How To Make Salt Dough Pendants

Learn how to make salt dough pendants and create your own affordable handmade jewelry. You will find that you already have most of the ingredients and equipment needed in your kitchen.

I will show you how to make jewelry and how easy it is to create original and unique pendants from salt dough.

Combine your salt dough pendants with our dough art beads to make your own stunning necklaces.

How To Make Salt Dough Pendants - Preparation

Recipe for Salt Dough

If you haven't yet made your dough click on the link for Mia's recipe for salt dough.

You will find easy to follow instructions and photo's to show you how to make the basic salt dough.

You will also find lots of tips and techniques to help you create your own salt dough craft ideas.

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Coloring Salt Dough Recipe

Once you have made your dough you can color it, click on the link for Mia's colored salt dough recipes.

There are two different options using either acrylic or powdered paints.

You will want at least 3 different colors for this salt dough pendant project.

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Materials and Equipment

Salt dough in 3 different colors
Water
Knife or flat modelling tool
Cocktail sticks or toothpicks
Baking paper
Baking tray
Access to an oven
Paint
Paint brushes if painting
Varnish
Varnish brush
White spirit for cleaning varnish brush

Mia’s Top Tip

If you use colored dough be aware that lighter colors will darken slightly once baked.

Vibrant reds and blues are more likely to retain there color.

If you want to have whites or light colors it may be necessary to paint these after baking.

You can try different ways of blending the colors, experiment with more or less colors, combine thin strings with thicker strings or try a tighter or looser twist.

Salt Dough Crafts Tutorial

Make 3 balls of different colored dough.

Roll out each ball into a long string.

Place them all next to each other.

Twist them around each other.

You may have to use a little water to get them to stick together.

Roll out into a long string that combines all 3 colors.

Bend one end over and start to spiral the string around it.

Continue to wrap around until your pendant is as big as you want it to be.

The last go round should be brought up and away from the main spiral to create a loop.

Trim the end of the dough.

Using a little water stick the end to the body of the spiral.

Bake in the oven following the instructions below.

Once fully baked you can paint if you wish.

Finish with two coats of varnish to make sure the dough is sealed and moisture can't get in.

Baking Your Salt Dough

Bake in the oven at 100^oC for around 5-6 hours or overnight depending on the thickness of the dough.

The dough should be completely solid when baked properly. You can test a piece by trying to insert the tip of a safety pin into the bottom of the dough ornament, if the pin pushes into the dough easily then continue baking.

Another test is to gently tap the bottom of the dough ornament with your finger, it should sound hollow if thoroughly dried.