Welcome to my Holiday craft section. You will find something here for just about every room in your home.

Holiday Spice Potpourrie

4 Oranges

4 Lemons

1/2 c Whole cloves

1/2 c Whole allspice

10 Cinnamon Sticks, broken

10 Bay leaves, crumbled

8 oz Decorated jelly jars with -bands & lids

Using a vegetable peeler, peel fruit carefully, removing only the peel, not any of the white pith. Cut or tear into one inch pieces.

Spread peel on paper towel lined pan.

Place in preheated oven to 175, or set oven to WARM.

Dry in oven for 1 1/2 hours, tossing occasionally. Peels should be leathery and/or slightly crunchy.

Spread peels on dry paper towels and let air dry for 24 hours.

Christmas Cinnamon Ornaments

Recipe 1:

1/2 cup ground cinnamon,

1/3 cup applesauce, and

1 Tbs. Tacky glue

Mix in bowl and stir until well blended. Work mixture in hands for three minutes to form a ball. If it is too dry, add applesauce, if too wet, add more cinnamon. Knead ball on cinnamon-sprinkled surface until it holds togehter well. I roll this out and use cookie cutters for the shapes. I also use a drinking straw to cut a hanging hole. These can be air dried for 24 to 48 hours. Turn several times. They can also be baked in a slow oven.

Recipe 2:

1 lb. powdered cinnamon

3/4 c. applesauce

1/8 c. orris root powder (optional)

1/8 oz. apple fragrance (optional)

Add scent to the orris root and mix well. Combine with the cinnamon powder and add the applesauce. Add a tiny bit of apple cider if it's too dry, or more cinnamon if too wet. Roll out no thinner than 1/4" and cut out shapes. Use a straw to cut a hole at the top if making a hanging ornament. Dry in a dehydrator or air-dry. Let dry thoroughly and sand the rough edges with a fingernail file and paint with fabric paints.

Recipe 3:

1-4 oz. can of cinnamon

1 T. cloves

1 T. nutmeg

3/4 cup applesauce

2 T. white glue

Mix dry ingredients and add to wet ingredients Mix thoroughly. Roll out and cut shapes. Let dry several days, turning over frequently. Do not eat!!!

Recipe 4:

1 c. cinnamon

1 t. nutmeg

1 t. allspice

1 t. ground cloves

1 c. applesauce

Combine dry ingredients. Add applesauce a little at a time, mixing thoroughly. Roll out and cut shapes. Allow to dry 4-5 days. Paint after completely dry.

Recipe 5:

1 Cup Cinnamon

1T Cloves

1T Nutmeg

3/4 C Applesauce

2T White glue

combine cinnamon, cloves & nutmeg. Add applesauce & glue, stir to combine, work mixture with hands for 2-3 minutes. Divide into 4 parts. Roll each to 1/4" thickness. Use straw or toothpick for hole. Place on wire rack & allow to dry at room temp. Turn after a day. (takes about 2 days to dry). Use white fabric paint to decorate, looks like frosting.

Artificial Snow

1/2 c Granulated Sugar

1/2 c Talcum Powder

Mix together the sugar and talcum powder.

Sprinkle mxiture over any area you want to decorate after it has been spread with liquid starch or a mixture of 1/2 glue and 1/2 water. Let dry.

HINT: the more sugar the more sparkle.

Christmas Scent

3 Cinnamon Sticks -- 4"

2 Bay Leaves

1/4 c Whole Cloves

1/2 Lemon -- Cut In 2 Pieces

1/2 Orange -- Cut In 2 Pieces

1 qt Water

Combine all ingredients in a kettle or saucepan. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for as long as desired.

Check water level frequently and add more as needed. Mixture may be stored in refrigerator and re-used.

Christmas Dough Art

4 c All-purpose flour

1 c Salt

1 1/2 c Hot water*

*Instant coffee added to water gives dough "browned" color.

Knead dough 6 - 8 minutes. Roll out dough and cut with cookie cutters into desired shapes. Place on wax paper on glass tray; with a toothpick, make several holes in each piece to let air escape, then microwave on high for about 2 minutes. Time will vary according to size of "cookies."

When baked, allow to cool before decorating.

Christmas Wreath of Rice

2 c Rice

3 cn Beef consomme

2 Soup cans water

8 Green onions; chopped

1 lg Can mushrooms

1 Stick butter; melted

1 ts Salt

Combine all ingredients; spoon into greased 3-quart ring mold. Cover with foil.

Bake at 450 degrees for 1 hour. Let stand for 10 minutes.

Remove foil; press rice mixture down with spoon. Invert carefully on serving platter.

Garnish with holly leaves if desired.

Santa Lollipops

Materials

Lollipop (the kind wrapped in plastic)

White and red paper

Hole punch

Glue

Red pompon

Wiggly eyes

Cotton balls

Thread and tape

First, turn your lollipop upside down, then decorate one side of it as Santa's face. Here, we glued on a white paper beard (with a punched hole for Santa's mouth), a red pompon nose and two googly eyes.

To make the hat, cut a red paper semicircle, roll it up, and tape it to form a cone (you may need to experiment to get the right size). Glue cotton ball trim around the hat's bottom.

Tape a loop of thread to the lollipop stick, then pull the thread through the top of the hat so that it sits on Santa's head. Add a bit of cotton for a pompon.

Christmas Tree Centerpiece

15 baby food jars, cleaned, with lids

White glue

Christmas ribbon and decoration (optional)

Small Christmas lights

Hammer

Large pliers

Tin foil, cardboard backing, gold/silver paint (optional)

1. The first part of this project - gluing the jars together to form the tree shape - took the longest. (I opted to use white glue instead of hot glue or just "rubber-banding" them together.) I allowed each row to dry before adding the next row, laying 5 jars down on their sides and bracing them together with blocks of wood on each end. When the glue was dry, I added the next row of 4 jars, then the next row of 3 and so on.

2. Using the hammer and screwdriver, pound a hole in the center of each lid. (I used a block of wood, placed the screwdriver in the center, and gave it a good whack, then wiggled the screwdriver back and forth to enlarge the hole.) Protect your fingers and the lights from sharp edges by wrapping the hole with tin foil or electrical tape. I used tin foil and left large pieces hanging out into the center of the lid, because I liked the shiny effect.

3. Insert lights through the lids and screw the lids onto the jars.

4. Decorate with ribbon and Christmas doodads as you like. My Christmas colors this year will be burgundy, gold and white, so I used burgundy ribbon and bows, and some gold decorations.

5. If your centerpiece will sit against a wall, that's all you need to do. However, I want to place my centerpiece in the window sill, and the back will be visible. So, I cut out a piece of cardboard to match the size of my jar-tree and painted it metallic gold. I attached the cardboard using a piece of ribbon, tying a bow at the back. If I get really ambitious, I may make another one of these and stand them back to back in the middle of the table!

Puzzle Piece Wreath

Old puzzles

Cardboard (how big depends on how big you want your wreath)

White glue

Green spray paint

Glitter (optional)

Red pom-poms(again size depends on you, small wreath-small pom-poms)

Ribbon

Hot glue gun (optional)

Tab from a pop can(optional)

From the cardboard, cut a circle the size of the wreath you want. Cut a smaller circle out of the middle.

Glue the puzzles pieces onto the circle, layering them. I do 3 layers.

Spray paint the whole piece. While it's still tacky, you can add glitter.

When it's dry glue on your pom-poms and ribbon that's been tied in a bow. If you like, you can hot glue the pop can tab to the back for a hanger.

Christmas Ball Ornament Wreath

Glass ball Christmas ornaments

Circular wire form

Christmas ribbon

Hot glue

Thin wire

Christmas florals (optional)

Weave a long length of ribbon in and out of the wire form. Leave the ends criss-crossed and hanging off the bottom.

Attach a bow or Christmas florals to the top using thin wire and/or hot glue.

Glue the ornaments onto the wire form.

Attach a bow and/or Christmas florals to the bottom

Doily Candy Bowl

White crocheted doily, 4" - 6" diameter.

Small margarine container (empty)

Fabric stiffener

Narrow ribbon

Craft/white glue

Wax paper

Plastic wrap or sandwich bag

Christmas florals (optional)

Christmas candy

Turn the margarine container upside down and cover with a plastic sandwich bag.

Pour the fabric stiffener into a bowl. Dip the doily into the bowl, saturating it thoroughly. Wring out the excess back into the bowl.

NOTE: If you don't want to buy fabric stiffener, you can make your own by

boiling equal parts of sugar and water until the sugar is completely dissolved.

using liquid starch, OR

mixing white glue with a little water

Drape the doily over the margarine container. Press down over the sides, but let the edges flair out. Set on the wax paper and allow to dry overnight.

Thread the narrow ribbon in and out through the holes in the doily bowl. Leave both ends on the outside and tie together into a bow.

If you want, glue a Christmas floral or other decoration to the side. Fill with candy and enjoy!

Sea Shell Angels

1 large shell

2 very very small shells (for hands)

wooden ball (for head)

spray glue

hot glue

glitter

paint

music box

lace

ribbon

Step 1. Spray the large shell with glue and drop the glitter on and you can paint a design on if you wish.

Step 2. Glue on the wooden head, paint on eyes and mouth.

Step 3. Glue on the very small shells (hands) glue on the lace for a hat, add on hair if you wish.

Step 4. On the back add on the ribbon (to hang it on a tree, etc.) and glue in a music box.

Tootsie Pop Christmas Bouquet

For each bloom you will need

1 Tootsie Pop

4 peppermint candies in wrappers

Thin wire

4 - 12" lengths of chenille (pipe cleaners)

Attach the peppermint candies to the tootsie pop by wrapping wire around one end of the candy wrappers. (Pull tight using needlenose pliers.)

Coil each strip of chenille tightly, leaving the bottom half straight. Hold tightly against the peppermint candies and wrap the straight end around and around the tootsie pop stick. As you wrap each chenille, try to fill in the spaces, so the tootsie pop stick doesn't show through.

You can make 10-15 of these blossoms and stick the ends into a styrofoam ball, inserted into a clay pot or include them in a Christmas gift basket.

Christmas Candy Holder

Take an old coffee can and use a primer grey paint on it then spray it with green or red paint. Then take the pictures off of the front of old x-mas cards and glue them around the sides of the can, to make it look even better get some thin x-mas color ribbon and punch holes in the cards and wrap the ribbon through the holes and around the diameter of the can. It's a fun project and it's even nice to use as a gift holder instead of giving a gift bad put a small gift or even an article of clothing into the can and put a gift tag on the lid to give it as a gif

Pop Can Snowman

1 cleaned, dried aluminum soda can

1 sheet of white construction paper or printer/copier paper

1 full sheet of newspaper

Masking tape

White paint

Fiberfil or quilt batting

Scrap fabric

Wrap the entire can with the white construction paper.

Using the full sheet of newspaper, form it into a ball and, using the masking tape, tape it to the top of the aluminum can. (This will form the head.) Cover the rest of the newspaper ball with masking tape.

Paint the taped newspaper ball with the white paint. Let dry completely.

Cover the white body of your snowman with the Fiberfil.

Buy or make a construction paper hat for your snowman. Add jiggle eyes and an orange pom-pom for the nose. Cut a scarf using scrap fabric. If possible use pinking shears and cut approx. 20" long and 1" wide. (You can trim later, if necessary.)

Your snowman is ready to display

Bleach Bottle Santa

1 bleach bottle

white yarn

12 by 12 flesh felt

glue

2 eyes (black felt, buttons, or googly eyes)

Tool to make small holes in plastic bottle

Wire

1/4 yard of red material

14 inches of curly chenille

Any material for a ladies collar

Step 1: Cut the bottle in half. First make the man Santa. You decide the size of face you want and make a circle with a pencil.

Step 2: Make plenty of holes all around the circle.

Step 3: Cut the flesh felt in a circle and glue to the bottle.

Step 4: Now start inserting the white yarn, leaving 2 inches on the lower holes and 1 inch of yarn on the upper holes. String the yarn in and out of each hole,(this makes the beard) and the hair line..

Step 5: Add on the eyes and mouth if you have one. Make sure you have yarn going across for the mustache. You may have to cut the mustache to your liking. Take the red material and make a triangle hat. At the tip of the hat add on a bell.

Step 6: Take the red felt and cover the back side of the bottle. Stretch a piece of wire across the back so you can hang it up. Attach the wire to each side real tight.

Step 7: Now you glue on the red hat and glue on the white chenille for the RIM of the hat.

DO THE SAME STEPS FOR THE MRS. SANTA LEAVING OUT THE FOLLOWING: No beard, no mustache. And the last thing for Mrs. Santa is to add on the collar.

Santa and Mrs. Santa can stand by them selves or they can hang on the wall or door

Christmas Bells

Old egg cartons

Scissors

Yarn or string

Small bells

Elmer's glue

Glitter

Paint

Cut the egg carton into separate cups. With the point of the scissors or a sharp pencil, poke a hole in the bottom of each cup.

Decorate each cup however you like. Mix glitter into your paints for an quick colorful sparkle effect.

Cut a piece of string or yarn about 6 inches long. Tie a small bell onto one end. Tie a small knot in the string about 1 inch above the bell. Thread the string through the hole in the egg cup. Pull it all the way through till the knot hits the inside of the cup.

To hang from the tree, you can tie a loop in the rest of the string, or you can tie/attach it to to a regular Christmas decoration hook.

For a pretty door decoration, tie several bells to the bottom of a hanger. Decorate the rest of the hanger with ribbon or evergreen swags. Hang from a door to hear jingle bells every time the door opens!

Easy Brown Paper Reindeer

Brown paper bags, or brown construction paper

Red, white and black paint

White glue

Trace around the child's shoe on the brown paper. Cut out the foot shape. This is the head of your reindeer, the heel part will be the nose.

Trace around the child's hand and cut out the shape. Fingers should be spread apart. These are the reindeer's antlers. Glue them to the top of your reindeer's head.

Paint two black dots for eyes on the reindeer's face. Paint a big red nose on the bottom of the reindeer face (on the heel).

If desired, paint a tiny white dot on each of the eyes.

Christmas Candles

Old baby food jars, cleaned

Scissors

Red and green tissue paper

Liquid starch

Small tea candles

Glitter, ribbon, lace (optional)

Glue

Cut the tissue paper into small squares.

Dip the squares in a small bowl of liquid starch and apply to the outside of the jar, slightly overlapping the squares.

Leave to dry completely, then put a tea candle in the jar. (You can secure it to the bottom with a little dab of melted wax if you need to.) When the candle is lit, light will show through the colored tissue paper. And it's re-usable! When the tea candle is used up, simply replace it.

For extra decoration:

Sprinkle glitter on the jar when the tissue paper is still wet.

Glue ribbon or lace around the base of the jar.

When completely dry, attach some small gold stars (you might need a dab of glue).

Easy Snowman Pin

Lightweight cardboard

Brown paper bag

Polyfill

Man's black sock

White acrylic paint

Craft glue

Hot glue

Buttons for the belly

Small beads, embossing powder or black felt pen

Ribbon or strip of fabric

Pin backing

Draw two circles on the cardboard to make your pattern, about 2 inches for bottom and 1 inches for head.

Fold brown bag in half, trace snowman, and cut out two pieces at same time.

Paint with two or more coats of white paint. Make a small slit in the center of back bottom (this will be used to stuff a little poly fill in after glue is dry). Glue together around outer edge. I used Aleene's tacky glue.

Hot glue two buttons on belly, I used a small red and green one. I put two dots for eyes and five dots for mouth. I used embossing powder for mine but if you have small beads that would look great.

The hat is made with a man's black sock. Cut a strip from top about 1 1/2 inches x 3 inches and hot glue around top of head. Tie ribbon or a strip of fabric around hat and neck. Hot glue a pin on back. Add some glitter highlights for a little more sparkle.

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