Scented Salt Dough Pendants - Raising Lifelong Learners

I love working with salt dough. It’s quick and inexpensive to make, and is versatile. On top of that, salt dough is a great sensory play item for your kids – whether they have a plan in mind for the craft, or just want to twist, pull, and mold the dough.

Salt dough is perfect for kids of all ages. And, when you add essential oils like we did, it’s perfect for any moods or ailments. Since we’re in the midst of full-fledged allergy season here in Ohio, we chose to use a mixture of lemon, lavender, and peppermint {our favorite allergy trio} to scent our dough with for these pendants.

The house smelled amazing.

Make the Dough

Do you want to try making these easy pendants with your kids {or for yourself}? They’re simple. Just grab:

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup salt
1 cup water {add this in slowly because you may not need it all}
5-10 drops of your favorite essential oil

In a large bowl mix your salt and flour together, then add the water slowly while mixing. You’ll want to judge for yourself how much of the water to use, but ultimately you want a smooth ball of dough. Finally, make a small well in the ball of dough, and add in your essential oils. Knead the dough for a few minutes. {The longer you knead, the smoother it will become.}

Make the Pendants

For the pendants we also used:

Roll out your dough to the thickness you want your pendants to be. Cut out the shapes you want – we went with simple ones like ovals, flowers, and circles. Gently rub the cut outs on the texture plates to give the top of your pendants some dimension. Using a wooden skewer, poke a hole in the pendant.

Bake the pendants at 200-degrees for 45 minutes – 2 hours, depending on how thick they are. Check the hole periodically as salt dough spreads slightly like some cookie dough does when it is baking. If needed, reopen the hole while the dough is still pliable.

Once the pendants are firm and cooled, paint them with the Krylon silver spray paint and let them dry. Finally, brush on a bit of black acrylic paint, and wipe it with a damp paper towel to give the pendants an antiqued look.

Twist some artistic wire through the hole and thread a length of leather cord through it for a beautiful necklace your little one will be proud of. The leather will allow you to use these pretty necklaces as diffusers because you can drop essential oil right onto the cord and it will soak in. As you wear the necklace throughout the day, your chosen oil will scent the air wherever you go, and you’ll benefit all day.

We plan to make these as gifts for aunts this summer and give them sample bottles of citronella to wear, warding off mosquitos. What are some creative ways you can think of to package these necklace as gifts for your loved ones?