3D Christmas makes

Candy Cane seeds

(Use round, red and white peppermint candies - Place in small envelope or baggie. These are fun to hand out to students after reading a great Candy Cane Book!)

I once knew a gardner who knew how to grow
Bright tasty candies, from under the snow
I asked her to share her secret with me
And this is what she replied quite readily
To garden in winter snow is difficult you see
It takes lots of care and a very special seed
Here are a couple seeds to grow your own treats
And you'll soon reap a harvest of
candy cane treats!

Sequin Christmas puddingMaterials
Polystyrene ball
Brown sequins
White sequins
Ribbon or thread
Holly leaf punched from fun foam or felt
Short pins also called lils

Instructions
Pin the brown sequins on the bottom half of the ball and the white on the top third.

In the gap simulate dripping cream by pinning the sequins in a wavy row.

When finished pin the holly leaf to the top and glue on a ribbon or some thread to hang it or you can put the ribbon on before the sequins for a more secure fixing.

This is so cool another tutorial this time by Jenn Balcer

Paper Trees

by Jenn Balcer

Bust out some holiday paper you've stashed, and create pretty decorations for your mantel or table.

Supplies

• 12" x 12" Patterned Paper (number of sheets varies depending on size of tree)


• Styrofoam Form (here, two different cones for trees, 4" spheres for topiary, and 3 7/8" disc for inside pot


• Paper trimmer


• Quilting pins(Three packages were used for the trees shown here)


• Adhesive


• Terracotta Pot (Optional. 4" diameter pots were used here)


• Syrofoam to fit inside pot, if used


• Wooden Dowel (if a trunk is desired)


• Craft paint and/or pigment ink


• Moss (optional)


• Embellishments

Step-by-Step

1. Step 1

   If you'd like a potted tree, paint the terracotta pot now and set aside to dry.

   

2. Step 2

   If you're creating a topiary, or want a trunk, either paint or apply ink to a dowel. Set aside to dry.

   

3. Step 3

   Insert Styrofoam in pot.
   
   Insert dowel in tree form. A bit of adhesive will keep the form in place.
   
   Center tree over pot, and insert into Styrofoam.

   

4. For the topiary, insert dowel all the way through the Styrofoam sphere for the bottom, making sure to keep dowel centered. Remove sphere.
   
   Insert dowel part of the way into the Styrofoam sphere for the top. Remove sphere.
   
   Add some adhesive (hot glue is perfect for this) inside the hole in Styrofoam sphere and replace dowel.
   
   Insert dowel through sphere for bottom of topiary, and apply more adhesive at the bottom. This will keep the dowel from shifting. Any adhesive will be covered by your paper.

   

5. Step 4

   Adhere moss and cover Styrofoam base. A few pins here and there may be helpful.

   

6. Step 5

   Prepare patterned paper strips by using paper trimmer.
   
   For the tall tree, four 12" x 12" double-sided sheets were cut into 4" x 1" strips.
   
   Instructions for each type of tree are to the left of each close up picture.

   

7. Step 6

   Bend a paper strip in half. Using a quilting pin, attach to tree form starting at the bottom, and going all the way around the tree.

   

8. Step 7

   Repeat Step 6, starting the next row slightly overlapping the previous one, until the entire tree is covered.
   
   A single pattern was used for each row, but try alternating patterns within the row for a fun look.

   

9. Step 8

   One sheet of 12" x 12" double-sided paper cut into strips 3" x 1/2" was used for the smaller tree.
   
   Strips were curled on one end with a bone folder before attaching to the tree form.

   

10. Step 9

    For the topiary, three sheets of 12" x 12" double-sided paper and large and small flower punches were used.
    
    Large flowers were punched and then the petals curled with a bone folder.
    
    A small punched flower and Prima paper flower were layered on top as shown, and then pinned to the sphere. To cover any exposed Styrofoam, pin more tiny flowers in the openings.

    

11. Close up view of topiary.

    

12. Step 10

    Embellish as desired. Here, a loopy bow is pinned to the top of the tree.

    

13. Step 11

    Finished paper trees.

    

Snowman Poop

I hear you've been naughty,
So listen, here's the scoop...
I'm running short on coal this year,
so you get "Snowman Poop"
Love, Santa

[use mini-marshmallows]

Reindeer Poop

We were awakened when we heard Santa call,
"Dash away, dash away, dash away all!"
But soon we discovered out on the front lawn,
Santa and his reindeer were gone.
With our little shovels, we started to scoop,
all of the droppings.....YUCK, reindeer poop!
So, then we generously filled you up a sack,
Have a Merry Christmas and enjoy your snack.

[The above can be made with a cardboard french fry container
and stamped with Christmas stamps all over and then filled with
little plastic bags with malteasers]