Make a Reindeer {A cute children's craft}

A very happy two days before Christmas to you all! I hope this finds you doing well! :)

I have a cute little craft to show you for the kids, something to keep them busy while they wait for Christmas Day! This one is ideal for elementary school ages and older. 


 {Clothespin Reindeer} 


What you'll need for each reindeer:


3 "no-roll" clothespins
Two red sequins
Green and red felt
Ribbon to hang ornament
Small wiggly eyes
 *Tacky Glue/Elmer's glue or glue gun/glue sticks

*If they are old enough to use a low temp glue gun, or if an adult can help them, that works better than the Elmer's glue we first tried. My kids and I switched to using the glue gun! But Elmer's glue does work, if you have patience to allow for the extra drying time. I have heard fantastic things about "Tacky Glue", so if you have younger children, that might be the best route!


To make this ornament, first take two of the three clothespins and glue them together.

Then glue one side of the very top of the third clothespin, pressing it onto the other two clothespins you glued together, like this:





Next glue on the wiggly eyes and a red sequin for a nose

Now it's time to cut a piece of felt to glue over the reindeer back...I cut mine into kind of a "band aid" shape, but a rectangle works, too! :)

 

 Then just glue it onto your reindeer like so:

Next up are the reindeer's ears, which are meant to look at little like leaves, and a red sequin between them. See how it looks like holly leaves and berries?

 But what would a reindeer be without a tail?

I just love these pom poms, and we used them for ours. However, these have to be glued on with the glue gun, so if you are using Tacky glue or Elmer's glue, regular pom poms work just great!

 Now just glue your pom pom to the back of the reindeer,and add a ribbon tie to it.

 

 

{I just made a loop of ribbon and tied it together, and glued the tied knot in between the back of his antlers...}

And there you have it! A fun little reindeer ornament your kids can hang on the tree!

Thank you for stopping by and I hope you all have a wonderful day! I am going to be wrapping some gifts and baking more today! How are you spending these last days before Christmas? 

Blessings,

Jenni

Guest Post {Erin from Peony Wire Works}

 Hi dear friends! I hope this last week before Christmas is going well for each of you!

I am excited to have my friend Erin from Peony Wire Works here today to share her tutorial of an amazing ornament she came up with!

Hello All!  I am so happy that Jenni asked me to do another ornament tutorial...she has started a new tradition for me and those I gift at Christmas time(so thank you Jenni!!).  I am so glad to be here today and hope you love this ornament, I know I do.

What you will need:
-Sheet music
-Chip board
-Mod Podge
-Glitter
-Burlap
-Ink pad
-Sponge Applicator
-Fancy scissors(and regular)
-Hot glue gun(have lots of sticks at the ready)
-Stencil for Monogram(I use about and 1 1/2 inch size)
-String

First, pick a round size that you want your ornament to be.  I chose a Dora cup because it is bigger at one end and smaller at the other, and it's what I had on hand.  Next, trace the top of your cup and the bottom of your cup on Chip board.  And trace them again on to the music sheet.  Cut all of those out.

For the smaller circle, Mod Podge the BACK of the sheet music only to the smaller Chipboard circle. No need to use a lot of Mod Podge, just cover the surface. Set that aside and let it dry. For the bigger circle, cut a piece of burlap so that there is about 1/2 overlap.  Mod Podge this to the chipboard(I like old shirt boxes because the burlap and brown of the chipboard are about the same color), and hot glue the edges of the burlap to the back of the chipboard.  Set aside let it dry.

Pick the smaller circle back up and decide how you want it monogrammed.  I like the sheet music facing me like I am reading it and put my stencil on.  Take the sponge applicator and blot it on your ink pad several times.  Then blot the applicator over your stencil(I chose ink over paint for drying and Mod Podge purposes), while holding the stencil and circle down firmly.  After this has dried(I usually wait 10 minutes), apply a light coat of Mod Podge over the entire surface and glitter with translucent glitter.  Yep, set that aside to dry.

Grab your sheet music once more(a whole sheet or half sheet lengthwise).  You want to place your cup (biggest end down)on the paper and measure out about 1/4-1/2 inch.  Then you want to eyeball that size the whole length of the paper.  This will be your fan.  I liked folding my edges and tearing it to size for some, and for others, I cut my edges with my "fancy scissors".  Once you have the page torn lengthwise to your specifications, you are going to fold it like a fan(my folds were approximately 1/4", and I did about 20 folds).

After you have done that, take your folded page and fold it in half one way(making sure the edges meet nicely) and then take it and fold it the other way(again, edges meeting nicely).  Take your hot glue gun and run a bead on half of one sides fold.  Press those together and hold for a few seconds.  Then take the other open fold and run a bead of hot glue on half of the fold again, press and hold.  Voila!  You now have a fanned circle.

Put hot glue all over the back of the burlaped circle and place this on your music sheet fan however you think looks best.

Finally, hot glue all over the back of the glittery monogram circle, and place that on the base of burlap and fan.  Measure out your string for hanging, and glue it in the back of your fan blades.  You now have a nice monogrammed ornament to give to someone special!

Here is a variation that I did, and it turned out to be my favorite...gotta have some Wire in there!

I just want to say thanks again to Jenni for inviting me to share this project with you, I am honored and happy to share.  Merry Christmas to you all!

Erin

Thank you so much for sharing this with us, Erin! It is one of the cutest ornament ideas I've seen! What a fun craft to make for one's own tree, or the perfect gift for a loved one!

Here is a sampling of the amazing wire creations Erin whips up:

 {set of notion jars}

  

 {wire cloche}

 

{The Lovely}

 

 

{Such a darling white cloche!}

And, of course, the basket made from a lampshade she covered with chicken wire:

If you are like me, and you love what she has come up with, you can see more of it here, at Peony Wire Works. You can also find her Etsy shop here. 

And just to give you a heads up, at the beginning of January, I'll be hosting a giveaway of some of Erin's lovely wares. Let me just say, you don't want to miss out on this one! She has made some gorgeous things for this giveaway! :)

So again, a big thanks to Erin for her tutorial, and thank you each for visiting today! 

I will be back tomorrow with a cute children's craft idea, just perfect to keep the kids busy and happy during this time before the big Christmas weekend! 

Have a wonderful Thursday!

Blessings,

Jenni 

Miniature Linen Wreath {and a few others, too}

Hi friends!

Happy New Year to you all! I hope you are having a wonderful weekend! I don't know about you, but I am excited to see what 2011 will hold. I love the thought of another year and a fresh start. And maybe it's silly, but I always make New Year's resolutions. How about you?

Well now...Do you remember the linen wreath I made this past fall?

Well, as I was going just a little crazy making ornaments this Christmas, I thought it would be fun to try and make a miniature version of this...

{Miniature Linen Wreath}

Now, don't worry I haven't lost my marbles...I know it's not Christmas anymore. But I just had to show you this idea, because one thing so often leads to another...

{Miniature Wreath with Ticking}

{Miniature Felt Wreath}

I love miniature things. I just can't help it. And I'm thinking that these little wreaths could used any time of the year, not just as ornaments at Christmas time. :)

With the original linen wreath, I opened a wire coat hanger and formed a circle. I "poked" the linen strips though one end, and wove the linen onto the hanger. But I was curious if thick gauge wire would work. I found some at Michael's in their beading section...It is 12" gauge aluminum jewelry wire.

Now in the past year I have discovered many wonderful tools, but one of my favorite hand tools is the common awl. With a handle like a screwdriver, this tool has a sharp point that is perfect for making little holes in fabric. Any fabric. This makes fabric easy to slide onto handmade wire wreath forms, of whatever size you like...

{What you'll need}

Awl

Pliers

12" gauge jewelry wire

Fabric of choice

Glue Gun/glue sticks

Ribbon

Here is how I made my wreaths~

With a pair of pliers, I formed into about a circle, about three inches in diameter.

I cut the strips of felt about one inch wide...

And this is where the awl comes in...Make holes in the felt or other fabric with the awl, and try to make the holes about one inch apart. {You want the spaces between the holes to be the same as the width of the strips.}

Now just weave the fabric through the wire, accordion style, by way of the little holes the awl made.

Once it is nice and full all around, make a knot with your pliers.

I added a little bow to the front with my glue gun...I also tied a loop of rick rack onto the top of the wreath and slipped it between the folds of the felt, easy peasy. :)

And there you have it!

If you want a linen wreath, just follow these same instructions, but there are just two things I have to add. In the tutorial for the original linen wreath, I ripped the linen strips for extra fullness. However, for strips this small in width, I found the wreath looked way better if I cut them. Even if you cut them, linen or other cloth fabric will fray quite a bit. (Ticking frayed more than the linen.) I spent some time cutting away the strings, until I was happy with how they looked...

Okay, and here's a confession: I got further carried away with this wreath idea, and make a half-sized version of the large linen wreath, but with felt...again. The one below is eight inches in diameter~ hopefully hanging it on this shutter gives you a little perspective on it's size.

{Ruffled Felt Wreath}

It is eight inches total in diameter~ hopefully hanging it on this shutter gives you a little perspective on it's size. I think felt is such a warm and cozy fabric~ just perfect for winter. :)

You can use a thick gauge wire for this wreath as well, and it is extremely easy to work with. I do think though that if you are making anything larger than 10 inches, you would want to use a stronger wire, like a hanger, because at that point you want something that can support more weight. :) I made it the same way as the others, only the strips were 2-1/2 to 3 inches wide, and the wire circle that I began with was about six inches in diameter...

I am linking this to Freckled Laundry's "Air Your Laundry" party...If you haven't heard of this party, be sure to check it out! I love the theme, which is "Textiles" every Friday. So if you have a craft or project that includes cloth, be sure to head over and link it up to Jami's party! I always see some of the most beautiful things there...

I am also linking this to Tatertots and Jello's Weekend Wrap Up Party, Under the Table and Dreaming's Sunday Showcase Party,
and Sew Chatty. :)

Thank you so much for stopping by! :)

Have a beautiful night~

~Jenni

For the Birds {Paper, Book and Doily Ornament}

Last week, both Belle and I had the tremendously exciting opportunity to be guest bloggers at Under the Table and Dreaming, along with 23 other bloggers during the week of Thanksgiving. Each of us showed a handmade ornament, and let me tell you, I was more than a little awed to be included with such talented and amazing people! The ornaments were so amazing, and my want-to-do list grew as the week went on! :)

Stephanie Lynn coordinated all of this, and did such a wonderful job putting it all together~ even adding the most beautiful collages that highlighted her favorites of each blogger's projects when she closed at the end of their tutorials...I was so touched by her thoughtfulness!

I thought I would show you my ornament now on this blog, too, because you may not have seen it...do you mind? Actually, it's essentially the same post...

I have been noticing all of the gorgeous and creative book wreaths in Blogland for some time now, and thought it would be fun to somehow incorporate that idea into an ornament.

I also love paper birds and so decided to make a paper bird, but add a twist to this idea by using the pages of a book for the body of the bird.

This Paper, Book and Doily Bird Ornament is an inexpensive and fun way to add a simple yet festive touch to your Christmas tree. And it is not at all difficult to make either!

What you'll need:

Bird and wing templates (see below)

Card stock, solid colored

Decorative card stock

A book {Dollar stores often sell paperbacks that are just perfect for this}

Miniature doilies

Buttons and decorative jewels

Felt

Twine

Glue gun, glue sticks

School glue stick, such as Elmer's

{Along with these, you will also need fabric and paper scissors as well as a hole punch.}

Begin by printing out the bird and wing patterns. They are not pictured to scale here, but if you save them to a file and then print, they will print to the correct size. (About five inches wide.) These pictures of them are not pictured to scale, but if you save them to a file and then print, they will be the right size. You can trace these onto cardboard or card stock~ these will be your templates.

Trace the bird template onto card stock, and then do the same thing onto your book pages. I had to glue two pages together to make it big enough for the bird, and most book pages will probably be this way.

Glue the book page cut out onto the card stock one.

If you used a hole punch for the twine, make sure to do this part before going any further. It will be too difficult to do it later.

(You can find these miniature doilies at JoAnn Fabrics, for 99 cents a piece.)

To give the doily "wing" extra firmness, I used stitch witchery. If you haven't used this before, don't worry! It is easy-peasy!

Cut a piece of stitch witchery about half the size of your doily, making sure when you fold it, the stitch witchery doesn't extend past the edges of the doily.

Now cover your folded doily with a damp cloth and place hot iron onto it, holding it there for 10 seconds. (Although I did notice cream doilies were a bit thicker than the white ones, and they needed about 15 seconds to fuse.)

Using a glue gun, dot the folded doily with glue and press onto the bird. You can glue the wing on however it looks best! See how the wing covers the hole punch, so no one will know it's there?

Now if you want layered wings for extra texture, trace the wing templates you like, and cut them out. You can use book pages or felt for the extra wings...or anything you want! :) Glue these onto the doily wing, and add your other embellishments~ buttons, sparkly gems, sequins...you name it!

I also thought it would be fun to make birds out of decorative card stock as well, with book page on the back of the bird, and combine this with book page wings...Once you get going, the possibilities are endless! You can mix it up however you like!

Then the best part of all~ decorating your tree!

Here is my little "kitchen tree" with the birds!







And here I added a miniature version of the bird to the front of a book page tag...I like the twig underneath, but am not happy with the shape/size of the felt under the bird...I have a few ideas of how to make it look better, but I wanted to show you what I had so far! :)

Well, I hope this L-O-N-G and drawn out post didn't bore you to tears! If you haven't seen all of the wonderful ornament ideas posted at Under the Table and Dreaming last week, be sure to head on over and check it here!

Hopefully you are all doing well, and having a great week! :)


Thanks so much for stopping by~

Jenni

I am linking this to Freckled Laundry's Air Your Laundry party.