Salt Clay

I love, love, LOVE this stuff!!!

4 cups All Purpose flour
1 cup table salt
Cold water (approximately 1 1/2 - 2 cups)
Food coloring if desired


In a large bowl (because you will need room to kneed!) mix together the four and salt.

At this point, if you wish to color the clay before drying, add the food coloring to the water. I recommend using about 20 drops for a good color.

Gradually add the water to the flour and salt mixture. Your looking to get a clay / play dough consistency.
Once the consistency desired is reached, you can now begin your projects!!

Here are a few ideas -

Home made holiday ornaments

Roll out the dough and use cookie cutters to cut out shapes, and use a lolly pop stick to punch a hold in the soft clay - this will make it easier to string later. (these all make great gift ideas for teachers as well!!)
* Pumpkins for Halloween
* Trees for Christmas
* Hearts for Valentines day
* Eggs for Easter

I like to let these dry on the TOP of the stove (so this while the kids are playing outside, preoccupied with a movie, etc. You will need to prop the oven open, and you do NOT want the kids in the kitchen during that time.

Once you cut out the shapes, lay onto a cookie sheet, and set on top of the stove. Turn the oven on 350* and prop oven door open about half way. Let the shapes sit on top of the oven for about 2 hours. Then turn off the oven. Leave the shapes on top of the oven until all the heat from the oven is gone.

Let shapes cool completely before painting!

(you can also bake these shapes at 200* for about an hour, but they can bubble!)



Hand / Foot prints

Roll out a circle of dough about 8 inches round and 1 inch thick, and place it into a glass pie plate.
Have your child press his / her hand or foot into the dough.

Bake in the oven at 250* for an hour and a half with the oven door CLOSED. (I do not recommend using the air drying method for the bowls, or any other *thick* craft as it may not dry completely).



Decorative Bowls

Choose a OVEN safe item (Cupcake pan, tart pan, etc), roll the dough out to a good size circle (depending on the size bowl you are using, you want about a 1 inch over lay) and lay a moist paper towel over the bowl you will be using to shape the one you are making. Once you are done forming the bowl you can decorate the outside with small glass tiles, gems, etc.
DO NOT REMOVE CLAY FROM THE BOWL!!

Bake the bowl upside down in the oven at 200* for about 1 hour. (I do not recommend using the air drying method for the bowls, or any other *thick* craft as it may not dry completely).


- Patty
The All-in-One Parent on FaceBook