Ornaments and Tags

I spent an afternoon this week playing with clay like a child.  It was as fun as I remembered, but this clay didn’t smell of earth, like real clay, or that odd salty, musty smell of Play-dough.  I made baking soda and cornstarch clay which is surprisingly easy and economical to make, smells wonderfully fresh and clean and handles beautifully if you use it the same day as you make it.  I found that storing it over night resulted in a crumbly mess.

I will share my process and recipe, but be sure to check out some of the pins and posts that inspired me to make these ornaments and gift tags, there’s so much you can do with this clay.

This photo from mariegracedesigns.com first piqued my interest in baking soda cornstarch clay.  This one adds some sparkle to the dough, but the clay has a slight glimmer without adding anything additional.  I love the use of pine sprigs to press into the clay here.  I only used stamps on mine, but want to go back and use rosemary and other botanicals when I make more.  Laura at dishfunctionaldesigns.blogspot.com did some nice things with ribbons on hers.

   

I used the Cooks.com recipe of:
2 cups baking soda
1 cup cornstarch
3/4 cup water

Mix the cornstarch and baking soda then stir in the water.  The water will remain on the top of the dry ingredients and will take a bit of time and stirring to combine and ensure mixture is smooth with no clumps.  Cook over medium heat stirring constantly.  The dough will start to stiffen up and clump quite suddenly.  Stir quickly to avoid scorching until the mixture resembles lumpy mashed potatoes.  Turn the dough out into a bowl and cover with a cool, damp cloth until it’s easy to handle.  Turn out onto counter dusted with cornstarch and kneed four or five times.

Roll out to1/4 inch thick.  Stamp using your choice of colored inks and stamps or press articles into the clay to make patterns.  Cut out with sharp cookie or biscuit cutters or with a knife.  I learned from experience that using a glass or other cutter with a thick or dull edge makes for messy results.

You can allow the cut ornaments to air dry or place in the oven at 200 for an hour or so depending on the thickness of your items.  A hotter oven or extended baking times will cause the clay to brown.

After my initial cuts I re-rolled the dough which resulted in a nice marbled effect.

These ornaments were made with the re-rolled/marbled clay.

Once dry the ornaments feel like porcelain or Jasperware.  Seal with a spray sealant if you prefer a smoother finish.  I can’t speak yet for how long the ornaments or tags will last without being sealed, but will be watching over the next few seasons.

This is definitely a medium I intend to experiment with more.

A Couple of Holiday Creations

I love staying home for vacation (although though the term “staycation” grates on my nerves for some reason) because it allows me a chance to nest, to reconnect with my home and spend some extended time in a creative mindset verses trying to cram all of my creativity into the hours after work or on the weekends.

I cooked a lot this week.  Beyond the holiday fare I made food that takes longer than an hour after work to put together.  That alone is incredibly fulfilling creatively.

I started a writing project that is still in its infancy.

And I made some things with my hands.  First, an Advent Calendar to hang on the mantel above the fire.  Each day we will add that day’s date until the calendar is full on December 25th.

Awaiting December One

I kept to a very limited pallet which not only goes well in my home, but is neutral and could work with many decors.  Until the start of Advent we have a black grosgrain ribbon stretched across the fireplace below the mantel with a basket of date tags sitting in wait, each with a tiny brown clothes pin to clip it to the ribbon.

Each date tag is slightly unique.  I stamped the dates on Kraft and manila tags, brown and white doilies, and a couple of custom shapes I had in my stash.

I embellished with punched snowflakes in red, white and brown and some stamped images. On just a few I used red sealing wax and and a seal and on others paper butterflies made from book pages  and custom paper

The final tag, for Christmas Day is an envelope.  I won’t be home for Christmas.  I will be off in New Hampshire with my middle child and the two who will be home in Denver can open the envelope for a surprise.  Even adult children deserve unexpected surprises on Christmas.

I will share more tomorrow.  Happy holidays!

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