The fascinating part is that the dough is pliable enough for all stages of interest and development. It is great for children to play with on rainy days to work off that excess energy... and even have something to show for it. It can be a learning tool for teaching shapes, the alphabet, numbers and animals.

Bread dough can also be made into decorative items for the house, for gifts, for Christmas ornaments, containers -- the list is limited only by one's creativity.

You can do anything with it except eat it. It is a fun indoor sport -- and inexpensive. All the tools and ingredients you will need are already in your home.

*** TOOLS FOR BREAD SCULPTURE: Common household items give a variety of shapes and textures to your creations. Here is a partial list of tools to help you design in dough: Cookie cutters; knives, forks, spoons; garlic press; colander; scissors, brushes, nails, cake, candy, or gelatin molds; melon-ball cutters; wooden picks; tops of aerosol cans.

*** BASIC DOUGH: Combine 2 cups all-purpose flour and 1 cup salt in a large mixing bowl.

Gradually add 1 cup water., stirring constantly until mixture forms a ball.

(The amount of water needed may vary depending on the humidity in the air. Be careful not too add too much water so dough becomes sticky.) Knead on lightly floured board until smooth and firm (about 8 to 10 minutes). Place dough in a plastic bag to prevent drying out.

*** HINTS FOR PERFECT DOUGH: Always flour your hand and work surfaces to prevent sticking.

Don't use self-rising flour because the leavening in the flour will cause the sculpture to puff out of shape.

The dough may be stored in a plastic bag in the refrigerator up to 5 days.

If dough becomes dry, pat on a little more water and knead until it returns to its proper consistency. If dough becomes too sticky, knead in additional flour.

Wipe oil on gelatin or cake molds before pressing in the dough for easier removal and cleaner impression.

Food colouring may be added at different times to give different effects. For a uniform colour, add food colouring to the water. For a marbled effect, add it while kneading the dough.

*** HARDENING PROCESS: There are two basic ways to make your sculpture permanent. Either air drying or oven baking will make it hard for the finishing touches.

Air Drying: Although it takes longer, it is easier for kids to do themselves. It also produces interesting textures. Place sculpture on a screen or wire rack so that the air can equally reach both sides.

Allow it to dry at least 48 hours until it is completely hard and is white in appearance.

Oven Drying: Place sculpture on foil-covered baking sheets. Bake at 325 degrees to 350 degrees F. until it is a light, golden brown. Allow 30 minutes for each 1 inch of thickness.

Use imagination with dough HINTS FOR BAKING: Bake as soon after shaping as possible to avoid crumbling.

If bubbling or puffing occurs, prick with a pin or wooden pick and reduce baking temperature by 50 degrees to 75 degrees.

Cracks can be corrected by filling in with moistened dough and allowing to dry.

Thinner pieces of sculpture will dry faster. To avoid burning, watch carefully and if necessary lower the oven temperature.

If the sculpture has a tendency to curl during baking, hold own the edges with a heavy object or metal tool. (You might raid the workshop for suitable objects.) Place these on the dough shapes after they have begun to harden.

(Test hardness with a spoon; this will insure not leaving an unwanted impression on the dough.) *** FINISHING TECHNIQUES: To give your sculpture that enduring, polished look, there are several finishes that may be applied. Many of the finishes add decorative as well as sealer properties to preserve the sculpture. Sealing is necessary to protect it from humidity and moisture and makes it washable. Any colour under the rainbow is at your finger-tips to individualise your art.

The simplest finish is to shellac, varnish, or coat with lacquer or acrylic clear gloss sealer. Both sides must be brushed evenly to insure complete protection.

Egg and Milk Finish: Brush the sculpture with a thin coat of egg yolk or egg white or whole beaten egg or milk. For lighter browning, allow sculpture to bake about 15 minutes, then brush with egg and return to oven. For darker browning, continue to brush every 10 to 15 minutes during baking.

Watercolour Finish: Paint the sculpture with any watercolour you choose, then varnish.

Acrylic Paint Finish: Paint with acrylic paints to seal the sculpture. This makes varnishing and other final sealing agents unnecessary.

Special Effects: Sprinkle or glue onto the wet finish one of the following: sequins, small pieces of pasta, buttons, rhinestones, seeds, beads, bells, or other decorations.

*** CHRISTMAS ORNAMENTS: Hanging cookie-cutter shapes on the tree can really add a warm, homey touch to the holidays. It is also a project that can be enjoyed by the whole family.

For shapes like candy canes or wreaths, just twist or braid three ropes of dough together. Then turn into a cane or wreath shape. Remember to colour them red and white or green when adding the water to the dough. Berries, little round balls of dough, or leaves cut out of cookie cutters and the veins drawn in with a wooden pick, can dress up the wreath easily.

Other free-form shapes like animals, angels, and faces are also simple to do.

To hang, pull a piece of string or coloured twine through a hole in the top to hook on the branch.

To form a candle holder, make thick ropes of dough and twist together. Form three wreaths around the candle for size one on top of another. Glue together with water. Make a bow and attach by moistening with water. Remove the candle.

Bake, cool, colour, and varnish. For variation, place leaves, elves, or other forms around the bottom before baking.

*** TO FORM TREE ORNAMENTS: 1. Roll out dough on lightly floured surface to 1 -inch thickness.

2. With cookie cutter cut out desired shapes and place on foil-covered baking sheet.

3. Eyes, nose, cheeks, buttons, and other decorations can be added by rolling pieces of dough between your fingers until they form a small ball. Then moisten with water and place on the sculpture.

4. Hair, beards, tails, etc., can be made by pressing dough through a garlic press or colander, or rolling long pieces of dough to the thickness of spaghetti.

5. With a nail, make indentations for eyes, buttons, etc., and a hole for handing by a string.

6. Bake at 325 degrees to 350 degrees until light brown. Cool on wire rack or screen; varnish.

*** GIFTS: Bread sculpture makes a thoughtful, inexpensive gift because you designed and made it yourself. Jewellry, picture frames, and door initials are all in demand. Enjoy the fun of making and giving these unique pieces of art.

Picture Frames: Cut a piece of foil the size of the picture. Form the dough around the sample, right on the foil-covered baking sheet. Cut-out designs or rolled strips of decorated dough are attractive. Bake, cool, and finish as desired. Place picture on heavy cardboard. Cover outside rims with baked dough sculpture. Secure with glue.

Name Plaques: With a long, thin rope of dough write the name of a person and bake. Glue onto finished wood pieces and nail on the bedroom door or wherever desired.

Kid's Plaques. Animals, letters, or story-book characters may either be glued directly to the wall or on coloured pieces of wood for an exciting children's wall. Alphabet letters and numbers are fun to make and are great teaching tools.

Jewellry or Macrame' Beads: Since the natural look is in vogue, making your own jewellry is not only inexpensive but smart looking. Unique-looking beads can be large or small and are suitable for stringing or weaving into macrame' designs. To make jewellry beads: 1. Shape small pieces of dough into balls. For round beads, simply leave as balls. For variations, flatten, make oval, square or oblong.

2. With a skewer or nail, make a hole in centre of each bead for stringing.

3. After drying or baking on foil-lined baking sheets, paint with watercolours or acrylic paint, if desired. When dry, varnish to seal. You may find spray varnish helpful for sealing such small objects.

From the Continental Society of Bermuda Cookbook.