My daughters and I had a home school Christmas craft day last week and made some of these fun salt dough ornaments. They were so easy and a lot of fun for us to do together! The recipe is simple and we enjoyed making some traditional Christmas ornaments as well as some western. We also share this on our free Christmas Craft Printable Calendar for the Podcast.

You’ll love this because it’s easy, inexpensive, versatile, and custom to you! We had a lot of fun with all of the cookie cutters we had and took a quick trip to the craft store for some new paint colors.

Supplies

These are what we used but again, these are wonderful because you make them completely your own.

• 2 cups All purpose flour
• 1/2 cup table salt
• 1 cup warm water and more as needed

*You can double this but it’s much easier to work with a smaller amount of dough. It takes no time to mix up another batch when you need more.

Optional Ideas:

• Straw/Toothpick
• Acryllic Paint
• Ribbon
• Mod Podge
• Glitter
• Essential Oils
• Spray Paint
• Paintbrushes

Tools:

• Mixing Bowl & Spoon or Stand Mixer (You do not need a stand mixer but if you do, let it do the hard work)
• Rolling Pin
• Cookie Cutters
• Straw
• Toothpick
• Sheet Pans
• Parchment Paper

How to Make Salt Dough Ornaments

1. Make the dough: You can do this in a mixing bowl with a spoon. For ours, I used my stand mixer using the cookie paddle to combine the flour and salt. Slowly, I added the water a little at a time while the mixer is still going. Once the dough starts to come together, make sure it’s the consistency of play dough. If it’s still flaky after you’ve mixed for a few minutes, add in a little bit more water a tablespoon at a time.
2. Knead: Once the dough is the right consistency, knead for several minutes until smooth. Scout LOVED doing this part. You can use the dough hook on your mixer but I feel like by hand is best. Remember, the more you knead, the more it will yield a smoother texture for your ornaments.
3. Roll Out: Roll dough out on a sheet of parchment or a mat. I roll it to about 1/4″ -1/8″ thick. If they are too thick, they will bubble.
4. Cut Shapes: Now take the cookie cutters of your choice and press into the dough. Gently transfer your shapes onto a prepped sheet pan lined with parchment. Take your excess dough and knead into a ball again, roll out, and continue.
5. Make a Hole: Don’t forget to make a hole for hanging. I took a drinking straw and pressed it towards the top so that our ribbon would fit through.
6. Bake: In a 250 degree oven, bake the ornaments for two hours or until the bottoms are starting to turn a little golden. Baking at a lower temp for longer helps the ornaments not bubble and crack. Let completely cool before decorating.

Now the fun part – decorating! We used various colors of acrylic paint to paint ours. Once they were dry, I coated them with a layer of mod podge. Once that dried, I took some thin, velvet ribbon to make their hangers and wrote their name and date on the back.

We also made some Santa hand prints from an idea we found on Pinterest and also did Cheif’s paw print as a keepsake.

Other Variations and Options

• Add essential oils to the dough for a great smell.
• Add food coloring for a fun pop.
• Stir in glitter.
• Stamp before baking.
• Make custom gift tags.

You can make salt dough in advance. Seal in an airtight container for up to one week! These ornaments last for years and years. Salt naturally preserves them and you can extend their life by using some polyurethane spray.

I hope you love this little project! Be sure to tag me on instagram | @the.farmgirl if you end up making some with your family!