Are you craving the smell of Christmas, but don’t want all the toxins that come with scented candles? Grab an unfinished clay ornament and put a few drops of your favorite Christmas or evergreen essential oil on it before hanging it on the tree and, voila, a diffuser ornament.

We made these clay ornaments a few years ago when I didn’t want Todzilla wreaking havoc with our treasured heirloom ornaments. Unlike salt dough that uses flour, this recipe uses cornstarch yielding a purer white dough.  It’s super elastic and forgiving, which was great for a mom-and-me craft when A was only 18 months old.

Some broke (as expected), some are still in our ornament box and are about to get a few drops of essential oil on them to bring the scent of the season to our tree. Christmas Spirit is a blend of orange, cinnamon and black spruce oils and smells delicious! I’m gearing up to make some more ornaments with him this year and will be mixing the essential oil into the dough!

Recipe is as follows:
1c cornstarch
2c baking soda
1 1/4 c water
1T vegetable oil
OPTIONAL: glitter. I did not measure, just dumped a bunch in there. Beware—as with any glitter project, it sticks to your hands and work surfaces like crazy and ends up everywhere until the clay is dry.

Combine cornstarch and baking soda in a medium saucepan.  Add water, oil and glitter; stir until smooth.

Stirring constantly, cook over medium heat until mixture reaches the consistency of SLIGHTLY dry mashed potatoes.  (Mixture will come to a boil, start to thicken, first in lumps and then in a thick mass; it should hold its shape).  If it is overcooked, crafts may crack.

Turn out onto plate and cover with damp cloth; cool.

When cool enough to handle, turn onto work surface dusted with corn starch; knead until smooth and pliable.  If not using immediately, store completely cooled clay in tightly closed plastic bag or container.

Roll with a rolling pin to ¼” thick and cut with cutters. Use a toothpick or straw to poke a hole for hanging.

They dry best if you place them on a wire rack on a cookie sheet. Preheat oven to 350°F, place sheet in oven and then turn oven OFF.  Leave them in there overnight or several hours until oven is cold.