Bread dough wreath craft project.

Country Craft Projects - Bread Dough Wreath

Equipment: Mixing bowl; plastic wrap; cookie sheet; aluminum foil; rolling pin; toothpicks; fork; knife; wire rack; paintbrush for varnish or shellac.

Materials: Bread dough recipe below; whole cloves; varnish or shellac; epoxy cement.

Bread Dough Recipe: 4 cups flour; 1 cup salt; 1 1/2 cups warm water; 1 tsp. instant tea (heaping).

Mix the flour and salt together. To the 1 1/2 cups warm water, add 1 heaping teaspoon of plain instant tea. Dissolve well; let cool. Add liquid tea to flour mixture; mix very well with hands. Knead until smooth. Roll into ball; cover with plastic wrap.

Directions: Cover cookie sheet with aluminum foil. Preheat oven to 300° F.

Pinch off a large piece of dough; roll into a long sausage shape, then shape into a circle on cookie sheet. Wet ends and press together. Circle may be any size you desire, but keep in mind how much dough you have left with which to add ornamentation. Our wreath, without decorations, has approximately an 8" outer diameter with a 5" diameter center opening, and is about 1/2" thick.

To decorate wreath, pinch off pieces of dough and roll out with rolling pin or flatten with hands to about 1/4" thickness. Cut out leaf shapes with knife. Score each leaf with knife to mark the vein lines. Moisten back of each leaf with a little water; press on wreath. Make the largest fruit next (apples, pears, peaches). Press whole cloves into dough for stems and core ends of fruit: for stems of apples and pears, push clove bud into dough, leaving the stem end out; for the core ends of fruit, press in the stem end of the clove, exposing just the bud from which the ball of clove has been removed. Wet the wreath circle and attach the fruit pieces. Fill in spaces with clusters of grape, strawberry, nut, and a few plum shapes. Imprint texture and lines with toothpick or fork.

To make bow, roll out dough to 1/4" thickness; cut a long strip (20" x 24") about 1 1/4" wide. Fold and pinch strip into bow; cut away ends as illustrated. Place bow separately on foil-covered cookie sheet.

Bake wreath and bow in preheated 300° F. oven for 3 hours or until completely dry and hard (if bow is done before wreath, tear foil and remove bow from oven). Place on wire rack and let cool. Peel off foil. Leave on rack for several days in dry place.

Coat wreath and bow separately with varnish or shellac. When dry, cement bow to wreath, using epoxy cement as directed on package.

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