supplies to Make Your Own Salt Dough Ornaments
Flour
Salt
Water
Cookie Cutters
Straw or Toothpick
Stamps* optional but so pretty!!
Food Coloring
Artist Brush
Mod Podge
Let's chat for a quick moment about these supplies:
What type of flour should I use for my salt dough ornaments?
Salt dough ornaments by nature are a creamy colored creation. I personally like the creamy tones, they remind me of pottery. Regular unbleached flour is what I used for mine. But, if you want to lighten your dough a bit more I suggest you use BLEACHED flour. It will help you go a shade or two lighter.
Want even “whiter” salt dough ornaments?
Add some white acrylic paint to your mix. A teaspoon or so will whiten your dough even more.
What type of salt should I use to make Salt Dough Ornaments?
Good old fashionedtable salt is ideal for making salt dough ornaments because it is finely ground. It mixes seamlessly into the dough. You do not need to get iodized. Just plain table salt will work. This is not the time to pull out your fancy, coarse ground sea salt or Himalayanpink salt – these will not incorporate as well into your dough and could make it look a bit chunky or off color. Best of all plain table salt is very budget-friendly.
What temperature should the water be for my Salt Dough Ornaments?
I used just plain, cold tap water, straight from the faucet. I have seen recipes that will call for you to boil water but I personally have never used that system and I've always been happy with how my ornaments have turned out. Plus, this is a craft that I like to do with my daughter and I do not want to worry about her burning herself with boiling water! So, I suggest you go with plain tap water.
What type or size of Cookie Cutter should I use to Make Salt Dough Ornaments?
This is a great question! Any type of cookie cutter will work salt dough because it is a soft dough to work with. I have used metal and plastic cookie cutters with equal success. I do recommend you think about the size of the cutter and how you intend to hang the ornament when it's finished. If you have a very small cookie cutter keep in mind you may need to make a smaller hole to hang it – we'll talk about this next.
Do I have to use Cookie Cutters to Make Salt Dough Ornaments?
Absolutely not – you can use anything to make shapes with salt dough. You can use plates, cups, pottery tools, flatware – even plastic flatware. Let your imagination run wild with shapes that you see. Find a cool shape, gently set it on your dough and use a knife to cut the dough away. It may not be as clean of a cut than you would get with a cookie cutter but it is possible. Have fun with this!
What's the Best Way to Make a Hole to Hang my Salt Dough Ornaments?
The best holes for hanging salt dough ornaments, in my opinion, are made with a straw. The straw can be metal, plastic or paper – your choice – this will make the easiest hole for stringing the salt dough ornament with ribbon or twine. The catch to this is if you are making very small or mini salt dough ornaments, a straw opening may be too large. In this case, you would want to use a toothpick. See my comments in the next questions for specific details on how to do each of these techniques.
How do I Make a Hole with a Straw to Hang my Salt Dough Ornaments?
To make a hole with a straw to hang your salt dough ornaments you simply pick a spot on your cut-out salt dough shape and press the straw straight down. Then, while it is pressed down, give it a gentle twist. You do not want to slide the straw around. You want to simply twist it IN PLACE and then lift the straw up to remove it. This will give you a clean hole that should not close up during the drying process. Note: do not bake your ornaments with a straw in them, this is unnecessary and is a fire hazard if the straw is plastic or paper. So, safety first – leave the straw out.
How do I Make a Hole with a Toothpick to Hang my Salt Dough Ornaments?
If you are using particularly small ornament shapes or you simply want to use an ornament hook to hang your salt dough ornaments you may prefer to have a smaller opening than you will achieve with a straw. If so, then a toothpick is going to be your recommended tool. To make a hole with a toothpick you want to select your spot on the ornament and press in but this time you do want to gently slide the toothpick around just a bit to make an opening the width you desire. If you are using a toothpick to make a hole you may want to consider leaving the toothpick in the hole to make sure it does not close up during the drying process. I recommend wooden toothpicks if you plan to leave them in while drying in the oven.
Do I need to leave the straw or toothpick in the hole of the Salt Dough Ornament while it is drying?
My short answers are for straws: no; for toothpicks: maybe. See my detailed answers to this question in the questions above.
How do I use a stamp to make a pattern on a Salt Dough Ornament?
This is such a simple way to add wow factor to your salt dough ornament and a great way to elevate this craft from simply a kids craft to true artistic creation. Simply find a stamp you like and after cutting out the shape you desire, simply press the stamp into the salt dough ornament. Press the stamp gently, being careful to not press too hard and squish the shape of your ornament. You want to press enough to make an impression but not so much that your ornament has lost it's pretty cookie cutter shape.
Do I need to use ink with my stamps when using them to add a pattern to Salt Dough Ornaments?
No, you do not need to use ink if you are going for a tone on tone pattern as I did.
I want to add color to my stamp patterns on my Salt Dough Ornaments. How do you recommend I do that?
It is very easy to add color to your salt dough ornaments either before or after the drying process. Depending on the medium you choose I recommend you do a test batch and play with them a bit to see which results you prefer since every method will give you a slightly different look.
What do you recommend to add color to Salt Dough Ornaments?
There are many ways to add color to a salt dough ornament. Here are a few of my favorite ways and when to apply them:
Color mediums to apply BEFORE baking Salt Dough Ornaments
- Food Coloring
- Acrylic Paint
- Watercolor Paint
- Stamp Ink
Color mediums to apply AFTER baking Salt Dough Ornaments
- Chalk Style Paint (the Rescue Restore paints in my Maker Studio here are wonderful for this!)
- Acrylic Paint
- Watercolor Paint
- Glitter (with ModPodge applied first so that it will stick)
How to Use Ink with a Stamp on Salt Dough Ornaments:
Simply press your stamp into the stamp ink pad and then press it into the ornament using the technique I mentioned above in the How do I use a stamp to make a pattern on a Salt Dough Ornament question.
How to Apply Food Coloring to Salt Dough Ornaments:
This is my number one favorite way to make colorful salt dough ornaments with my daughter. It's non-toxic and a lot of fun. I recommend that you first cut out your salt dough ornaments and place them on a parchment paper lined baking sheet and cut out your holes first. This way when they are done adding color you're ready to put them right in the oven and won't have to handle them getting coloring all over you in the process!
How to Mix Food Coloring to Make Your Own Salt Dough Ornaments
Simply place a few drops of food coloring into a small glass jar (old baby food jars or small yogurt jars are great for this) and then add approximately 1/4 of a cup of water. Make a few different colors using a different jar for each color. Use a small artist brush to apply the colors to your ornaments. Have a “cleaning” water cup ready and encourage your little artists to use the lightest colors first – this will help minimize the darker colors quickly contaminating the water cleaning bowl.
How to Apply Paint to Salt Dough Ornaments:
I recommend using an artist brush to apply paint to your salt dough ornaments no matter if you are applying it before or after the drying process. Just keep in mind the drying process will slightly “mute” the colors you end up with. So I always recommend you do a test batch to make sure you're going to get the result you are hoping for.
How to add Glitter to Salt Dough Ornaments:
If you want to give your Salt Dough Ornaments some sparkle, glitter is a great addition to consider. Simply brush on some ModPodge in the spot(s) where you want the glitter to appear. Be careful not to make the glue too heavy – it doesn't take a lot and the goopier it is, the longer your dry time will be (and this increases the chance that it will never dry properly). Immediately after brushing on the glue sprinkle with glitter. I highly recommend working over a glitter tray or paper plate to catch your extra glitter so you can pour it back in your glitter bottle for future projects. Lift up your ornament and gently tap it to remove the extra glitter. Voila! Instant glitter salt dough ornaments!
How Can I Make my Salt Dough Ornaments Last and Not Get Moldy:
Salt dough ornaments will inherently last quite a while but if they are not sealed, over time they can begin to absorb moisture from the air which can then turn to mold. You can easily avoid this by sealing your ornament. ModPodge is a great medium to use. Simply brush it on to your ornaments and allow them to dry. Now you have handmade ornament keepsakes for years!
Ready to make your own ornaments? Here's my easy salt dough ornament recipe for you to begin making memories.
Easy Salt Dough Ornament Recipe
2 cups of flour
1 cup of salt
1 cup of water
How to Make Salt Dough Ornaments
- Preheat oven to 225°
- Combine flour in salt in a bowl. Give it a quick stir to combine.
- Add water to flour/salt mix and stir with a wooden spoon or spatula until the mixture gets too thick and tricky to stir. At that stage, roll up your sleeves and knead the dough. It will come together quickly into a nice ball.You may need to add more water or flour to your dough to get the right consistency. I tend to err on the drier side with my dough. Too much water and it's just a mess. Also, I recommend you work in sections so that your dough doesn't dry out too fast.
- Sprinkle a bit of flour onto your work surface. Place a fist-sized piece of dough on the surface and use a rolling pin to roll it out to your desired thickness. I recommend around 1/4″. Add a bit of flour to the dough as needed while rolling it out if it starts to stick to your rolling pin.
- Keep remaining dough in the bowl you mixed it in with a towel covering it to help it stay moist.
- Once the dough is rolled to your desired thickness cut out with your cutters and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
- Make your holes for hanging each ornament with either a straw or toothpick.
- Add any embellishments like stamp details, food coloring, etc… to your ornaments now.
- Bake at225° for approximately 2 hours or until the ornaments are completely dry.
Voila! You have beautiful ornaments that you and your family can enjoy for years and years to come. I hope this tutorial and Salt Dough FAQ post has been helpful and that you now knowHow to Make Salt Dough Ornaments!
Happy Celebrating!
