12 Days of a GREEN Christmas- Day 3: Sustainable Decorations

Before you buy decorations, stop and think. What do you need? What can you reuse? What can be repurposed?

Less is more for a sustainable Christmas. 25% more waste is created by the holidays in the US, that’s an extra 25 million tons of garbage. Things to consider for Christmas decorations: shop locally, shop small, purchase secondhand, make handmade decorations, use reusable materials, use natural/ compostable materials. When choosing to purchase new decorations be sure to choose ones you know you will use and love for 5+ years.

An idea for handmade decorations that are reusable, compostable, and also a fun craft try making salt dough ornaments. They only take 3 ingredients!

What you’ll need:

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup salt
• 1/2 cup warm water + a splash more

Tools:

• Cookie cutters
• Rolling pin
• Parchment Paper
• Paint
• Polyurethane /Polyacrylic spray or Mod Podge
• Ribbon

Instructions:

1. Mix together the salt and flour. Add the 1/2 cup of warm water. Stir until it forms a playdoh like consistency.  If dry, add a few drops of water. If too wet, add a little more flour.
2. Kneed the dough for a couple minutes on floured surface.
3. Roll the dough out to about 1/4″ on floured surface. Helps to roll out on parchment paper to move the ornament later.
4. Press hands and feet, then cut out dough with cookie cutters. Make a hole or 2 to tie ribbon, use a straw or dowel. Remove dough from around ornament after it is cut, this helps keep the ornaments shape.
5. Let air dry for a day. (To prevent puffing and reduce baking time)
6. Bake low and slow at 225 degrees for 2-3 hours. Flipping at least halfway. I flipped every 30 minutes checking on them. Cook until done but do not let edges brown.
7. Let cool/ continue to dry.
8. Paint
9. Seal with Mod Podge, or spray with polyurethane/ polyacrylic.
10. Tie your ribbon and hang on your tree to enjoy for years to come!

Tips:

• To make larger batches increase the ratio:
  • Larger: 2 cups flour, 1 cup salt, 1 cup water
  • Largest: 4 cups flour, 2 cups salt, 2 cups water
• Roll out dough to 1/4″ for cookie cutters. Thicker for pressing hands and feet, be sure not to press to bottom of dough.
• Avoid using wax paper, it will stick to bottom of ornament.
• Press hands into dough before cutting out shape. Easier to center handprint in shape.
• To prevent the ornaments from puffing up I have read it helps to bake low and slow. Recipes varied from 200-300 for 1-3 hours. I baked these at 225 for 2.5-3 hours. The larger or thicker the ornament the longer it will need to bake.
• Another way to prevent puffing is to let air dry for a day before baking. Tried this and it helped with puffing and prevented bending/ curling. Highly recommend this!

Ideas:

• Add cinnamon to make brown/ scented.
• Add essential oils such as: peppermint oil or cinnamon oil.
• Use stamps to press names into dough
• Press leaves or flowers for impressions.
• Add food coloring
• String ornaments together to make a garland instead of ornaments
• Use as place cards on table or as gift tags.
• Paint handprint into a Santa.
• Decorate like gingerbread cookies using white puff paint.
• Press pet’s paw

Facts:

https://lbre.stanford.edu/pssistanford-recycling/frequently-asked-questions/frequently-asked-questions-holiday-waste-prevention