After a few Tweets about the ornaments I finally have the recipes ready to share. I completed the ornaments tonight, it took a lot longer than I had expected, but I am very happy with them and want to share the knowledge I now have so that others can make some heart felt, handmade gifts in the years to come. Key thing to keep in mind, these can take a few days to dry and decorate. A lot more if you are making multiple batches. Prepare to make them ATLEAST a week in advance to when you will need them. I finished two separate flour batches and one cinnamon batch (including drying, decor, and glue) in just about a week. With a toddler that's not too bad, but honestly it is time consuming to make quality ones. Plain Jane shapes without paint would be adorable as well. But you should still add the glue.
First, the flour dough ornaments. (tree and heart in picture)
You will need:
2 cups flour
1 cup salt
1 cup water
food coloring
rolling pin
cookie cutters (in holiday shapes if you wish)
cookie sheets
a straw
acrylic paint
white glue
string or yarn
Baking
1. mix together flour and salt.
2. add food coloring to water and stir until mixed.
3. gradually add water mix to the flour mix until you have a nice dough. Add more flour or water for the proper texture. Knead it smooth.
4. roll out the dough to about 1/4 inch thick and cut out shapes.
5. With the straw, giving enough space around, make a hole for the string to fit through.
6. Carefully lift off shapes with a spatula and transfer to cookie sheets.
7. repeat steps 4-6 until you don't have enough dough left for one shape.
8. bake at 250 degrees for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, until dry, being careful not to burn. Remember to flip them half way.
9. lay them out to cool and continue drying. Depending on their level of dryness it may take a few days to completely harden. Cracking is normal with this type of dough ornament.
Decoration
1. use acrylic paint to decorate your ornaments any way you wish. Add googly eyes, glitter, or confetti if you want also.
2. when paint is dry coat the entire ornament in white glue and allow to dry again. (remember to sharpie in the year on the back before you add the glue)
3. when completely dry, tie some string through the hole and your ornaments will be complete and ready to hang.
((makes about 12-15 ornaments))
Now the cinnamon dough ornaments (brown man in the picture). In my opinion, these turned out much better overall. I will probably only make this type next time.
You will Need:
1 cup applesauce
1 cup ground cinnamon
straw
wax paper
cookie cutters (in holiday shapes if you wish)
string or yarn
white glue
acrylic paint
rolling pin
Directions:
1. combine cinnamon and applesauce in bowl until dough forms. Add more cinnamon or applesauce if needed until you have a good thick dough. Knead smooth.
2. place ball of dough between two sheets of wax paper. Roll out to about 1/4 inch thickness.
3. remove top sheet of wax paper and begin cutting out shapes.
4. carefully peel away the excess and roll into another ball to repeat on a new sheet of wax paper. (Reuse the top sheet to conserve)
5. repeat steps 3 and 4 until you run out of dough.
6. use the straw to make holes for the string in each shape, remembering to leave enough space to prevent breakage.
7. Place full sheets of wax paper in a safe place to dry. (remember to tell your husband they are not cookies)
8. When they are mostly dry on top (which can be a couple days), carefully peel them away from the wax paper and flip over to continue drying on the bottom side for a few more days. Repeat this flipping process until completely dry.
Decorating:
1. use acrylic paint to decorate your ornaments however you wish.
2. when the paint is dry, remember to write the year on the back, and then seal the whole ornament with white glue.
3. Once the glue is dry, tie some string through the hole and your ornaments will be ready to hang. The strong cinnamon smell should still be noticeable through the glue.
No comments:
Post a Comment