You know I am a crafty girl at heart, and we always try to make some sort of handmade item during the holidays. Last year, it was a salt dough Grinch and reindeer.
If you’ve never experimented with salt dough, it’s really quite fun! You probably already have everything you need to whip up a batch of dough, and the kids love the process from beginning to end. Mixing up the dough, cutting out shapes with cookie cutters, baking them, and then painting them…it keeps them entertained all day! We often do circle ornaments or other shapes, but this year, we went for handprint and footprint designs!
And, the grandparents love getting these little homemade nuggets ?, so if you’re at a loss as to what to get your parents this year, try a homemade trinket from the kids!
Ingredients:
2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup table salt
3/4 – 1 cup water
Other items you will need:
parchment paper
rolling pin
straw or toothpick to make a hole
twine or ribbon
paint
clear spray paint
cookie cutters (optional)
Mix all ingredients in a large bowl until combined. A whisk or hand beater is helpful, but not required. This is a starting point, so feel free to adjust the ingredients according to how your dough is reacting. If it’s too sticky, add a little bit of flour. If it’s too dry, add a little bit of water.
When your dough is a good consistency (think cookie dough), roll it out on parchment paper until it’s about 1/4-1/2″ thick. Use cooking cutters to form shapes, or just shape it with your hands. If doing a handprint or footprint, make sure your dough is a little bit on the thicker side so the print doesn’t go through the dough.
Preheat your oven to 200 degrees.
Prior to baking, use a straw to poke a hole in each ornament you want to hang. Place your ornaments on a cookie sheet (parchment paper and all), and bake for about 30 minutes. The thicker your ornaments, the longer they will need to bake. They will also continue to dry over time.
After they are completely cooled, you can paint or decorate your ornaments however you’d like to! For the Grinch and reindeer, I let the boys do the painting, and then I helped them with the details like eyes and mouths. Don’t forget to add the date on the back so you can look back on when you created these masterpieces!
When the paint is dry, I like to add a few coats of clear spray paint to help preserve them. String a ribbon or twine through the hole and hang them on your tree!
I hope this was helpful and I can’t wait to see what all you guys create! Be sure to tag me if you share your creations on social media!
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