Salt dough is great for making ornaments for any occasion. Christmas may be the most obvious choice, but in our household we have a three-foot purple tinsel tree we pull out for a variety of occasions, most consistently for Mardi Gras (when we decorate it with strings of beads gathered there), the spring equinox (egg ornaments, flowers, and fake birds), and Halloween (where, to date, we've used strings of Halloween lights purchased at steep discounts in post-holiday sales).

Making salt dough decorations requires a bit of organization, as it's a two-stage process (the cut ornaments need to bake and then cure at least overnight), but it's a low-hassle, fun way to celebrate any season you like. You could use this process to make a seasonal garland if you aren't interested in using a tree (just run a long length of ribbon through, perhaps knotting between ornaments to keep them evenly spaced), or make small items for a kids' charm necklace or bracelet.


First, let's get the recipe down for you... Just a minute... Hang on, dude, these things take time.


There! (That's two cups flour, two cups salt, and one cup water.)

Made with the help of Sarah Neuberger's brilliant Recipe Writing Stamps from The Small Object. Not cheap at $24, but a lot of fun and a great gift for little (or big) chefs. All it lacks is third-cup measurements. You'll see these stamps come up again on ZRecs as we talk more about cooking with young chefs and helping them to understand recipes.


Mix...


...and mix.

Knead the dough into a ball, chill it, and then roll it out and cut out your shapes according to theme. We used a variety of Halloween-themed cookie cutters, and some random ones too.

Poke circular holes for threading string or ribbon through - a straw works well for this.

Then bake at 250 degrees for several hours. After that, let them cure at least overnight, or a full 24 hours if possible.


Paint.


Add glitter now - the paint can act as glue. Z actually developed a very deliberate technique involving mixing glitter in with the paint. Honestly, it was a pretty interesting process. Very textural.


Let dry.


Did we mention that dress is casual?

Projects involving glitter work great outdoors, by the way. Adds a bit of sparkle to an old picnic table.


When they're dry, decide if you want to add any other ornamentation... we may still break out glue and sequins before we're through with this project. Then run your bits of ribbon or string through them and tie in knots or bows, or a longer piece to make a garland.

We'll make sure to get a photo up of our finished tree when we have it decorated - skeleton string lights and all!

Do you do anything unusual with kids to dress up any fall holidays at your home?