Salt Dough States

When I made the state flag heart magnets, I saved some of the salt dough to make another state-themed project. I just finished painting them and I'm really happy with how they turned out. 

Here's Missouri and Nevada. I was planning to paint them with their respective state colors, but Missouri doesn't have state colors. So instead, I used the red, white, and blue of the Missouri state flag, then added a silver Gateway Arch. For Nevada (the Silver State), I did use the state colors of blue and silver. 

  

Neither Connecticut nor Iowa has state colors, so I used their flags as inspiration for the background colors. I replaced Connecticut's grape-themed Coat of Arms and Iowa's bird-and-banner with hearts.

  

For Pennsylvania and Georgia (no state colors for either) I took inspiration from their nicknames. For the Keystone State, I used the blue background of their flag, then replaced Pennsylvania's overly complicated seal with a keystone. For the Peach State, I ignored the flag altogether and painted an ombre peach background, then drew a peach.  

  

Now that I've shown you what I did, it's time to tell you how I did it! Affiliate links below. 

Salt Dough States

Materials:

• salt dough
• Silpat
• rolling pin
• printed outline of state(s), cut with scissors
• sharp knife
• Folk Art paint
• Apple Barrel paint pens
• silver Sharpie

Steps:

Roll out the salt dough a Silpat so that it is 1/4-1/2" thick. Place the cut-out state shapes onto the dough. 

Use a sharp knife to carefully cut around the edges of the states. 

Remove the paper templates. Do not try to move the cut-out shapes. You can dry them in a low oven by simply putting the Silpat on a baking sheet, but I just air-dried mine for four days. If you choose to air-dry, let them sit on the Silpat for a day without moving them until they are crusted over and pale. The following day, carefully flip them over. After another day, when the second side is crusted and pale, remove the Silpat and let the states dry completely on a cooling rack for two days. Obviously, drying time will vary significantly depending on your temperature and humidity. Make sure they are completely dry before you paint them. 

I started by painting the backgrounds for each state. When those were dry, I used the silver Sharpie and the paint pens to add the details. 

So what do you do with these? I see a lot of possibilities. If you poke a hole in them before the salt dough is dry, you can turn them into keychains. If you press an ornament hanger into them immediately after flipping them on Day 2, you can hang these on the tree. You could add a magnet to the back to put it on the fridge, or you could even use a Sharpie to write the name and capital city on the back and use them like flash cards. Lots of possibilities!

Decoupaged State Flag Heart Magnets

I still have a lot more National Scrapbook Day projects to share, but I wanted to show you a Mod Podge project first. Mod Podge is celebrating its 57th birthday this Friday, May 17. The Plaid Ambassadors are celebrating by using our favorite varieties of Mod Podge on a craft. I used Mod Podge Ultra (affiliate link here and throughout the post) to make state flag heart magnets for Washington, Virginia, Massachusetts, and Nebraska. Each of these states' flags features a design that would be way too difficult to paint like I did with the previous batch of flag magnets. Mod Podge to the rescue!

 

Decoupaged State Flag Heart Magnets

Materials: 

• salt dough hearts
• Folk Art paint
• images of state flags, printed small and trimmed to size
• Mod Podge Ultra
• magnet tape

Steps: 

Follow the instructions to make salt dough hearts. When they are completely dry, paint them to match the background color of the flag. If the flag you want to make has a white background (like Massachusetts does), be sure to paint it too, even though the salt dough is white. 

To make the images that you'll be decoupaging onto the hearts, find an image of the flag you're making and copy it. Shrink it to the desired size, then print and cut. 

When the paint is completely dry, protect your work surface (I used newspapers and a box I use for spraying). Place each heart onto a plastic lid or small container so that it is raised off the bottom surface. Follow the directions on the bottle to shake the Mod Podge and spray it onto the hearts. 

Place each cut-out onto the heart while the Mod Podge is still wet. Let it dry, then add another coat over the top. Add an extra coat when that one is dry. 

When the Mod Podge is completely dry, turn over each heart and add a strip of magnet tape. Now your magnets are ready to hang on the fridge. 

Salt Dough State Flag Heart Magnets - Painted Version

Ready for the next project inspired by state flags? They're refrigerator magnets! They'd make such a fun classroom project and they are easy to do. Affiliate links below.  

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Salt Dough State Flag Heart Magnets

Materials:

• salt dough (2 parts flour, 1 part salt, 1 part water)
• heart cookie cutter
• Folk Art paint
• Apple Barrel paint pens
• Mod Podge
• magnet tape

Steps: 

Cut out hearts from the salt dough, then let them dry. You can dry them in a low oven, but I just air-dried mine for four days. I cut them out on a Silpat and let them sit for a day until they were crusted over and pale, then flipped them. You can see the color difference below between the five on the left I haven't flipped and the three on the right I have. 

After the second side crusted and turned pale, I removed the Silpat and let them dry completely on the cooling rack for two days. Obviously, the drying time is going to vary significantly depending on your temperature and humidity. Do make sure they are completely dry before you paint them though. 

I started by penciling in the basic designs, then adding a base coat. That was really easy for New Mexico and Texas; it took a bit more effort for Colorado and Tennessee. 

When that was dry, I switched to the paint pens to add the white stars on Texas and Tennessee and the red lines on New Mexico. 

Here's a closer look at each:

Seal your hearts with a coat of Mod Podge. When that is dry, cut a strip of magnet tape and adhere it to the backs. 

I'm really happy with how these turned out! 

Playdough Texture Tools

I was a big fan of Play-Doh when I was a kid. Specifically, I liked the play sets. My favorites were the barbershop, the ice cream maker, and the barbecue set. (These affiliate links go to the modern versions of the 1970's toys I loved.) I still like playing with doughs and clays, but it's been years since we've had any Play-Doh in the house. (Trevor played with it occasionally when he was little, but it just wasn't his thing.) Now I use Model Magic, Sculpey, or homemade salt dough when I am in the mood to play with clay.

The last time I had my clay out, I made myself a set of texture tools using random items from the craft room. I'm really happy with how they turned out. 

 

The first step was gathering craft sticks and a bunch of random stuff. I wasn't sure what would print well on clay, so I tried a wide variety of things. 

Next, I attached each item (pony beads, buttons, a wooden swan, a rubber band, yarn, a chipboard tree, pipe cleaner, a shiny trim, Twisteezwire, pennies, and a feather) to craft sticks. I used hot glue for everything except the rubber band, pipe cleaner, and Twisteezwire, which I just wrapped around their craft sticks. 

I pressed each into the clay....

.... lifted them up to see the results. Most of them printed very well! The only total failure is the feather. The clay stuck to it and it didn't print well. The thin trim isn't great, but it was better than expected. 

I am most happy with the pony beads and the buttons. They give great texture to the clay. My second favorites are rubber band, pipe cleaner, and Twisteezwire. 

Make your own set of texture tools for playdough! Kids will love every step, from searching the house for items to use, to pressing their tools into dough to create textures. If you try anything that works particularly well (or particularly poorly!) let me know in the comments. 

Salt Dough Breakfast (Fried Egg and English Muffin)

I love breakfast foods, at any time of day. When I debuted my page of Faux Food Crafts, I noticed that there weren't any breakfast foods, despite how much I love eating them. Time to change that! I whipped up a batch of my favorite salt dough and started creating. 

Salt Dough Fried Egg

Materials: 

• salt dough
• Folk Art paint

Steps:

Start with two balls of salt dough, one a bit larger than a golf ball and the other the size of a gumball. Use the palm of your hand to flatten the larger ball, then press slightly and as you drag your hand outward from the center. This will thin the edges a little. If it looks like the white of a fried egg, set it on wax paper or parchment paper to dry. If not, try again! You can work salt dough over and over. 

Use your palm to flatten the smaller ball, again pressing just a little bit to thin the edges. This will make it slightly domed like an egg yolk would be. Rub a drop of water on top of the egg white and set the yolk in place. Leave it alone for at least two days until the top is completely dry. Then flip it over and allow the bottom of the egg to dry completely. 

When the egg is dry, paint the yolk yellow and egg white white. 

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Salt Dough English Muffin with Butter

Materials: 

• salt dough
• fork
• plastic knife
• Folk Art paint

Steps:

Start with two balls of salt dough, one about the size of a billiard ball and the other the size of a gumball. Gently flatten the larger ball until it is the size of an English muffin and about 1/2" thick. Use your finger to gently rub water across the top, then gently press the fork into the dough and lift. The dough will stick to the fork and create the beginnings of the distinctive nooks and crannies. Repeat this a bunch of times with the fork at different angles until you are happy with the surface.  

Use your thumb to begin to flatten the smaller ball, stopping when it is as thick as a pat of butter. Use the plastic knife to trim each side. 

Place the English muffin and the pat of butter on wax paper and leave them alone for at least two days until the top is completely dry. Then flip it both over and allow the bottom sides to dry completely. 

Turn on the broiler and set the English muffin underneath it. Watch it VERY CLOSELY, as it will brown (and then burn) very quickly once it starts getting color. Remove it when it is a toasty brown color. Let it cool. 

If you are happy with the color of the English muffin, leave it alone. I touched mine up by dry brushing a tiny bit of brown paint onto the tips. 

Paint the butter yellow, then put it on top of the English muffin. You can glue it in place, but I didn't.  

Salt Dough Adobes

In my post about exploring New Mexico through Little Passports, I mentioned that we were still waiting for our adobe house projects to dry. Now they're dry, painted, photographed and ready to share.

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Salt Dough Adobes

Materials: 

• salt dough (1 part salt, 2 parts flour and 1 part water) 
• rolling pin
• non-stick surface 
• plastic knife
• paint

Steps:

Roll out salt dough on a non-stick surface. Use the knife to cut a rectangle of dough for the house.

Cut out a window and a door. Cut a long, narrow rectangle. Bend it over the top of the house to form the roof. Add trim to the door and window. Or, add beams above each opening.

Let the salt dough dry thoroughly. You can dry it a low temperature in the oven, or leave it out to air dry. Either way, flip it over occasionally to let the back dry. When it is completely dry, paint it. 

This is Trevor's. He used terra cotta for the main part of the house and chestnut brown for the roof and beams. 

That's mine at the top of the post. I painted the trim a bright blue, which is very common throughout New Mexico. It is believed that the blue keeps evil spirits from entering.