More Christmas projects!

I managed to make and wrap several of my Christmas project before photographing them, so I only just managed to get photos now! Oops. :)

Baby legwarmers for our little guy (tutorial here).

Nubbie dolls for both kiddos (tutorial here).

And two simpler ones for a friend's two babies.

Wrench rolls for my husband! This was quite the involved project.

I will be posting my process photos and explanation of how I put them together later.

A stop sign for across the door to the tree (a family tradition in my family).

Coordinated pjs for the kiddos. I'm quite proud of these, even if the baby's outfit ended up being 6 months too large (it SHOULD have fit him, I'm not sure what was going on with the pattern sizing).

A cute little hat for our daughter. It makes me think of a cupcake every time I see it. (The basic hat pattern is based on this one.)

Crocheted balls for our little guy (tutorial here). These are quick and easy, I'll probably be making some more in the next couple weeks.

Well, they're more for our daughter to throw around the room and they won't hurt our little guy. Win-win!

A booster seat cushion to replace the booster seat for our daughter. She's a big girl now! I made it using iron-on vinyl and I think I've sworn never to use the stuff again. Talk about hard to work with!

And this last thing I actually just made today: a little house for our daughter's new night light. The little glowing animal was a bit too bright, so I put together a felt house to help reduce its light out-put and then added curtains to pull across. Our daughter was quite excited about having a house for her "little glowing friend."

That's what I've been up to for the past several weeks! Busy, busy, busy! :) Our daughter's 3rd birthday is in a month, so I've got more things to work on! :)

~Regina

The Grand Play-Dough Experiment: Salt Play-Dough

Most homemade play-dough recipes are variations on this most basic one.

Salt Play-Dough

Ingredients:
1 cup of salt
1 cup of water
2 cups of flour
1 tablespoon of cooking oil

Mix the salt, flour, oil, & water together.

My addition: it was too thin to just play with, it needed to be cooked over medium heat for 2-3 minutes (or until it comes together in a soft, but not sticky, ball).

Initial impressions:
-Very basic
-Didn't become smooth even after kneading for many minutes
-Leaves a light residue, but wipes up easily
-Easy to make
-Sticks to fingertips something awful (maybe it needed to be cooked a bit longer)


2 weeks later:

I'm going to guess that I put it in the bag before it was completely cooled, otherwise I have no idea why this dough turned into a puddle of goo! I know this isn't what this type of dough normally does... so strange.


~Regina

Other posts in the play-dough experiment series:
Kool-Aid Play-Dough
Traditional (Baking Soda) Play-Dough
Coffee Play-Dough
Gingerbread Play-Dough

The Grand Play-Dough Experiment: Gingerbread Play-Dough

Gingerbread Play dough

1 C. flour
½ C. salt
2 tsp. Cream of tartar
1 C. water
1 tsp. Vegetable oil
lots of cinnamon, allspice, ginger, nutmeg, whatever!

(This play dough is simply a slight variation of a standard salt dough.)

Mix the dry ingredients. Play with the spices until you get the scent and color you want. Mix water and oil together first and THEN add them to the dry ingredients and stir.

 In a pot, cook the mixture for two to three minutes, stirring frequently. The dough will start to pull away from the sides of the pan and clump together.

  Take the dough out of the pan and knead the dough until it becomes soft and smooth. Allow to cool and store in an air-tight container.

Initial impressions:
-Easy to make
-Good for having a little helper
-Feels like a standard salt dough
-Needs lots of kneading to feel smooth
-Smells amazing!
-Leaves your hands smelling great!
-Leaves a small amount of easily wiped residue.


2 weeks later:

-Firm and moist
-A rubbery, elastic feel when molded
-Only a very slight graininess from the salt
-Very smooth for a salt dough
-Still smells great
-Leaves a light residue on the play area and hands


~Regina

Other posts in the play-dough experiment series:
Kool-Aid Play-Dough
Traditional (Baking Soda) Play-Dough
Coffee Play-Dough