Salt Dough Christmas Ornaments

Made with simple ingredients, these Christmas salt dough ornaments are a great activity and craft to do with the kids this holiday season. Not only are they fun to make, but they also make great gifts too! Sometimes we use these salt dough ornaments as the gift tags on our gifts we are giving!

Salt Dough Christmas Ornaments

Making homemade ornaments at home is something we have done for years. It is a fun project to do with the kids, and then we use them to decorate our tree, give them as gifts or use them as the gift tags when we are giving gifts.

This salt dough ornament recipe is super simple to make. The kids can help you make it and then once the homemade salt dough ornaments are done baking it is time for the kids to decorate them. It is always so much fun to make our own salt dough ornaments and handmade ornaments are always gifts that family members love getting from the kids.

If you are looking for an easy Christmas craft that will also work as Christmas decorations too then this easy recipe is perfect to make and have fun doing with the kids.

Christmas Crafts for Kids

• Coffee filter snowflakes
• Gingerbread playdough
• Grinch Handprint Ornament
• DIY Felt Christmas Tree
• Easy Christmas Slime
• Reindeer Handprint Towel

What is Salt Dough?

Salt dough is a modeling material that is made with flour, water, and salt that is slow-baked in the oven to harden. Once hardened can be decorated with paint. There are many uses for salt dough including making handprints, sculptures and ornaments. Once baked to dry thoroughly salt dough is hard and will last for years.

How to Cut shapes out of Salt Dough

After making the salt dough, use a rolling pin to roll the dough out to 1/4 inch thick. Then use cookie cutters to cut the shapes out that you want. When we are making Christmas themed ornaments I like to use Christmas tree, and other Christmas themed cookie cutters to make different shapes that are holiday themed for our ornaments≥

What is the Best Paint for decorating Salt Dough Ornaments?

You can use any paint including spray paint, acrylic paint, or washable paint to decorate the ornaments. Paint pens are great if you are wanting to have less mess, but I prefer setting up a plate with different colored paints so the kids can decorate the ornaments however they want to. To protect the paint after it has dried I like to put on a clear coat sealer.

How to Store Salt Dough Ornaments

After making the ornaments and then having them out as decorations if you are like me you will want to keep them for years. Wrap the ornaments in bubble wrap and store in a box where they will not be exposed to moisture or be bumped around in the box.

Tips for Making Salt Dough

• Mix ingredients thoroughly. When you are mixing the flour, water and salt to form the dough make sure everything is mixed well.
• Even thickness of the dough. You want the thickness of your ornaments to be the same thickness when you make them so they all dry out evenly when in the oven. You will know they are done when they are hard to the touch without any give when pressed on. If the ornaments are thicker they may need a longer time in the oven.
• Dry fully. Allow the salt dough to dry out thoroughly (baked in the oven) before you paint them. It is very important to dry salt dough ornaments fully before painting them.
• Dry paint fully. Allow the paint to dry completely before putting on a protective spray coating or packaging them up in a storage box.
• Use twine or ribbon for making them into ornaments. You can also use ornament hooks to hang these DIY ornaments on your tree.
• Poke the hole in the top of the ornaments before baking if you are wanting them to an ornament where you can put a ribbon or twine thru the top hole.
• Make the ornaments last longer by spraying them with a polyurethane spray or a coat of mod podge after they are done drying from being painted. Normally I spray ours the next day after painting them.

Salt Dough Christmas Ornaments Supplies

• 4 cups all purpose flour
• 1 cup Salt
• 1 ½ cups Water
• Bowl
• Measuring Cups
• Rolling Pin
• Christmas Cookie Cutters
• Straw
• Baking Sheet
• Parchment Paper
• Oven

Christmas Ornament Crafts

• Christmas Tree Footprint Ornament
• Snowman Handprint ornament

How to Make Salt Dough Christmas Ornaments

Preheat your oven to 200 degrees and line the baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.

In a large bowl, combine the flour, salt, and water stirring until the mixture becomes like a thick dough.

Remove the dough and place on the counter top and knead with your hands until it’s consistent.

Roll dough to a consistent thickness, no thicker than ¼-inch.

With the cookie cutters, cut out shapes, leaving the cookie cutters in place, preferably.

Use the straw to poke a small hole into each of the cookie cutter shapes, at the top of the ornament about ½-inch from the edge, preferably.

Remove the portions of dough that are not the desired cookie cutter shapes.

Remove the cookie cutters.

Gently, using the spatula, transfer the cookie shapes from the table to the prepared cookie sheet.

Use the excess dough and repeat making shapes and ornaments until all of the dough is used up. The number of ornaments you get from each batch will depend on how big the cookie cutters you use are.

Place the baking sheet into the oven for 2 ½ hours and bake salt dough ornaments.

Remove the baking sheet from the oven and allow them to cool completely.

Paint the ornaments as desired and allow them to dry completely.

Thread a piece of ribbon through the hole and hang them on the tree.