Monthly Archives: December 2012
Ornament Advent: Day 21 Christmas Paper Popper
This is another blast from the past. I haven’t made one of these since second grade! We called them Poppers, though some people call them fortune tellers, and others call them “that paper thing that you move back and forth.” For this Christmas-themed one, you get holiday messages inside, rather than the name of the boy who loves you!
If you can’t remember how to make one from your elementary school days, here’s a quick tutorial! To start, cut a square piece of paper. I used an 8″ square piece of double-sided scrapbook paper. It’s very pretty, but a little stiff.
Fold the paper in half, unfold it, and fold it again the other direction. Once you’ve done that, fold each corner into the middle, like this:
Once you’ve folded all four corners (and gotten glitter everywhere!), flip it over, and fold the corners in again. That will give you this:
Once you have all four of these corners folded into the middle, fold it in half, like this:
Once it’s folded in half, pop out the corners. Now you can find out the Christmas message in your future, or you can try to catch your little sister’s fingers in it!
To hang on the tree, put a grommet in one corner. Merry Christmas!
— Loryn
Ornament Advent: Day 20 Wrapping Paper Christmas Tree
Lynne: I liked using scraps of wrapping paper to make my last ornament and I decided I would try to use up more of the pieces I have lying around. I found this tutorial on design and form with these terrific paper ornaments, but I don’t have that precision in my paper-cutting skills. Thus I drew a very loose, cartoon type tree and used that for my pattern.
You will need:
a 6 x 6 inch square piece of paper for the pattern
approximately 10, 6 x 6 inch square pieces of wrapping paper
a glue stick
When you draw the pattern, draw it full size and then fold it in half. This will be easier to do instead of trying to think of how one half of a tree will look. Don’t worry too much about how it looks. You will be surprised how good irregular lines will look in the finished ornament.
Glue the unprinted sides together and then start gluing to make a stack. Be sure to keep the folded edge straight so everything matches when the ornament is opened. I used a weight for a few minutes to make sure the glue would hold.
I traced around the pattern onto the stack and then began to cut. It seemed that more than three edges were too hard to cut, so cut what you can and then retrace the pattern from what has already been cut. When every edge has been cut, glue the two outside edges together and adjust the 3d figure until it is evenly spaced.
I added glitter and stuck an old hat pin in the top, but feel free to decorate any way you wish. I used a loop of fishing line for a hanger, but these ornaments will stand on their own if you want to use them in a centerpiece.
Happy Holidays and just one more ornament!
Hanging his stocking with care. What a cat!
Link’s Christmas Party. What a cat!
Ornament Advent: Day 19 Chenille Tree
I knew from the beginning that I would just have to make a tree ornament for this Christmas advent. I have had one in mind, but I had no idea to execute it. I watched Loryn’s and Cheri’s tree ornaments get posted and loved each of them. My goal was to keep the ornament very simple and easy to make. This whole ornament probably took me about 30 minutes and I was Google Talking (can I use that that way?) with Mom which slows me down as we each share what we are project we are working on.
I used chenille pipe cleaners, cut in half, then wrapped candy cane style for the form of my tree. I know I keep mentioning temari lately, but I have a ton of supplies leftover and so I used some really cool fuzzy green thread from my temari stash to wrap around the chenille pipe cleaners. I really liked how the fuzzy thread looks like the needles on a pine tree. I tied the ends of the thread and glued my knots to ensure that they wouldn’t come loose.
I grabbed all the thread wrapped pipe cleaners in one group. ran some silver wire down the middle, and approximately 1″ in on the pipe cleaners, wrapped the silver wire around the group to hold it together. Then I bent all the wires down over the silver wrapping so that just the wire stuck out the top. I used this bit of wire to string the wooden star bead and make the loop for the hanger. At this point, it you didn’t put the hanger on the ornament, it actually looks really cool just as a decoration for your table, although I would recommend putting something under it as the pipe cleaners are a bit scratchy.
I love the hanger I made for this ornament. Whoever said that you needed to have plain hooks for your ornaments? I made the hanger out of more silver wire, just bending it into shape and curling the end so you didn’t poke yourself with it.
Happy crafting!
Kristin
Ornament Advent: Day 15 Beaded Ball
Gonna Go Back in Time!
So, I was not feeling at all well this weekend and missed my Saturday post for the Ornament Advent. To make up for it, I decided to splurge and make a slightly more difficult ornament. For this ornament, I once again raided my temari ball stash and used one of the green balls for the base. It is around 3″ in diameter. I then wrapped the ribbon around the ball tacking it down first with pins and then with basting stitches.
The beads are from the giant spinner of seed beads that Mom and I bought to take with us when we went camping (yes, we like to craft while camping). I strung the beads and crossed under the ribbon, trying to make a slight draping effect while doing so. It was interesting how much heavier the ball got by the time I was finished. All those glass beads weigh more than you would think.
I then decided that I needed a bead topper and found a lovely smoky gray glass bead in my oddments and leftovers drawer that looks great. I made the hook and I was ready to go.
I am really pleased with how this one turned out.
Happy Crafting,
Kristin
Wrappin presents. What a cat!
Ornament Advent: Day 18 Fortune Cookie Garland
Cheri: My boys and I try to keep a standing date on Saturdays. We like to go and have lunch at a Chinese Restaurant in the small town where we live. I keep the fortunes as a keepsake. This is one of my favorite projects to make with them.
Supplies:
Fortune Cookie Fortunes
Glue or tape
Gold marker
How to:
Color a line around the slips with gold marker to dress it up a bit, and then glue/tape the fortunes into a circle, (make sure the fortune is on the outside). Attach them together and you have a great chain for the Christmas tree. I plan on continuing the chain throughout the year. Merry Christmas!
Filling Santa’s toy bags. What a cat!
the crafty sisters 