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These gingham wreaths could be used for any
holiday. Just use coordinating fabric to go with the season.

You will need:

5 – 7 ten inch circles cut from gingham or calico
of your choice.
fiberfill to stuff
a red velvet bow

Cut out your calico circles and baste around the
edges of the circle. Leave long ends for tying later. Place a small puff
of stuffing in the middle of the circle, pull the basting stitch tight and
tie it shut. This is your first puffy ball.

Make the rest if the puffy balls. Taking a long
darning type needle and strong thread or yarn, thread the puffy balls
together, making sure the sewed end is hidden. Shape into a wreath by
tying at the top. Sew a loop of red or gold cord onto the top for hanging.
Add red velvet bows at the top or on each little ball.

Snowmen that even folks without snow can make!

Most children love doing anything which includes dough
or clay. This one is bound to become a fast favorite!

Materials:

• 2 cups Ivory Snow detergent
• 1/2 cup water
• Extra things for your snowman:



Toothpicks
Popsicle sticks or small sticks

Buttons
Felt Scraps
Small beads
Yarn
Pipe cleaners

Instructions:

Make your “snow” by mixing the Ivory snow with the water and beating it with a hand mixer until the consistency of dough.

Immediately shape into 3 snowman shape balls. The head a
little smaller than the middle, etc.. You can use toothpicks to hold the balls together as you stack them on top each other.

Now add your arms and eyes. Use twigs or popsicle sticks for arms, buttons or small beads for eyes. Make a scarf out of felt scraps or crochet a yarn chain. We used pompoms and
pipe cleaners to make earmuffs. A orange pipe cleaner cut and folded into a small triangle was our nose.

These look cute on a stand or mantle.

Supplies:

Small Dog Biscuit
Hot Glue – adults only
Small wiggle eyes
Small Red Pom Pom
Brown Chenille – cut into 2 – 2-3 inch strips
Magnet Strip

Work on the dog biscuit vertically. Glue
the red pom pom onto the bottom -where the dog biscuit indents- for the
nose. Glue the wiggle eyes into the middle of the biscuit. Bend the
chenille into antlers and  glue them to the top, back of the biscuit.
Glue the magnet onto the back.

NOTE: Use TACKY craft glue for these projects
not Elmer’s glue.

Make Your Own Watercolor Paints

Save money by making this substitute for those expensive paint sets you buy
in stores.

Materials:

• 1 tablespoon white vinegar
• 2 tablespoons baking soda
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 1/4 tablespoon glycerin
• plastic bottle caps or paint pans, or Styrofoam egg carton
• red, yellow and blue food coloring

Instructions:

1. Mix vinegar and baking soda together in a small bowl. 

2. 
   When mixture stops foaming, add cornstarch and glycerin, mixing well. 
3. 
   Pour mixture into bottle caps or paint pans.
   Add several drops of a different food coloring to each pan or cap or
   carton cup. 
4. Stir until the color is well-mixed. Be sure to add plenty of
   coloring, since the tint will lighten upon drying. Mix primary colors to make
   secondary colors. For intense colors, try kool-aid or food coloring paste
   (Wilton makes great food coloring pastes). 
5. 
   Let set overnight to harden.

These paints tend to be more powdery than the store sets.

More craft fun:

Kid’s Kreate!

MATERIALS:

• small empty milk
  carton
• pretzels or twigs
• craft glue
• small square
  crackers or anything you can use for the roof.
• shiny paper for
  windows or any add ons you would like.

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Wash the cartons
   and glue the opening shut.
   
2. You can paint the
   carton first if you like, brown.
   
3. Glue pretzels or
   small twigs to the sides of the cabin to resemble
   logs. Leave small squares for windows and a door.
   You can cut these open or make windows and doors
   out of construction paper.
   
4. Use small square
   crackers or whatever you think would look good on
   the roof. We used black construction paper
   squares to represent tar paper.
   
5. Set your cabin on
   a piece of cardboard covered with green or brown
   construction paper. Add things like grass and
   small trees to make it look like Lincoln’s home.

This
fun project combines science with art. Crystals are beautiful to look at
and study. Now you can grow your own, draw them and then eat them!

Materials:

• 1 c. sugar
• 1/2 c water
• Popsicle Stick

Method:

• Put the sugar and water in a small
  saucepan. 
• Stir over low heat until sugar dissolves. 
• Bring to the boil,
  stirring constantly. 
• When it starts to boil stop stirring and let boil
  1 minute. 
• Put either a popsicle stick in a glass or tie a string to
  the middle of one and lay the stick across the top of the glass.
  Letting the string dangle to the bottom of the glass.
• Slowly pour the
  syrup into the glass. You might want to run hot water over the glass
  first or use something plastic.
• Let stand, until cool, and watch your crystals form