Earth Paint Love and Salt Dough Top Tips
Do you miss the beach? Me too! Here’s some seaside crafting for you
New earth paint & salt dough jewellery kit
I love this kit. Really love it! At Craft Box Club we have an ongoing commitment to plastic free, non-toxic crafting and this kit just fits in perfectly! You make a white and a blue salt dough, then shape different kinds of beads to make three beautiful bracelets.
Introducing EArth Paint
Earth paints are non-toxic powdered paints make from earth minerals. They work really well in our craft kits because they are much easier to package plastic free than traditional liquid paint which need to go in plastic bottles.
This radiant blue pigment is fired to get this vibrant colour. It is composed of 90% earthen clay and 10% man-made, non-toxic minerals, and it is heated in an oven to a high temperature.
Throughout history, blues in nature were very rare and usually made with precious stones like Lapis Lazuli. These stones are now unsustainably harvested in Afghanistan, so we use this beautiful, non-toxic and sustainably-made alternative.
Lapis Lazuli
What inspired this kit?
I love the beach! I don’t live by the sea but a visit to a sandy shoreline really energises me. Every year i set a target of ten beach trips just to make sure it happens. It looks like that might be tough this year with the world in a Corona lock down but I wanted to use the beach as an inspiration for a craft kit. The beads in this kit, the texture of the salt dough and the vivid blue colour all remind me of trips to the sea.
Top tips for salt dough success
Follow the recipe - 2 cups flour, 1 cup salt, 1 cup water.
Knead for a good 10 minutes until the dough is smooth.
Use the dough right away or the gluten relaxes and the dough goes soggy. If you do want to put it aside, leave it in a jam jar and add some more flour to it when you could back to it.
Use plain flour not self raising!
Make a dry dough. Wet dough is harder to handle and won’t keep its shape.
Dry your creations out slowly! For best and more eco-friendly results, dry in the sunshine. Too much heat causes cracks.
If you’re making beads keep an eye on the holes through the middle, the dough swells as it dries and holes close up.
Experiment! You can make so many shapes with salt dough, just keep on creating!
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