A Craft Tutorial for A Cotton Batting Squirrel Ornament

This little squirrel ornament is made with a combination of cotton batting and dryer lint.

Top, dryer lint and cotton balls.
Center, cotton unrolled is easy
to "spin" around pasty surfaces.
Bottom, thinning out cotton or
lint before applying it to surfaces
will help you to craft a smoother
surface, free from odd lumpy
 bits.

Supply List:

• newpaper, or newsprint, or old telephone book pages
• masking tape
• white school glue and tacky white glue
• tiny beads for eyes
• dryer lint (greyish or whatever)
• white cotton balls
• acorn cap (real one)
• a bit of fur or natural looking feathers

Step-by-step Instructions:

1.  Begin this little squirrel ornament by crushing newsprint into three basic shapes. These are pictured below alongside a penny. Mask each one with tape as you go so that the pieces will hold their shape.
2. Then tape the three shapes together the way that I have shown them below.
3. Now you are ready to begin to glue and layer tiny bits of cotton onto the squirrel body. I used dryer lint for the grey body and white cotton for the belly, cheeks, and tiny tufts of fur inside my critter's ears. You will find that it is necessary to let sections of your creature's body dry before advanced to another portion or side of the ornament. Take your time and set the piece to dry in a warm place as you proceed. Making cotton batting ornaments is not a fast process.
4. To make the acorn, I collected a small acorn cap from my back yard and rolled a piece of dryer lint between my fingers with a bit of white glue. Then I attached my little lint ball to the inside of the acorn cap with tacky glue.
5. Eventually, I snipped the arms of my squirrel into shorter stubs. You will find that it is often necessary to make adjustments to your masked, paper crushed armature as you proceed through a method. 
6. Also, as you proceed to glue down the lint or cotton with the tips of your fingers, you will discover a variety of tricks: the thinner the layers and the more of them create smoother surfaces, it's easy to build up areas to create muscle mass, using tools like tweezers, needles, toothpicks and a magnifying glass come in handy! Clamping is also useful at different junctures of the process. I only used my hands to make this ornament but, I have also been crafting these kinds of projects for many years. You will improve as well if you persist!
7. After covering my squirrel's body with the grey lint, I then added a nice padding of white cotton for his belly area, cheeks and the tiny tufts inside his ears.
8. Then I also pricked two holes with the sharp end of a pair of scissors where I wanted to add glass beads for eyes.
9. I glued a wire hook to his back leaving a little to show as I applied very tacky glue to a swatch of fur for his great swishy tail.

      Crushing paper armatures is an art in and of itself, so to speak. Once you get the hang of it; you should be able to crush these rapidly and with a great deal more certainty. Stick with it and you'll soon be on your way to discovering "how" to accomplish many old crafts on your own.

      As you begin to add layers of watery glue and lint/cotton, the surfaces of you cotton batting ornaments will improve greatly. I chose not to paint the surface of my squirrel's fur. This is because I loved the natural modeling of grey shades in the lint. However, if you want to paint your squirrel, you should end your process with a last layer of white glue. Use your fingers to apply the glue and cotton; brushes will only serve to get in the way. It will take time for your touch to become just gentle enough to cut down on the amounts of layers through the application process. Give yourself room to grow in confidence. Persistence pays off when learning to craft with cotton batting.

      Some close-up photos of my cotton batting ornament. Remember to tuck in edges as you go using the tip of a needle/toothpick. This makes your work look professional and clean.

More Articles About Cotton Batting Ornaments:

• Novel Decorations for the Christmas Tree
• Questions and Answers about reproducing cotton batting ornaments
• Include Cotton Batting and Powdered Mica in Your Christmas Decor!

Holiday Lighting Magic

Daytime appearance of this display is improved
 by using evergreen roping, concealed wiring, to
outline the home. 

Here are some original suggestions for attractive home Christmas displays. by Earle Gage

     This holiday season, as never before, homes and communities throughout the land will burst forth into magical greeting, as home craftsmen fabricate and illuminate new and brilliant displays. The festive spirit of the season and the gay atmosphere of gala events will live in sparkling, colorful lights.

      Holiday lighting presents unlimited opportunities for the home craftsman to exercise his imagination and ingenuity. Standard wired materials and lamps lend themselves to many combinations to give new designs and arrangements of displays, both inside and outside homes.

Left, Homes with light trim are made distinctive at night through the holidays by simple floodlighting. One floodlight concealed behind evergreen in foreground does the trick. Right, this multiplane "Merry Christmas" design with the Holy Family makes a colorful and impressive greeting for outdoor use. It may be made any desired size.

Details of displays shown above. Numbers. correspond to the numbers given on the photographs.

Left, (1.) Luminous multiplane candle used for entrance display. Right, (2.) Simple decorative treatment of porch and gables. Arcs of close-set lamps attached to wire frames are interspersed with more widely spaced lamps here. The zeppelin, suspended on cable is floodlighted from a nearby tree. No details for zeppelin are given as it is a specialized and somewhat complicated display.

Left, (3.) Two multiplane flat trees made of composition board are used effectively on either side of the mantel, low voltage lamps are concealed between the planes. Eight candles in the center are operated in series on a single circuit. Right, (4.) The light- colored wall (stucco) provides excellent background for silhouette  displays, which are easily made and installed, using a single cutout of wallboard.

(5.) An unusual cutout decorative scheme
for a doorway of a private home.
 The snow is real.

       Many useful materials, such as composition board, metal foils, metal sheets, translucent fabrics, plastic sheets and shapes, natural and artificial materials, plexiglass, color mediums and floodlights may be used to create modest or elaborate displays.

      One of the easiest and most effective greetings is the glowing cutout of “Merry Christmas” or “Yuletide Greetings,” cut from wallboard, the openings covered with translucent fabric which is illuminated from behind by a row of 25-watt lamps mounted on wooden or metal light trough painted white on the inside.

      The style of letters used, or the words spelled, may be varied to meet the taste of the craftsman, while the length and height of the cutout may be made to fill any desired space, distance from the street determining the size of letters to insure clearness.

Left, "three-lane" silhouette arrangement is shown above.

A display of this type gives the same 3-dimensional il-

lusion as does a diorama. Right, Cardboard candles

 of proportions to fill requirements are illuminated in-

directly by electric strings of lights hidden behind the 

"wax" shield.

      It is easy to make a cutout scene of a Christmas picture, which may be silhouetted against a light-colored background, the house serving as the background, making the cutout of wallboard, painting the back of the cutout white. The three camels of the Wise Men crossing the desert makes an ideal scene, the effectiveness of which is attractive, because it is both simple and beautiful.

      A novel use of the cutout is to make a tree-shaped cutout of wallboard of desired proportions. Where the doorway is light colored, or there is a light-toned surface to provide a background for projected shadow effects, a small floodlight of 200-watts, using a clear lamp bulb, may be set back of the cutout of the tree and the shadow cast on the doorway or surface. You may make the shadow fit the desired space by simply adjusting the distance between the cutout and the floodlight.

      Multiple silhouette displays are readily adaptable to indoor and outdoor use. The multiplane Christmas tree is an example. One idea is to use three of these on your lawn, build in three planes, lighted in red, blue and green, located at advantageous points to set off the remainder of the display. Or you can use a multiplane tree built in three planes, placed behind a front window. An ingenious method of showing a candle-light effect is to cut slits in the wallboard in the shape of candles. The light from concealed lamps will shine through, giving the impression that luminous candles are mounted on the tree.

      A multiplane star, built in three planes, can be placed before a front window of the second floor of the house. The size of the star may be varied to meet the need, using either 25- or 40-watt lamps of any color between the second and third planes.

Assembly of stylized lighted tree.

      Two-plane trees make excellent indoor decorations for the fireplace mantel. Each three contains three low-wattage lamps concealed between the planes. The trees may be of any desired height to fit the scheme of architecture or decorative plan. These trees are also effective when used in windows, lighted by stronger wattage lamps.

      Luminous candles, with multiplane flames make attractive and appropriate decorations for the doorway. The candles are made of wooden frames covered with celloglass. The candles may be made in half or full cylinders, with a light socket at the top and bottom for lamps and a small reflector made of sheet tin. The flame-shaped lamp candle droppings at the top complete the candle, and a cover of cellophane gives a shiny, frosty appearance. These candles may be made of any size . required to light indoor or outdoor backgrounds.

      Corners of rooms may be dark, serving as excellent spots to place large luminous candles. These may be combined with garlands of evergreen draped around the room at the ceiling, or . for interesting lighted decorations. Colored lamps of not more than 25 watts may be used to light decorations on the Christmas tree.

      You will find it easy to make shields to cover sidewall lamps, or to hang on brackets, using cardboard and a pot of paste. These may be designed to suit the taste.

       Creating a snow scene in the living room is a unique way of decoration. This is done by use of strong white cords which are stretched near the ceiling from the four corners to a point in the center of the room, or diagonally from corner to corner. To make the”storm” dense, place intermediate strings. Suspend from the cords at six-inch intervals, “snow flakes” made of small cotton puffs. The strings of the puffs, suspended from the cords, are of different lengths and as close together as possible. When these puffs are lighted by use of concealed lights, the general effect is that of falling snow.

      Spotlights may be made of old coffee cans, with shiny surfaces and regular natural colored lamps. These are placed above the line of vision. The “snow” is most effective if lighted from the corners of the room with a different color from each corner. Flashes, as used on the tree, help bring out a weird effect.

Beaverboard tree in pot lighted through holes in
surface. Cutout is double with bulbs between.

      Using this storm scene as a background, the dining table may be decorated with candles, or small Christmas trees lighted with the new candle type series lamps, or with various Christmas scenes which are made of crepe paper, artificial snow and lights.

      Now we are ready to decorate the Christmas tree, which should be well proportioned, and if one side is better than the other, put that side out and the poor side toward the corner. The base of the tree should be draped with green cloth or tissue paper and the larger gifts piled close to it. If the tree is set in a dish of water, it will keep green longer.

      The branches may receive a frosted effect by touching them with liquid glue and sprinkling diamond dust on. Cotton, fluffed and sprinkled with dust may be used to make drifts of snow on some of the branches, while cotton-flakes may be suspended from the twigs. Cranberries and popcorn kernels may be fastened to the ends of twigs by use of invisible hairpins.

      A tree decorated entirely with silver makes a pretty scene. Silver tinsel balls, draped of tinsel, ropes and a silver star at the top is the only trim needed This makes a breath-taking scene, with its branches drenched with tinsel snow gleaming under the light of a powerful concealed bulb.

      A beautiful tree is one on which nothing but silver-blue tinsel ornaments are used. Peeping out of the branches are bright red miniature electric bulbs, sparsely used with sufficient light only to cause the tinsel decorations to glitter. Too much light would spoil the effect.

More Ways To Light Up The Night:

• Christmas snowflake projector lights by moneysavingmom

The Amazing Holdman Light Display. Wow, I am

 amazed at the lengths some folks go to in order to give

 a good witness! Can I get an Amen?

Handcraft Classic Wooden Game Boards for Christmas

Tilt-A-Ball game board.

      Now for a gift that will appeal to adults as well as youngsters. It’s called Tilt-A-Ball and it will keep a gathering amused for hours. It is a circular board of twenty inches diameter with a “pen” in the center to hold five marbles, and a number of holes scattered over the remainder. The board is held on the lap or placed on a table, the object being to tilt it and roll one of the marbles from the “pen” into a hole with a high number.

      This would be easy except for the fact that holes with high numbers are shallow, while the holes of less value are deep. Unless the player is especially patient and skillful he will find, when all five marbles are placed, that they rest in the holes of smallest value.

      Make the board with heavy plywood cut out on the scroll or band saw. The holes are best cut with a router bit, of half-inch diameter; those that are to be numbered from 700 to 4,000 must be made very shallow, according to value, so that not much tilting is required to make them roll out. The other holes may be deep so that once a ball enters it will stay. A suitable arrangement of numbered holes is shown.

      It's fun to play this indoor football game. Played by two to six persons, this game provides endless fun for members of your family or your party guests. The object of the game is to drive a table-tennis ball into one of the two goal baskets at opposite ends of the box. This is done by hitting the ball with wooden paddles attached to dowel rods, which are turned and pushed back and forth by hand. There are eight rods; the two center ones have four paddles each, the next two toward each goal have three each, while the next pair have two paddles each and the last two next to the goals have only one paddle each. The last two rods are equipped with stop collars or pins, which prevent pulling the rods out of the holes. Alternate rods have paddles facing in the same direction. With four persons playing, opposing teams on either side of the box, each player grasps two rods having the paddles facing toward his goal. To play, a ball is dropped at the center of the field and both teams engage in driving the ball. More than four people can play by having some of them, or all of them, operate only one rod each. The goals are simply wire baskets, hooked to small screw eyes. The paddles are pieces of quarter-round molding, lattice strips or other material.

Build this early version of table tennis from 1941.

Nine Men's Mill game board.

      Nine Men's Mill is a game that is played by two persons and is as fascinating as it is old. The upper part of the board is 3/8" thick and has 24 holes bored thru it, as shown in the drawing. The lower board is 7-1/2" square and 1/4" thick, and extends 1/4" beyond the top board on all sides. The grain in the two boards should run at right angles when fastened together. The 18 pegs are 3/8" in diameter and 1" long. Each player has a set of 9 pegs, the sets being differently colored. In starting a game, each player takes his turn in putting a peg into a hole till all the pegs are put down. Then they take turns in moving the pegs. A peg may be moved from one hole to the next and only along rows parallel with the edges of the board, not along the rows that run from corners of the board to its center. That is, along rows 1, 2, 3 or 2, 5, 8, but not along rows 1, 4, 7. The object of a player in putting down pegs and in moving is to get a Mill; that is, get 3 pegs in a row parallel with the edges of the board. For example: Pegs in holes 4, 5, 6 or 2, 5, 8 makes a Mill, but not 3, 6, 9. When a player gets a Mill, he can take one of his opponent's pegs that is not in a Mill. Another aim of a player is to place his pegs so that he prevents his opponent from getting a Mill. When the pegs of one of the players have all been taken except 3, then he is allowed to jump anywhere on the board. When the pegs are all gone but two, then the game is lost. When a player can get 5 pegs into holes situated as 7, 8, 9 and 4, 6, then he has a double Mill by moving from 8 to 5 and from 5 to 8, etc., and pick one of his opponent's pegs for each move. 

      In order to make a similar croquet set to the one illustrated just right, you will need to acquire a large flat box, a dowel, wire, skewers, and button molds and marbles.

1.    From the end of a large " dowel" or small curtain rod, saw pieces for the heads of the mal- lets. Whittle a groove around the middle of each. 

2.   Bend a piece of wire or a very long hairpin  around each piece ; pinch it into the groove ; wind  string, gummed cloth tape or adhesive plaster  around the projecting wires to form the handle.  

3.   Bend nine hairpins into arches.  

4.   Turn the box bottom up; draw lines and  measure to locate places for the wickets; prick  eighteen holes.  

5.    Turn the box right side up and push the  ends of the wickets down through pricked holes ;  bend one end of each wicket wire toward one end  of box and the other end toward the opposite  end of the box.  

6.   Press the box into its cover; fasten them  through their sides. The loose wickets will  stand rigidly upright.  

7.   Force the skewers into the button molds.  Be sure the bottoms are flat ; then glue the molds  to the "lawn."  

8.   Paint the "lawn" green; stripe the stakes,  mallets and balls to match.

Fox-And-Geese game board.

       Fox-And-Goose game is played by two people on a board with 33 holes, as shown in the drawing. The board may be made either square or octagonal. The octagon is made from a square by placing one point of the compass at a corner and the other point at the center of the board. With each corner in turn as a center, draw arcs intersecting the edges of the board. Connect these points of intersection across the corners of the board; saw off the four triangles. Smooth the edges and chamfer. Lay out and bore the holes. Make 26 pegs to fit loose. Leave 24 white for the geese and color 2 red for the foxes.
      In playing the game, all the pegs are put in their places. The foxes at Nos. 9 and 11; the geese at 7, 8, 12, 13, and consecutively up to 33. The foxes and geese can move on the lines only, in any direction from one hole to the next. A fox can also jump over a goose and take it, provided the hole just beyond it is vacant. In fact, the fox can jump and take several geese in various directions if conditions permit. The geese can not jump, but they can move so as to hem in the foxes and make it impossible for them to move. This means that the foxes have lost the game. In starting the game, the player having the foxes gets the first move. His aim is to jump and capture all the geese and win the game. Each player takes turn in moving. When crowding a goose in on a fox, the player always has another goose behind it so that the fox can not jump it. This game is one of the kind that requires foresight and study. It is highly interesting and entertaining, and by experience, players may become quite expert at the game.
      Solitaire—This same board may also be used for the solitaire game. However, that requires 32 pegs. They are put in all the holes except No. 17. The object is to jump and take all the pegs but one, and it must land in hole 17. Unaided, this is difficult to do, and it would take a long time for a person to discover a solution. For this reason, the reader is presented with the following "Key": 5 jumps to 17 and takes 10, 12 to 10 and takes 11, etc.; 3 to 11, 1-3, 18-6, 3-11, 30-18, 27-25, 13-27, 24-26, 27-25, 22-24, 31-23, 33-31, 16-28, 31-23, 4-16, 7-9, 21-7, 10-8, 7-9, 24-22, 22-8, 8-10, 10-12, 12-26, 26-24, 17-15, 29-17, 18-16, 15-17.

More Classic Board Game Ideas:

• Where to find templates for wood board games
• How to build a wooden chess board with player pieces
• How to make a Kubb Set 
• How to Make a Wooden Cross Puzzle
• Pattern sheet: Foosball Table
• Five classic wood games set you can make yourself
• Build a Connect 4 game
• How to make a Cribbage Board
• Build a Cricket Set
• Cricket Game Plans

"Building a portable, collapsible Mancala game board is much more easy after seeing someone else make one. It is a simple game to learn how to play too. With this design, you won't lose your marbles after you are done playing. The whole project took about 4 hours."

Visit JerryRigEverything

Springerle Cookies Made With Molds

Top, Raw springerle dough, just out of the
 wooden wedding-carriage mold Center,
Springerle dough after drying for a day.
Bottom, Baked springerle, showing
typical "foot".

      Springerle is a type of German biscuit with an embossed design made by pressing a mold onto rolled dough and allowing the impression to dry before baking. This preserves the detail of the surface pattern. They are most commonly seen during the Christmas season.

      The name springerle means "little jumper" or "little knight". Their origin can be traced back to at least the 14th century in southwestern Germany and surrounding areas, mostly in Swabia.

      The major ingredients of Springerle are eggs, white (wheat) flour, and very fine or powdered sugar. The biscuits are traditionally anise-flavored, although the anise is not usually mixed into the dough; instead it is dusted onto the baking sheets so that the biscuit sits on top of the crushed anise seeds.

Traditional Springerle recipes use hartshorn salt (ammonium carbonate, or baker's ammonia) as a leavening agent. Since hartshorn salt can be difficult to find, many modern recipes use baking powder as the leavening agent. Springerle made with hartshorn salt are lighter and softer than those made with baking powder. The hartshorn salt also imparts a crisper design and longer shelf-life to the Springerle. To make Springerle, very cold, stiff dough is rolled thin and pressed into a mold, or impressed by a specialized, carved rolling pin. The dough is unmolded and then left to dry for about 24 hours before being baked at a low temperature on greased, anise-dusted baking sheets.

      The leavening causes the biscuit to at least double in height during baking. This "pop-up" effect may be the source of the name in German, and produces the characteristic "foot" along the edges, below the molded surface.

      The baked biscuits are hard, and are packed away to ripen for two or three weeks. During this time, they become tender.

"Connie Meisinger of House on the Hill Cookie Molds 

shows how to make the perfect Springerle cookie

      Molds are traditionally carved from wood, although plastic and pottery molds are also available. Pear wood is prized for its density and durability. Older handmade molds are folk art and are typically unsigned and undated.

      The stamping technique may be derived from the molds used in some Christian traditions to mark sacramental bread, and the earliest molds featured religious motifs, including scenes from Bible stories and Christian symbols. Later, in the 17th and 18th century, heraldic themes of knights and fashionably dressed ladies became popular. Themes of happiness, love, weddings, and fertility remained popular through the 19th century.

Springerle cookies originally displayed biblical scenes and were used to teach the illiterate about the Bible. Eventually, the cookies were decorated with secular scenes depicting images of life events, such as marriages and births Left, Springerle mold from the Landesmuseum Württemberg and Right, This mold shows a wedding carriage and many figures.

More About Springerle Cookie Molds:

• Springerle Joy
• The Springerle Baker
• The Springerle House
• Hand Carved Picture-Cookie Molds
• Anis Paradies
• Springerle Cookies & Molds by Ann M. Del Tredici

More Springerle Cookie Recipes:

• Traditional Springerle from allrecipes.com
• German Anise Cookies
• Recipes from Ken Hamilton

Exploring Christmas Craft Books by Folks at Colonial Williamsburg

cover.

      "The Art-Full Tree" is a lovely compilation of ornamental folk art crafts for the decorating of your Christmas tree. For every small handcraft, authors also include a brief history behind the folk art that influenced the design of each ornament. Great care was given to the photography and general presentation of each miniature assignment. The book was obviously organized and written by educators and I would recommend it to both professional educators and homeschooling parents for this reason. Teach your young students "how" folk artists see their world and encourage them to do the same through the completion of 33 simple object lessons. For ages 10 and up.

"Christmas Decorations from Williamsburg's Folk Art Collection: Step-By-Step Illustrated Instructions for Christmas Ornaments That Can Be Made at Home" by Colonial Williamsburg Foundation" is strictly a craft methods manual for children with drawn illustrations in black and white. It is primarily the kind of book that educators use in order to help students visualize how something is put together without over interpreting the way the item "should" look. It does include a few notes at the back of the book describing the reasons for the development of the ornaments.

      Both volumes were compiled by staff at Colonial Williamsburg who decorate their Christmas trees annually with handmade items made from natural materials. These items were and still are inspired by the folk art collections from the Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Folk Art Museum. A museum that is located within the ground of Colonial Williamsburg.

      I find this little workbook helpful in that it enables me to build a substantial collection of methods lessons for young students. However, I can understand why most people purchasing craft books would find it's contents too unsophisticated when compared with craft books published today. The newer volume, "The Art-Full Tree." is by far superior, both in content and visual information. It is not the same material, however, and that is why I chose to purchase both books. The projects are not repeated in either book.

 
More Articles Relating To Christmas in The American Colonies:

• 10 Things You Didn't Know About Christmas
• When Americans Banned Christmas
• Christmas During Colonial America

See the many Christmas trees of Colonial Williamsburg.
 Learn how the decorations are chosen for each tree and the
meanings behind them. For more information on Colonial
Williamsburg's holiday events,
visit www.colonialwilliamsburg.com/holidays.

The Value of a Child's Gift

Use gift giving opportunities to teach young children about
resourcefulness, self-esteem, creativity and sharing.

      If we stop to think about our Christmas giving we realize that a gift means more to the giver than it does to him who receives. If it is given in the proper spirit the donor finds out to the full that is really "more blessed to give than to receive," a fact that is lost sight of in an age of the commercial spirit.

      With children there is a great educative value in their present giving if it is encouraged to be really their own giving. If the mother, however, simply prepares some little remembrance, and says "Mary, this is your Christmas present to Aunt Ellen," the gift has no meaning, but it becomes actually harmful for the reason it presents the idea to the child that the gift without the giver is really a gift. And the child has put no thought or self sacrifice into the giving of that present.
      On the other hand, if the child be given pocket money which she may consider her very own, or, better still, if she is  enabled to earn pocket money and is then encouraged to set aside a portion of her very own money for present making the idea of true giving is acquired. The sacrifice, the fore thought, the love necessary to make a gift a real gift are all there.
      The home-made gifts of children have many valuable lessons to teach the young givers. Many lessons in sewing, raffia, bead-work or painting may be given under the guise of making a gift. In one family, where the elder sister had never made gifts, and really never learned to sew well until she was eighteen years of age, the younger sister, a girl of ten, inspired by the example of a small friend, wished to make birthday gifts for her family. One she asked her mother to teach her how to crochet; another time to scallop, and before she was twelve years old she had become as proficient a little seamstress as one would want to see.
      Thus practical lessons are learned, while the child is inspired with the idea that "Not what we give, but what we share; the gift without the giver is bare." The Public Ledger

• What really happens when we give kids everything they want
• Seven important Christmas values you should teach your children
• Teach the value of Giving and Receiving
• Season of giving the perfect time to teach children about charity

More "Kid Friendly" Gifts for Children to Share at Christmas Time:

• 15 Christmas gifts kids can make for parents, grandparents, and teachers
• 17 Holiday gift kids can make
• 15 Homemade Christmas gifts that kids can make
• 100 Homemade Gift Ideas

"Peace, Good Will Towards Men"

"Finally, be ye all of one mind, having compassion one for another. Love each other as brethren, be sympathetic, be courteous" 1 Peter 3:8 

The church shall never perish!
Her dear Lord to defend.
To guide, sustain and cherish
Is with her to the end.

      The best Christmas sermon the world has ever heard was the first, It was short and simple: "Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace, good will toward men."

      And the child whose birth those words heralded came among men to preach that simple gospel.

      Theologians have, in many instances, with strange, perverse blindness obscured and darkened the appealing beauty and simplicity of that divine message.

      Jesus went up and down the world holding out open arms of peace in benediction upon humanity, saying in His tender compassion, "Let us love one another."

      And because His words were so simple, so understandable, the world has clung to Him through ages of fear and doubt and disputation.

      More and more the Christ spirit triumphs among men, and it triumphs because it is the spirit of perfect love.

      It takes no scholar to grasp that spirit. Every human heart has felt some measure of the love that makes human brotherhood; there is none who cannot understand what "peace, good will toward men" means.

      Only as the spirit of love works its way among men, teaching them new kindness, to mercy, to justice, can Christmas really be celebrated in the world.

      Whosoever has hated his human brother, whosoever, high or low, has wrought against his fellow,  whosoever has withheld sympathy and service from a neighbor--that man, be he ever so pious and prayerful, has never entered into the spirit of Christmas.

      And wherever men love one another, and help one another, and bear each other's burdens, and dedicate life and hope and aspiration to the good of their fellow men, eager to achieve a world in which justice and truth and charity prevail--there indeed is the spirit of Christmas manifest. For there they have learned the new commandment, the eleventh and greatest of them all: "Love one another."

Visit Jason Castro Online.

Related Content:

• Peace on Earth, Good Will Towards Men? from "The Ignorant Fishermen Blog"
• What Christmas is All About by Rick Walston, Ph.D.
• Peace on Earth and Goodwill to All Men by Martin Coates
• Jesus Came To Save 
• Just One Door
• Kuana Torres Kahele Hilo for The Holidays

What the Wax Angel Saw

"Come now, let us reason together, says the LORD: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool." Isaiah 1:18 

"What the Wax Angel Saw: A Christmas Sermonette"

      There was once a little wax angel with golden hair and a blue silk sash, who was taken gently from her bed of cotton in the attic every year for many, many years and poised on the green spire of the great fir tree in the library. Her outstretched arms seemed always to be scattering blessings on the happy circle in the glow of the Christmas candles.

      She had looked down on the first Christmas of the wide-eyed first born; she had smiled her waxen smile at the boisterous joy of ten, the sentiments of sixteen and the worldliness of forty. Indeed, her blue glass eyes had beheld the seven stages of Yuletide rejoicing.

      Now, one day it was noticed that the beautiful blue sash of the little wax angel was faded and grimy, that her pink cheeks were pale, her nose quite flattened and her left foot gone.

      "We'll have to use something else for the tree this year," said Mother. "The little wax angel is all worn out."

      And the next day her flattened nose was buried in the rubbage heap.

      Nobody would have believed it, but the wax angel was glad her tree-top days were over. Her arms were very tired scattering blessings that were reckoned by dollars and cents; she had often wished to close her eyes on the pretenses and petty calculations of Christmas giving; she had grown pale because of her long vigil over the mockery of the Christmas spirit.

      She had seen greediness planted in young hearts by the thoughtless generosity of their doting elders. She had seen quick eyes search for hidden prize marks, and, when found, she had beheld their owner's look of chagrin or satisfaction in reflecting upon the exchange of baubles that had been made. She had heard wives and daughters and sons accept complacently enthusiastic thanks for lavish gifts--thanks which the wax angel knew were due only to the Father over there with the weary eyes and the limp purse.

      She knew, too, that the frenzied purchasing, at the last minute, of that piece of real lace for the Rich Aunt has cost not only more than could be afforded, but it had cost also all the Christmas joy--meager enough--of the salesgirl who sold it. It's fussy, irritable selection had been the last straw at the end of many tired days. After the last sale the girl at the lace counter just crumpled up and lay on her bed all of that Christmas day and other days besides.

      You see, it is given to little wax angels to see many things, hidden or unheeded by the best of us.

      Suppose you resurrect the one that may have topped the Christmas tree of your youth--or perhaps only of your fancy. Let her unblinking eyes peer into your secret soul, and note if she finds there the real Christmas spirit, or the mockery thereof, that has paled her cheek and dimmed her blue glass eyes. Or perhaps it may have been a silvery star that glistened on your tree-top. Look if it has not been tarnished by your growing indifference to the good-will and kindness and other things for which is stands.

      With a shining star, and all that it symbolizes, or an all-seeing little wax angel as your mentor, you will need no other Christmas sermon.

Uploaded by Capital Music Group. Home of Mandisa.

• Angels: God's Invisible Army from GracetoYou
• Christmas Sermons at oneplace.com
• Under God's Watchful Care

"Christians, Awake; Salute the Happy Morn!"

     "The author of "Christians, Awake; Salute the Happy Morn! was John Byrom. Manchester's famous man of letters, who was born at Kersal in 1691. 

      Byrom had several children, but, like many another father, there was a favorite. This child was a little girl named Dolly. A few days previous to Christmas Mr. Byrom, after having a romp with the favorite, Dolly, promised to write here something nice for Christmas morning. On the morning of the great day, when she sat down to breakfast, she found on her plate an envelope, addressed to her in her father's handwriting. It was the first thing she opened, and, to her great delight, it proved to be a Christmas carol addressed to her, and to her alone." from How We Got Our Christmas Hymns, 1913

Christians, awake, salute the happy morn
Whereon the Savior of the world was born
Rise to adore the mystery of love
Which hosts of angels chanted from above
With them the joyful tidings first begun
Of God incarnate and the Virgin's Son

Then to the watchful shepherds it was told
Who heard the angelic herald's voice: "Behold,
I bring good tidings of a Savior's birth
To you and all the nations upon earth
This day hath God fulfilled His promised word;
This day is born a Savior, Christ the Lord."

He spake, and straightaway the celestial choir
In hymns of joy, unknown before, conspire
The praises of redeeming love they sang
And heaven's whole orb with alleluias rang
God's highest glory was their anthem still
Peace upon earth and unto men goodwill

To Bethlehem straight the shepherds ran
To see the wonder God had wrought for man
And found, with Joseph and the blessed Maid
Her Son, the Savior, in a manger laid
Amazed, the wondrous story they proclaim
The earliest heralds of the Savior's name

Let us, like these good shepherds, them employ
Our grateful voices to proclaim the joy
Trace we the Babe, who hath retrieved our loss
From His poor manger to His bitter cross
Treading His steps, assisted by His grace
Till man's first heavenly state again takes place

Then may we hope, the angelic thrones among
To sing, redeemed, a glad triumphal song
He that was born upon this joyful day
Around us all His glory shall display
Saved by His love, incessant we shall sing
Of angels and of angel-men the King

"As With Gladness Men of Old"

      "Another very popular Christmas hymn is that entitled "As With Gladness Men of Old." It is remarkable that this cheerful hymn was written at a time of Great Depression. (The same melody is used in the Christian hymn "For the Beauty of the Earth.") The author, William Chatterton Dix, who died in 1900, had been seriously ill for a long time, and he was feeling ill for a long time, and he was feeling disconsolate and miserable.
      One evening, after he had been some weeks in bed, he felt a great deal better, and while in this improved state he conceived the idea of writing a Christmas hymn, and as a result of this we get "As With Gladness Men of Old."" from How We Got Our Christmas Hymns, 1913

"As with Gladness Men of Old"
by William C. Dix, 1837-1898
As with gladness men of old
Did the guiding star behold;
As with joy they hailed its light,
Leading onward, beaming bright,
So, most gracious Lord, may we
Evermore be led by Thee!

As with joyful steps they sped,
Savior, to Thy lowly bed,
There to bend the knee before
Thee whom heaven and earth adore,
So may we with willing feet
Ever seek Thy mercy-seat!

As they offered gifts most rare
At Thy cradle, rude and bare,
So may we with holy joy,
Pure and free from sin's alloy,
All our costliest treasures bring,
Christ, to Thee, our heavenly King!

Holy Jesus, every day
Keep us in the narrow way;
And when earthly things are past.
Bring our ransomed souls at last
Where they need no star to guide,
Where no clouds Thy glory hide.

In the heavenly country bright
Need they no created light;
Thou its Light, its Joy, its Crown,
Thou its Sun which goes not down.
There forever may we sing
Alleluias to our King!

"Christmas at Long Pond"

       My children loved the simplicity of this story with all of it's detailed hand drawings. Lindsay Barrett George illustrates her own husband and son, William and Will Jr., as they track through the northeast Pennsylvania woods to find their Christmas tree one evening. She depicts the deer, owl and woodpecker that both husband and son describe during their night of discovery. This is not a book that promotes the materialism or hyper fantasy normally associated with Christmas elves in fairyland; it reminds me more of a journal entry from a private family album of an illustrator. If readers are building a small collection of Christmas books, this is an excellent story to add because of the unadorned simple rendition of a winter walk in the woods.

• Read Aloud of Christmas a Long Pond - read by Debbie Webster

Craft Papier Mâché Heart Shaped Ornaments

These papier mâché hearts are very light weight. Each torn piece of paper was applied meticulously by hand. Although it is difficult to see, I glued a tiny wire loop between the two humps of each heart shaped ornament so that I may add beaded hangers to these hearts when I am ready to set up my Valentine tree.

On the left, you can see the paper that I used to layer on top of my masked forms. The paper was imported from India; It's texture is quite soft and dense. This is ideal paper for mâché work.

Here you can see from left to right, the step-by-step process that I used when shaping and masking my hearts for our Valentine's Day tree.

The crushed paper hearts were masked with tape completely and then set
aside until I was ready to cover each heart with layers of
paper and Modge Podge.

• Read more about Papier Mâché toys
• Read more about how to identify antique papier mâché.
• Two recipe versions for papier mâché made with traditional wheat paste
• One old method for making papier mâché pulp