Dough Ornaments for Family Fun

Homemade Christmas Decorations for Home or Craft Bazaars

Oct 15, 2009 Debby Mayne

Making homemade ornaments for the Christmas tree is a fun event for everyone in the family to enjoy.

Rather than use all store bought Christmas tree ornaments, most members of the family will enjoy creating handmade decorations that can add memories for many years to come. One of the least expensive and easiest types of ornaments is made from dough. These are mixed, cut and baked or microwaved in advance then painted later. It’s a fun thing to do on a cold, snowy afternoon.

Ingredients

• 3/4 cups of salt
• 1-1/2 cup of all purpose flour
• 3/4 cups of water

Supplies

• Cookie sheet or pan
• Rolling pin or tall, heavy glass
• Skewer or toothpick
• Cookie cutters in star, gingerbread man, snowflake, and other Christmas shapes
• Paint that will adhere to the baked dough (acrylic works well and is easy to use)
• Paint brushes
• Ribbon, wire, or ornament hooks
• Decorative extras, such as stickers or glitter

Mix and Cut

On a floured surface, mix the ingredients and knead them until they’re smooth. Add flour if the dough remains sticky, but only a little at a time because if it’s too dry, it might crack or have unwanted lines after it’s baked. Once it has the right consistency of firm but pliable dough, roll it out on a freshly floured surface with a rolling pin or straight glass that has been covered in flour. Using the different shapes of cookie cutters, cut the shapes into the dough. Make a hole for the ribbon or wire at the top of each ornament with the skewer.

Bake or Microwave

Carefully lift the shapes off the surface and place on a dry cookie sheet for the oven or dry flat plate for the microwave. Bake for two hours in the oven or three to four minutes in the microwave. If using the microwave, check on it after two minutes. If they need to bake longer, return them to the microwave for one minute at a time. Remove the ornaments from the oven or microwave and allow them to cool to room temperature.

Decorate

After the ornaments have completely cooled, paint and decorate them with the acrylic paints, stickers, and glitter. To give them a nice shine or sparkle, allow the paint to dry and cover them with glitter glue or glitter paint. They may be sprayed with an acrylic finishing spray or glaze afterward to preserve them longer. After they’re dry, put the ribbon or wire through the hole, cut it to the desired length, and tie a knot.

The copyright of the article Dough Ornaments for Family Fun in Crafts is owned by Debby Mayne. Permission to republish Dough Ornaments for Family Fun in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

Homemade Dough Ornaments are Festive and Fun

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