Holidays in Houston :: Tiny Hands Forever

Tiny Hands Forever

Starting a New Tradition

I always knew that when I became a mom I would create family traditions for my family. Growing up, I didn’t have many traditions, and it makes me sad that I really don’t have too much to choose from my childhood that I can carry on with my son now. I have decided that this was NOT going to happen for my son – I want him to be able to think about the many traditions we had as a family and share them with his own family one day. So the adventure began…what tradition would I start now that is quick, easy, and long-lasting?

I started brainstorming ideas that I could do easily with an almost one-year-old. Then, I jumped onto Pinterest {because that is where all the ideas are, right?!}, and I found something that I knew would be PERFECT for us – salt dough christmas ornaments!!! Not only was this a good idea in my mind, but I actually had all of the ingredients in my house at that very moment! Moms – you know how big of an accomplishment that is!!! I could begin my new project IMMEDIATELY!

How I Made It

The recipe is very simple {trust me!} and is so easy to follow! Here is what you need ::

1 cup of flour

1/2 cup of salt

1/2 cup of water

I took a large metal mixing bowl and added the salt to the water. {I went ahead and warmed the water up a bit in the microwave so that the salt would dissolve better in the water.} After the salt was absorbed by the water, I then added the flour. I mixed up the ingredients with a large plastic spoon, then quickly realized that my hands would do a much better job. After the mixture was smooth and not too sticky (about 10 minutes of mixing by hand), I knew it was ready. I grabbed a tennis-ball size amount of dough and rolled it into a ball. I added a thin coat of flour to the top of a small plate and flattened the ball of dough on it. I then called the husband and the baby into the kitchen so that I could press his tiny hand into the dough. At first, he wasn’t very interested in placing his hand in the dough, but after some careful coaxing, I couldn’t keep his fingers out of it!

When the handprint was finished, I took a circular piece of tupperware and used it to make my ornament into a perfect circle shape by peeling the excess dough away from the edges of the tupperware. I then took a straw and cut out a hole at the top of the ornament so that I could string some ribbon through it to hang on my tree.

I opted to not bake my ornament because I didn’t mind letting it air dry. But if you want to bake it for immediate drying, just place the ornament in a 200 degree oven and bake for about 2 hours.

To air dry, I placed the ornament on a piece of foil and let it sit on my kitchen counter for about 48 hours. You can leave it out longer if you would like, just test the ornament with a fingertip and that will let you know if it is ready or not! It should be firm to the touch.

The Final Product 

The cool thing about these salt dough ornaments is that you can leave them white or you can paint them with any acrylic paint from your favorite hobby store. I have even seen some that are stamped! (I might paint mine at a later time.) I took the end of a bobby pin and carved “1st Xmas” and the baby’s name on it…this will be his first Christmas ornament! And how special is it that we made it together?

I love this idea, and it was so easy! This will definitely be something that we do in our house during the holidays every year!

I want to know…have you ever made salt dough Christmas ornaments? If you haven’t, I highly encourage you to do so! Get your hands dirty and make some fun holiday memories!!

[hr] Reminder :: If you are looking for a way to stay organized and connected this holiday season and beyond, be sure to check out Living Tree.  They are an amazing online platform created by parents for parents to simplify communication and coordination between all the people participating in our daily lives and our children’s development, and we are so grateful to them for sponsoring our ‘Holidays in Houston’ series.  Check them out and sign up for FREE today!