Making GIANT Snowflakes

The other day we started making GIANT Snowflakes and it has been a HUGE hit with my daughter.  These snowflakes have made wonderful window decorations that literally fill the sections of our windows. They make great holiday and Winter decorations to brighten up the drab days of Winter here in Ohio.  Also, they would be a great way to bring some snow to warmer climates out there.

To make these GIANT Snowflakes you'll need:

Large White Gift Tissue 

Scissors

The White Tissue Paper is great to use because you can fold this paper countless times cut easily through many layers.  It is a little tricky to fold, but you could have the tissue pre-folded for your kids and show them how to cut shapes.  My daughter mostly cut triangle shapes which is the easiest shape to cut.

Here are the steps.  Basically you fold the square into a triangle and keep matching each corner to corner to create smaller triangles. Between steps 5 and 6 you want to round the top so the snowflake will be a circular shape. Then begin cutting shapes on each edge. My daughter mostly cut triangle shapes because that is the easiest shape to cut. You can definitely experiment with different shapes.

Have FUN! Children and adults get a lot of satisfaction from cutting snowflakes.

And it is always a surprise each time you open a folded snowflake. This activity could be a science experiment in which you predict what each snowflake might look like.  It is a great lesson in symmetry too. Also, you could pair this activity with my Exploring Snowflakes...Up Close post and observe real snowflakes and learn about Wilson Bentley who took the first pictures of snowflakes.  Look how big this snowflake is compared to my daughter....AWESOME!

Here is some of our window display from outside our house.  They look wonderful! I'm sure it brightens everyone's day when they go by our house. I know it makes me smile each time I see them. 

HAPPY WINTER!

Enjoy making snowflakes...

Glittery Magnolia Pods

When were on Thanksgiving Break in the South of the US we gathered some magnolia pods as we always do to add to our continuous nature collection. They are vey similar to Pine Cones, but have a large stem on them.  I've seen many others put glitter on pine cones,  so I thought why not put some glitz on Magnolia Pods and dress them up for the holidays? So that is what we did.

Here are the Magnolia Pods before glitter.

Paint some glue on the pods.

Then either sprinkle and shake the glitter on the pods...

Or place them in a small box and roll them around in the glitter for less mess.

You could fashion some ribbon onto your pods or pine cones.

Hang them as ornaments or garland.

Or just lay them out or place them in a decorative bowl for the holidays or anytime.

Happy Glittering!

Painted Salt Dough Ornaments

We finally finished our Painted Salt Dough Ornaments today.  Some of these beauties will be going on our Christmas tree and others will become some fantastic gifts to our family and friends.  It was a long process, but well worth it.  We made Salt Dough Heart Necklaces back in the Springtime for Mother's Day and they made fabulous gifts.

To make Salt Dough Ornaments you'll need:

(We doubled this recipe)

1 cup flour

1/4 cup salt

1/4 cup water

cookie cutters 

acrylic paint

brushes

glitter

ribbon for hanging

Mix the flour and salt well and add water.  Add more flour if too sticky or more water if too dry.  Roll out on a flour surface to about 1/4 inch thickness.  Use cookie cutters to create the shapes for your ornaments and then place the dough shapes on a foil lined cookie sheet.  Use a straw form holes on the top of the ornament shapes.  Bake between 275 F and 300 F for 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

After the ornaments were done, we painted the dough shapes with solid colors of acrylic paint.

Then we added more detail with gold paint and other colors.

Lastly, we added some touches of glitter to add some sparkle which is always fun!

Next, we'll be adding some ribbon for hanging.

What have you been making with your children for the Holiday season?

Contact Paper Ornaments

Want a quick way to make ornaments with your children? Well,  make some Contact Paper Ornaments. They are so easy to make.  My daughter loves to draw so this was a fun way to incorporate her drawings into some fun tree decorations.

For Contact Paper Ornaments you'll need :

-White paper or card stock

-markers or crayons

-contact paper

-hole puncher

-wire or pipe cleaners

First, start drawing lots of fun Holiday or Winter themed ideas onto white paper or card stock. We did this together.  I started to draw,  and then my six year old joined in.  Lots of Christmas trees and candy canes.

Santa and reindeer.

Then after you have a bunch of drawings, cover each side of the drawing with contact paper.

Lastly, cut around the drawings,  punch a hole, and then add wire or pipe cleaners for hanging. They are ready to hang or to be given as unique gifts that I know many people will truly LOVE!

Paper Plate Turkey Wreaths

Here is my last Thanksgiving post...Paper Plate Turkey Wreaths.  This can be a nice quick project to do before the holiday!

To create a Paper Plate Turkey Wreath you'll need:

a paper plate

scissors

 paint or crayons

real feathers or construction paper feathers

glue

First, draw a a circle in the inner part of a paper plate and add a turkey head within the circle.

Then, cut that part out.

Now, either paint the paper plate and let it dry or color it with crayons to make it a quick project without dry time.

Then,  add an eye, beak, wattle and feather lines. We used real feathers, but you could use construction paper feathers too. You can hang it on your door for a festive decoration.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Turkey Pinch Pots

This is a fun clay project that can be done with fire clay, air dry clay, or even play dough. We've done it with all kinds of clays and doughs and it works well.  I've made them with elementary art students in the past and most recently with my daughter C.  These Turkey Pinch Pots make great Thanksgiving Day decorations and gifts.

To create Turkey Pinch Pots you'll need:

Clay or Play Dough (We use Crayola Air Dry Clay)

A pencil or a pointy object for adding detail

Acrylic or Tempera paint

Mod Podge if a shiny finish is desired

First,  begin with a small golf ball size of clay or smaller.

Use your thumb to create a hole, but not all the way through.

Pinch out the hole more by turning it.  Don't make it too thin because you want to add the head and tail later.

Pinch out the head and wattle.

Then pinch out the tail.

Use a pencil or toothpick to add eyes, wings , and detail on the feathers.  Now let dry for a few days if air dry clay.  If play dough, just have fun creating turkeys and make new ones the nest day.

Now,  paint the turkeys.  We used brown, orange, yellow, and red.

Then display or give as gifts.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Enjoy your family and friends this week and be thankful for them too!

Contact Paper Turkey Sun Catchers

We created Contact Paper Turkey Sun Catchers after realizing our dreary windows needed cheering up for the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday. Thanksgiving seems to get left out and I began brainstorming for some crafty ideas to make including this one.  Some of my beat ideas seem to come from these moments. Keep reading to find out how we made our Turkey Sun Catchers.

For Contact Paper Turkey Sun Catchers you'll need:

Contact Paper

Tissue Paper

Wire or String

First peel back the non-sticky layer of contact paper to reveal the sticky sheet side up.

Then start placing torn and crinkled sheets of tissue paper down on to the sticky contact paper.  We began with the brown turkey body, head, and wings.

Then added details on the head and add the feet.

Add colorful tissue paper for the feathers.

Then place the non-sticky layer of contact paper on top of the sticky and tissue paper layer.  Press down. Trim around the picture or turkey. Add string or wire to hang. Let the line shine through your creations for an upcoming Thanksgiving sunny day!

This is a turkey without trimming.

More Turkey ideas:

Coffee Filter Turkey Cards

Quick Turkey Art with Paper Plates