Monday, November 5, 2012

Homemade Christmas Ornaments



 
 
 
Hello World!  I’ve been having a great time making homemade crafts these past few months and I want to share one of them with you so you too can find joy in making them! After hours of researching the best clay to make, I settled on this one that I found on the Woodside kitchen blog, it’s very simple and works out well. The Ornaments are soft and pillowy, looking unlike the salt clay we all made when we were little. I hope you will consider making some and hand them out at Christmas parties and such so that you can hang on your friends trees every year! Here’s what you'll need
 
 

1/2 cup cornstarch

1 cup baking soda

3/4 cup water
( I tripled these amounts )
 Here’s what I did to make the Clay

I combined the cornstarch, baking soda, and water and stirred it over medium-low heat. When it thickened and looked like a big lump of mashed potatoes, I removed it from the heat put it all in a bowl and covered it with a damp cloth until it cooled. Then I kneaded it on the counter dusted with corn starch, adding a little more cornstarch as I went along so it was dry but still mushy. I used a rolling pin to roll it to about 1/4" thick, some are thicker than others and I found the thinner ones curl when you cook them so thicker is better. The oven needs to be preheated at 175 degrees; my oven doesn’t have a setting this low so I used a meat thermometer to get 175 leaving it set at warm heat worked for me. I used cookie cutters and a straw, making shapes and then holes. I lined the cookie sheets with parchment paper and then cooked the Ornaments for 1 hour, I had to flip them half way because they started to curl some but flipping them stopped it. I really like the soft white look of mine and I don’t think I will do more to them, maybe spray them with a product called Mister Huey's Shine by Studio Calico, it makes them sparkly :) I love Sparkles!! So after 1 hour I put them on the cooling rack and put more in the oven and even now as I write they are cooking away in the kitchen! It’s been a lot of fun, my 3 year old had a blast making them with me and he loved blowing out the clay of the straws lol just like the author at the Woodside Kitchen Blog said he would :) So that’s it, I am hanging them on red ribbons and I plan to send them out to all my friends and family :) Thanks for reading my blog if you make some yourself, I’d love to see what you make so pop me an email.
 
OH yes I completely forgot! I used a scrapbooking stamp by Close to My Heart to make the little daisies before I cooked them!
 
Fondly Paula

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