Baking Soda Ornaments and Gift Tags

I have been wanting to make baking soda ornaments for a few years now. Ever since I first saw Imagination Tree's post about making white clay ornaments. There is something so pure and beautiful about a white ornament. I also knew that my girls would love to make these ornaments too. After all, making them is just like making sugar cookies...mixing, rolling out, cutting out and letting them dry out...lots of fun for kids. So, last weekend we jumped in and made our own batch or baking soda ornaments. We put our own little twist on these simple ornaments by turning them into gift tags. Once dry, they are the perfect surface for drawing and decorating.

Baking Soda Ornament Gift Tags

(adapted from North Story's recipe)

2 cups baking soda
1 cup corn starch
1 ¼ cup room temperature water

First we made up our batch of baking soda dough. Simply whisk together the baking soda and corn starch in a medium sized pot. Mix in the water, stir to dissolve the baking soda and starch and place over medium heat. Stir constantly. The liquid will begin to thicken. Once it starts to thicken, continue stirring...in a few moments the dough will form. Once the dough forms, remove it from the heat. Transfer the dough to a heat proof bowl (I used a Pyrex dish) and allow to cool. You will find all sorts of great tips for making the perfect batch of dough, over on North Story. 

Once the dough is cool to the touch, the fun begins. Knead the dough, to make it smooth, on a corn starch dusted surface. Roll out the dough, again use corn starch if the dough is sticky. Use cookie cutters to cut out the shapes you like. Don't forget to use a toothpick to create a hole in the ornament or gift tag. Transfer to a parchment paper lined baking sheet and allow to dry. This is the hard part...waiting for them to dry. It will take about 2 days to fully dry. Turn the ornaments over after about 12 hours. If they start to curl, gently flatten them with the back of a spatula. 

When the ornaments are dry it's time to get creative. Simply string through some ribbon and you have an ornament. Or, use markers to write your message to your loved ones and add to presents. 

So simple and fun to make. I just love how they turned out. Have you ever made baking soda dough before?

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