I decorate my tree in all white and silver decorations. It's just something I do. Probably because I grew up with a tree decorated only in white ornaments. It really is beautiful. I love making ornaments for the tree every year with my kids, but because of my limited colour selection it's proving to be a little difficult. Last year we made the ever so popular snowman handprint ornaments on silver balls which I'll share in a few days. This year I tried really hard to think of something to make with the kids that would stay in my colour theme. As I was walking through JoAnne's I found some white model magic and knew exactly what I was going to do. This is really so easy and they turned out beautiful. If your kids love playing with playdoh, they're going to love model magic. I had never used it before and I'm kind of regretting it. This stuff is so awesome. I love it so much more than playdoh and it dries beautifully. It's hard, but not fragile so I know it won't break. These ornaments should last for years. These would make great gifts for family members too! Here's how we made them:
What you'll need:
white crayola model magic
snowflake cookie cutter - I used a wilton comfort grip
rolling pin
straw (I forgot to photograph this!)
ribbon
Directions:
1. roll out your model magic so it's about 1/4 - 1/2 inch thick.
2. using your cookie cutter, cut out a snowflake
3. using the straw, poke a hole at the top
4. repeat process for however many you want to make
5. allow to dry for about 24-48 hours, turning over halfway through.
6. hang with a ribbon.
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LOVE this idea. I can't tell you how thrilled I am to have found your blog! My little ones are going to love the never-ending pipeline of fun crafts :)
ReplyDeleteI fully intended on doing the reindeer thumbprints after I read your post yesterday, but first we went to LL Bean to buy a coat - long story short, they had a craft table set up in the children's area and they were making reindeer fingprint cards!!
Jill, I need to borrow that cookie cutter. The daycare made ornaments last week that I wanted to do with the girls next weekend, and that's the perfect cookie cutter. They mixed one cup of apple sauce and one cup of cinnamon to make a dough. Rolled it out and cut out shapes. Let it dry for a day or two. They smelled delicious!!! And I bet they would continue to smell delicious on the tree - especially if they were near the lights. They look kind of plain as is, but I thought I would bling them up a bit with some jewels or something.
ReplyDeleteThis is a wonderful idea. I will have to try this with Moo.
ReplyDeletePerfect! Your ornaments turned out lovely, and your kids look like they really had a blast making them! Good job, mom.
ReplyDeleteThe ornaments look great. I'm going to look for that stuff next time we make a trip to Michaels. I'm thinking of all of the possibilities now!
ReplyDeleteWOW! Very nice!
ReplyDeleteThese turned out so beautiful. I just love how the concentration shows in their faces. Too cute!
ReplyDeleteGreat idea! We actually just used that Model Magic stuff to make handprint ornaments. I can't believe how nice it dried, and hopefully it lasts. Looks like the kids really enjoyed themselves!
ReplyDeleteThose are so pretty.. what a great idea too!
ReplyDeleteThanks ladies!
ReplyDeleteOh my, these turned out beautifully and so "professional"!! Thank you so much for linking up :-)
ReplyDeleteMaggy
So cute!!!
ReplyDeleteI love this craft - simple yet so attractive! I featured it at the Living Montessori Now Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/LivingMontessoriNow
ReplyDeleteJust wanted to mention that I found this cookie cutter at Safeway Grocery store:) Thanks for this idea Jill!
ReplyDeleteThis is such a great project! I'm making these for sure! Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteDoes this product really stay as smooth as it appears in the pictures? Thanks so much; great project.
ReplyDeleteHow beautiful! Those could be made of high-end porcelin they look so lovely. Gotta try that stuff. Thanks for the tute!!!
ReplyDeleteawesome idea! :) And they look like they came straight from a high-end store!
ReplyDeletethanks for sharing- (over from sew mama)
Thanks again ladies.
ReplyDeleteDebbie - it really is that smooth. Just make sure when you're rolling it out that they're aren't any lumps in it. It really is amazing stuff if you haven't used it yet.
What a simple and elegant idea. Thank you for sharing, this is wonderful.
ReplyDeleteThank you for a wonderful idea and the invitation to discover your crafts. you take such beautiful pictures
ReplyDeleteThanks ladies!
ReplyDeleteJust curious, but could kids also color on these ornaments as well? Maybe with paints or glitter??
ReplyDeleteHi Amy!
ReplyDeleteYes, kids can colour on these. You can do just about anything on them. I hope that helps.
FYI: I found this cookie cutter at WalMart, in their holiday section. Love Love Love it!
ReplyDeleteWhat do you suggest to paint or decorate them with? i'm going to use this as a party activity at my daughter's ONE-derland party this year!
ReplyDeleteabout how many ornaments can you make with one bag? I was thinking of doing these as favors for a wedding luncheon but id need to do like 40
ReplyDeleteThanks ladies!
ReplyDeleteGenevieve - you could really decorate these with anything - markers, gliter glue, glitter, sequins, etc.
Carrick - you can probably make about 4 with one bag so you would need to buy quite a bit. It might be cheaper for you to buy it in the large buckets rather than the smaller individual packets.
These are so cute! Love them! If I wanted to add glitter would you suggest doing that before they dried or after? Maybe just brush on some glue when they are dry and dip them in glitter?
ReplyDeleteThanks Christine! You're idea would probably work best of waiting until they are dry, brushing on some glue and sprinkling on some glitter. I hope that helps!
ReplyDeleteFound this on pinterest. Can't wait to try it! I'm new follower, I'm always on the lookout for fun activities!
ReplyDeleteThanks for a great Christmas decoration post
ReplyDeleteBest Christmas Decorations
Thank-you!
ReplyDeleteHow many ornaments could the tub make? Looking for a school project - about 80 kids.
ReplyDeletetamucka - unfortunately, you don't get a lot of model magic in a tub and it's pretty expensive. I think it would cost you a fortune to make 80 of these. I would say a tub (4 packages) wouldn't make more than 20, if that. Maybe you could use homemade salt dough instead?
ReplyDeleteI'm planning on making salt dough ornaments for my wedding in December, but I just thought WOW this looks beautiful....guess I'm sticking to my (and your) salt dough idea since I need to make around 200 and am trying to be cost effective.
DeleteHi Elizabeth! Other people on here had success making about 20-24 of these with a single 8oz package. That would mean that you could potentially make about 80-90 from a tub?? The kids and I must have wasted a lot and made them pretty thick because I didn't get that many, but others have! I hope that helps!
DeleteI bought a bucket (4-8 oz packets at JoAnn's with a 50% coupon which made it around $11 for the clay. They also carry the cookie cutter which is 30% off this week (orig. $3.49). What I want to know before making mine, can I use a spray gloss coat over the finished (dried) cutout to make it shiny or is it too porous?
ReplyDeleteFound you via Pinterest. Such a great idea! I just ran to Hobby Lobby and picked up a bucket (4- 8oz packets... which is like 8 of the individual packets). My kids made some tonight. We used 1 packet, several different cookie cutters in medium sizes, and we were able to make 20 of them!
ReplyDeleteWe're so happy with how they look and I'm excited to tie on the ribbon and hang them on our tree when they are all set up! Thanks for such a fun idea. I love the smoothe texture of the model magic vs salt clay or other clays. Thanks again!!
Thanks ladies!
ReplyDeleteWow Lori! I can't believe you were able to make 20 ornaments from 1 package!! The snowflake cutter I used must have been pretty large. That's awesome. I too love the smooth texture.
Joy - I imagine you could spray a gloss coat over once it's dried. It really isn't porous at all. Let me know if it works! Maybe just try one to start so if it doesn't work they aren't all ruined.
Thanks for the great idea! I'm going to package up some of these as gifts for my daughter's preschool class. Nice to have an alternative to all of the baggies filled with sugar and cheap plastic toys!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great idea Jennifer!
ReplyDeleteJust made 24 of these (using the large Wilton snowflake cutter purchased at Walmart) for friend/family/neighbor gifts with ~16 oz. of Model Magic (bought the 2# tub at AC Moore for 1/2 off--$10 for 32 oz.--so they're ~20 cents each!). I used an acrylic polymer clay roller and rolled them out on foil, and it worked well. It was easy to transfer the foil sheets from my kitchen island to my dining room table to dry. Thanks for the fun and inexpensive idea, Jennifer!
ReplyDeleteThat's awesome Beth! I must have wasted quite a bit of the stuff because we didn't make nearly that many, lol. I'm glad you liked it.
ReplyDeleteWait - I just realized my package was 4oz and you used a 16oz, so that makes a little more sense! Ha!
ReplyDeleteOops, I meant to say thanks to JILL! So thank you, Jill! Happy Holidays!
ReplyDeletePS The only trouble I had was with getting the snowflakes out of the cookie cutter. I ended up pushing them out with my pinkie, and some of the snowflakes ended up with pinkie indentations on them. Any tips?
ReplyDeleteOops, I meant to say thanks to JILL! So thank you, Jill! Happy Holidays!
ReplyDeleteHa! So funny you called me Jennifer. I never even noticed. My sister's name is Jennifer, so I guess I'm used to it. As for getting the snowflakes out of the cutter - I always wiggle the cutter against the table before lifting it. This releases the cutter from the model magic and makes lifting the cutter up way easier. I hope that helps and Happy Holidays to you too!!
ReplyDeletecute idea - great for cold days and awesome to decorate a tree!! I have also used model magic to make hearts for Vday!
ReplyDeleteThanks Meredith! Love the hearts idea for Vday.
ReplyDeleteThese are so beautiful! We just made some and were able to get 20 of the same Wilton snowflakes from one package of 8 oz. with about 1/4 of the package left over. So I would have no problem getting 24 from an entire package which means about 80 to 90 from the tub. Seemed like the more I worked the dough, the better, easier, and smoother it rolled out. Thanks for such a great project!
ReplyDeleteThat's awesome Erica! The kids and I must have wasted quite a bit of it, lol. Or maybe we rolled it too thick? Who knows. I'm just thrilled that everyone is having success with it!
ReplyDeleteDo you feel that the cookie cutter makes the difference in making it look pro, vs old cookie cutters? I did mine with tree cookie cutter, but not wilson and I have to say yours are pro looking and mine were so, so. I decided to use my extra to do more dots (like the ones we put in the ornament. I idea struck me, when I had a little left over, however, not enough to make a tree. I used the dots to decorate the trees. I like them a lot better now. Thank you for sharing.
ReplyDeleteHmmmm, I don't know about the cookie cutter. The wilton comfort grip ones definitely are nice though and leave nice clean lines when they cut. I'm glad you liked the craft!
DeleteAlso do you do a newsltr? I don't see anything and if so, I would like to sign up.
ReplyDeleteOn the right hand sidebar of my blog you'll see ways you can stay connected - you can subscribe to my feed, sign up for emails, or follow on facebook. I hope that helps!
DeleteTerrific ornament! Share your ornament (or more) on our Linky List to get exposure for your own blog and share with your community. http://muddymonkeys.me/2012/11/28/wanted-homemade-christmas-ornaments-for-children-and-kids/
ReplyDeleteThanks!
DeleteI was really shocked to find the final product was spongey, not hard! Clearly I was a newbie in the air dry clay department. I had a blast making these with my two year old and wrote about it on my blog—see if my final products get your approval!
ReplyDeleteYes! I was very surprised about their final texture the first time I used model magic too! I'm very happy to report that they stand up really well though. We just hung them on our tree again last week (the ornaments were made 2 years ago now) and they still look awesome!
DeleteI totally agree with you, this stuff is AWESOME. I found your tutorial through Pinterest and ordered my Model Magic on Amazon within the hour. The day it came in and just about every day since then I have played with it. I have dry stamped impressions into it. I have also now tried two different types of ink pad on rubber stamps with varying degrees of success/failure. But through it all this stuff is amazing. Thank you for your wonderful and inspiring photos and instructions. I really appreciate them. Your children are adorable, I love the concentration on their faces, so precious.
ReplyDeleteThank-you so much! My daughter loves to play with it all the time. She makes little "treasures" with it, lol.
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