Salt Dough Christmas Decorations

Looking for ways to have a thrifty Christmas? why not have a go at making your own Salt Dough Christmas Decorations,

Ingredients needed:
200ml water
10oz plain flour
10oz salt
1 tbsp vegetable oil

Method:
Mix it all the ingredients together then when you're ready roll the mixture out, cut into shapes with cookie/biscuit cutters, my personal favourites being Snowmen, Gingerbread Men and Bell shaped cookie cutters,

Place on a baking tray, make sure you have made a hole in the top of the decoration for the ribbon to go through afterwards, a cocktail stick is a good thing to use. (make sure you make the hole big enough as when you bake the dough the mixture will grow slightly)

A personal favourite of mine is to add a sprinkle of cinnamon to the mix before baking to make the decorations smell nice and Christmassy (don’t use too much though)

Bake in an oven at approx 180C for 20 minutes, then paint and/or varnish or add glitter to make your own unique decoration.

Perfect for giving as a gift, or if the kids have helped you, keeping for sentimental reasons, they can even be re-used for years to come.

If you are truly inspired by all things Christmas then take a look at 24studio.co.uk/christmas they stock a wide range of Christmas gifts, trees, cards, wrap and decorations almost all year round as well as Craft material and Craft kits.

Christmas Trees

Many people see the Christmas tree as the most important of all their Christmas decorations, and I can see why, as usually it is the biggest decoration in the house, and maybe even the one that costs the most money.
Most people have a distinct style of Christmas Tree, often favouring the same sort of style year after year, whereas there are some people who change their Christmas Tree year after year following the different trends. Speaking of which do you remember the other year when one of the high street stores featured upside down Christmas Trees in their shop windows, the country went mad for them! I was not one of them though, as I firmly believe that Christmas Trees should stand from the ground up!
Some people prefer real Christmas Trees to Artificial Trees, maybe its something to do with the smell of them, or the pine needles, or the fact that they don’t have to pack them away at the end of Christmas, or maybe its even for environmental reasons.
Choosing a real Christmas tree can be a daunting task if you don’t know what you are looking for or what the best tree is for your needs, as some real trees apparently don’t shed needles, while others do, so if you’ve got a pet its best to try and find one that retains its needles. I found this useful article today on Choosing a Christmas tree if you need help and advice.
I’ve found a great online shopping site that has a vast range of artificial, LED, traditional and pre-lit Christmas Trees, and the great news is their Christmas Range is out now. I love the Retro Pre-Lit Christmas Tree they have for sale - the multi coloured lights take me right back to my childhood.
Happy days, it’s a lot less stressful when you can shop early.