Homemade Tree Ornaments
By Mia Rotell
What do cookie cutters and Christmas ornaments have in common? Not much — but with some flour, water, and salt, charming Christmas tree embellishments can be brought to life. Salt dough ornaments bring together homey Christmas nostalgia and create darling keepsakes — especially with paw or little hand imprints.
What You’ll Need:
A whisk
A large bowl
2 cups of flour
1 cup of salt
⅓ cup of ground cinnamon (optional)
1 ¼ cup of warm water
Rolling pin
Cookie cutters (as many and whatever design desired)
1 straw
String or ribbon
Baking sheet
Parchment paper
How to Make It:
Step 1: Preheat the oven to 210 degrees.
Step 2: Whisk the flour and salt together in a large bowl. Optional, add in ⅓ cup of ground cinnamon before whisking to make the ornaments brown.
Step 3: After the dry ingredients are whisked together, put 1 1/4 cup of water in the microwave for a minute.
Step 4: After the water is warm, pour small amounts at a time into the dry mixture and stir together.
Step 5: Continue to stir the mixture until there is ¼ cup of water left and the dough is formed.
Step 6: Take the dough out of the bowl and knead it for 10 minutes — make sure the dough is smooth and feels like Play-Doh. If the dough feels dry add a little bit of the warm water set aside and continue kneading.
Step 7: After kneading, roll the dough out with a rolling pin — the dough should be about ¼ inch thick.
Step 8: Press shapes into the dough with the desired cookie cutter(s) or press a pet’s paw or child’s hand into the dough and press the cookie cutter around the imprint.
Step 9: With a straw make a hole toward the top of each shape so the ornament can be hung.
Step 10: Place the shapes onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper — they can be placed close together since they won’t spread or rise.
Step 11: Put the baking sheet in the oven and set the timer for 3 hours.
Step 12: After 3 hours flip the shapes over and bake for another hour.
Step 13: Take the ornaments out when they aren’t squishy in the middle (it may take longer than 4 hours to achieve this depending on the dough’s thickness)
Step 14: After the ornaments are dry, take them out of the oven to cool.
Step 15: Once they are cool, hang them up with string or ribbon through the hole at the top of the ornament.
Step 16: They’re done!
Tip: Use fine grit sandpaper to smooth out any rough edges that may need it. Use paint pens to decorate the ornaments once dry. After dry, coat them in Mod Podge, or a UV light curing clear gel, to seal them so they last for Christmases to come!
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