If you’re looking for homemade Christmas ornaments you can make with your kids, this post has lots of ideas to inspire you! Whether you’re crafting with toddlers, elementary-aged kids, tweens, or teens, these homemade Christmas ornaments double as meaningful DIY gifts for family and friends – and grandparents love them! We’ve also included our favorite salt dough recipe, along with links to a few scented salt dough recipes, allowing you to make beautifully-smelling keepsakes you’ll cherish for years to come.
How to Make Salt Dough Ornaments
One of the easiest ways to make homemade Christmas ornaments with your kids is to whip up a batch of salt dough, roll it onto your kitchen counter, cut out shapes using your favorite cookie cutters (these Christmas cookie cutters on Amazon are great!), bake them, and then let your kids decorate them with paint, glitter, etc.
I’ve included a few salt dough ornament crafts in my list below, and wanted to quickly share an easy salt dough recipe we’ve been using successfully in our house for years!
All you need is the following 3 ingredients:
- All purpose flour (4 cups)
- Salt (1 cup)
- Warm Water (about 1 1/2 cups)
To make your salt dough, start by mixing the flour and salt together in a large mixing bowl, and then slowly add the warm water. Once you can no longer stir your dough with a wooden spoon, knead it with your hands until it is nicely mixed together.
When your dough is ready, simply roll it out using a rolling pin and make your ornaments. You can use parchment paper so the dough doesn’t stick to your counter, and to make it easier to transfer your ornaments onto a baking sheet. If you intend on hanging your ornaments on your tree, make sure to cut a small hole into the top of your ornaments. You can easily do this with a drinking straw.
Bake your ornaments at 300F for about an hour. You may need to bake them longer if they are thick. A good rule of thumb is to wait until they are completely hard and have begun to brown.
Allow your ornaments to cool before you begin decorating them. You can paint directly overtop of them, or apply a base coat of paint first so that you are starting with a clean, even surface.
5 Scented Salt Dough Recipes
If you like the idea of making homemade Christmas ornaments with salt dough, you can made them extra special by adding a little Christmas scent to them! We’ve had a lot of luck with the recipes below.
Autumn Scented Salt Dough Recipe | Natural Beach Living
Gingerbread Scented Salt Dough | {Not Quite} Susie Homemaker
No-Cook Cinnamon Salt Dough | Growing a Jeweled Rose
Christmas-Scented Salt Dough | Rocky Hedge Farm
Candy Cane Salt Dough | Fantastic Fun and Learning
21 Homemade Christmas Ornaments Kids Can Make
Whether you’re making homemade Christmas ornaments with your toddler, 3rd grader, tween, or teen, there are tons of ideas you can choose from, and I’ve shared my favorites below. I kept the easiest ones at the beginning, so if you have older kids, scroll to the ones in the middle and end as they are a tad more challenging and will keep everyone engaged longer!
Pipe Cleaner Star Ornaments | One Little Project
Salt Dough Footprint Reindeer | Crafty Morning
2-Ingredient Crystallized Icicle Ornaments | Happy Hooligans
Easy Cinnamon Applesauce Ornaments | Baked by Rachel
Jingle Bell Ball Ornaments | The Keeper of the Cheerios
Glitter Ball Yarn Ornaments | One Little Project
Scrap Fabric Tree Ornaments | Fireflies + Mud Pies
Easy Button Christmas Tree Ornaments | Happy Hooligans
Salt Dough Fingerprint Christmas Tree Ornaments | Crafty Morning
DIY Paint Swirl Ornament Balls | Feeling Nifty
Cupcake Liner Christmas Ornaments | Hip 2 Save
DIY Gnome Christmas Ornaments | Kippi at Home
Pom Pom Pinecones Christmas Ornaments | One Little Project
Bottle Cap Snowmen Christmas Ornaments | Turning the Clock Back
Yarn Wrapped Initial Ornaments | Happy Hooligans
Christmas Tree Clay Pot Ornament | Darcy and Brian
Popsicle Stick Sled Ornament | Crafty Morning
Easy Homemade Photo Ornaments | Lovely Etc.
Wood Bead Ornaments | Kippi at Home
Rolled Paper Homemade Christmas Ornaments | Positively Splendid
Clothespin Reindeer | One Little Project
I hope this collection of homemade Christmas ornaments helps get you and your kids in the holiday spirit!
