Thursday 25 October 2007

crafty fun with salt dough




I've been having lots of fun with my niece over the last few days. Yesterday we made a big bowlful of salt dough and spent a few hours using it all up. We created wall hangings, mobiles and ornaments with the sun streaming through the window and the radio playing in the background. It was a lovely morning.

The recipe we used was:
2 mugs of flour
1 mug of salt
approx 12 fl oz lukewarm water

You mix the ingredients together adding just enough of the water to make a supple but not too sticky dough. Then you knead the mixture for 10 minutes.

To stick bits together we made a 'slip' with a bit of dough and some water.

We used skewers to make holes through which wire could be passed. We also used bits of wire with the ends curled into little loops and pushed into the dough to make hangers, and pieces of scrunched up tinfoil as armatures.

Then the whole lot goes into the oven at 150 degrees c for a few hours until it makes a ringing sound like pottery when tapped. When it's cool you can paint it (preferably with acrylic paint) and with a couple of coats of varnish it can last for many, many years.

**Edit** NĂ  , You can find a couple of photos of salt dough christmas decos I made here and here and here.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hi Lesley, I am having difficulty with my salt dough. I am trying to make some Salt dough sailing boats for my bathroom but everytime I try to dry them in the oven they bubble! and when its drys the bubble then crack and it leaves an awfull texture behind.

Any tips to stop it??? I am too impatient to wait 3-4 days for them to air dry.

Lesley Todd said...

Hi, I feel bad to have to tell you this but salt dough decorations and bathrooms don't mix. The damp and fluctuations in temperature will cause them to warp, crack and maybe go mouldy. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news.

Now the bubbling problem... it could be that you need to knead the dough for longer. Also if flour used for rolling gets trapped in the dough in layers it can cause a puff pastry effect. The other cause could be baking it too fast. Try baking it at a lower temperature for longer.

Hope that helps.