One of my all-time favorite craft medium would have to be the humble salt-dough. Its one of those easy to make mediums where you almost always have the ingredients at home and the kids can not have enough fun with the endless possibilities. Ofcourse there are several variations to this recipe on the internet but I stick to my tried and tested recipe which has worked for me for over a decade. Here it is.
Ingredients : Salt : 1 cup Flour (all purpose) : 4 cups Water : 1 1/2 to 2 cups
In a large bowl, blend the salt with flour and gradually keep adding the water until a thick palable ball of dough is formed. Knead the dough firmly for a couple of minutes until it can stand on its own and no salt is left in the container.Wrap the dough tIghtly in plastic or put it in a plastic bag secured with a twist tie. Let it sit for a few minutes.
You are now, ready to play with your dough. This is the best part of the entire process for little ones. You could let the little ones play freeform or hand them a bucket of cookie cutter and let them have a blast.
After items are formed, set them on a baking sheet. Bake in 250 degree oven until items are completely hard. This can be from half an hour for small items to several hours for large ones.
Ofcourse, there are variations again.
* You can add a bit of vanilla essense or cinnamon powder at this stage. It will leave a beautiful fragrance long after baking.
* You could also roll the dough in a cylinder shape and cut 2 inch batches and add a drop or two of cooking color. That way, you dont have to color them once you have decided to mould it into your desired shape.
Once out of the oven, let it rest for a while on the wire.
And then begins the second best part of this activity : Painting The kids absolutely love painting their prized creations.
Spread some cling film or newspaper on the kitchen table or where you intend to conduct this activity ~ lots of paint brushes with pots of water , some acrylic paints and some poster paints. Voila ! BTW, dont be surprised if the kids nag you again next weekend for this activity
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Some tips :-
Keep all pieces of dough not-in-use wrapped tightly in plastic.
Store leftover dough in the refrigerator and use it within one week.
Bring the refrigerated dough to room temperature before working with it.
As much as you’d like to grab a bit into these “cookies” ~ DON’T ~ Not a good idea
Enjoy the salt dough and enjoy making memories.
Linking the recipe with the following parties :-
Tatertots and Jello
Whipperberry
Thirty Handmade Days
Ladybird Lane
Simply Sweet Home
Simply Designing
The Answer is Chocolate
Not Your Ordinary Recipes
The Best Blog Recipes
Family and Friendly Fun
Frugal Friday – Life As Mom
Friday
Remodelaholics Anonymous What’s Your Story Fridays at Remodelaholic
Frugal Friday at the Shabby Nest
Frugalicious Friday at Finding Fabulous
Show and Tell;
Fancy This;
Tickled Pink;
TGIF;
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Tasty Creations;
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Follow Who?;
Happy Hour Friday;
Inspiration Spotlight;
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One Creative Weekend at One Creative Mommy
Kitchen Fun and Crafty Friday at Kitchen Fun with My 3 Sons
Foodie Friday at Designs by Gollum
Friday Favorites at Simply Sweet Home
I’m Lovin’ It at Tidy Mom {requires backlink in post}
For the Kids Fridays at Sun Scholars
Weekend Wander at While He Was Napping
Lovely Crafty Weekend at Lovely Crafty Home
Weekend Bloggy Reading at Serenity Now
Friday Favs at Nap Time Crafters
Party Mindie Style at Bacon Time with the Hungry Hungry Hypo
Free for All at Young and Crafty
Dare to Share at Pam’s Party Planning
Feature Friday at Blissful and Domestic
Shine on Friday at Happy Go Lucky
Show Off Friday at What-About
The Shabby Nest,
Tatertots & Jello,
Simply Sweet Home,
30 Handmade Days,
WhipperBerry,
Simply Designing,
French Country Cottage,
The Answer is Chocolate,
See Vanessa Craft,
One Artsy Mama,
So You Think You’re Crafty,
It’s a Hodgepodge Life,
Tidy Mom,
Craftionary,
Five Days… Five Ways,
Release Me Creations
Thank you for visiting me today. Have a beautiful and thankful day.
I would love if you could share your salt dough experience with me too !!
Naush
Thanks for linking up at Family Fun Friday at http://happyandblessedhome.com! Great post! Blessings!
Just one week ! The one I make keeps for months in the refrigerator….I use Cream of Tartar and vegetable oil along with the ingredients u mentioned. 2-3 months is easy…
I love working with salt dough with kids! Thanks for linking up & sharing at DearCreatives.com I hope to see you again this week! Nice to meet you via blogland. Theresa 😉 (PS I have two giveaways going on)
Hi Naush,
Thanks so much for linking up to Tasty Creations link party. You’ve brought back some wonderful memories of when my Mom used to make salt dough when we were growing up. We used to make ornaments for the holidays. Have a great weekend.
xoxo,
Michelle