Cotton Batting Ornaments of "Steamboat Willie"

What Mickey and Minnie looked like before they became famous...

       I made these little mouse ornaments based upon Disney's early "Steamboat Willie" character mice, The video link is included below. Because the design rights to these early mice have now passed into the public domain, I feel less guilty about producing for a family member who collects Disney mice. She particularly collects everything Steamboat Willie and I know she doesn't have ornaments of them yet. The original mice are all in black and white so I added a bit of Christmas 'cherry red' wool to liven them up a bit for her tree.

Many layers of cotton batting and white school
glue over simple chenille stem armature.

Supply List:

• cotton balls 
• white school glue
• chenille stems
• red, gold, and white felt wool scraps
• decorative white buttons (2)
• acrylic paints (black, green)

Step-by-Step Instructions:

1. Watch the "Steam Boat Willie" film from YouTube to observe the proportions of Disney's early mice. These are quite different from the Mickey and Minnie our children are familiar with today.
2. Unwind the cotton balls until you have collected together at least half of a bag in a stack.
3. Cover seven to eight lengths of standard chenille stems using white school glue and cotton batting. 
4. To get the cotton to stick to the chenille stems, roll the lengths plus a little glue between the palms of your hands. 
5. Bend and twist the wires to make a rudimentary "mouse-like" armature for each figure you wish to make.
6. Wad together cotton balls with glue for the head and belly of each mouse then glue these on while winding thin layers of cotton around the wire armature and cotton wads. 
7. Form ear shapes and then attach these to each side of the head. Do the same for the noses.
8. Shape the fingers using wire twisted around the ends of each arm.
9. Cover the fingers sparingly with cotton batting so that they will not become too plump.
10. Paint the entire body of each mouse using black except for the faces. Leave these white.
11. Carefully paint the facial features using a very tiny brush tip and black paint.
12. Dress each mouse using bits of red wool felt.
13. Trim Steamboat Willie's pants using white buttons.

Left, and center, the early Mickey who was first called "Steamboat Willie" had a distinctly narrow
mussel so unlike the round one he is famous for today. Right, once I painted his body black, I 
began to glue on his red wool slippers.

Left, and center are his pants to fit his narrow figure once gathered with matching thread. Center
and right, see me sewing on his simple costume.

Left and center, I sculpted the two at once, together so that the wire would be cut to the same
lengths. Right, Minnie has been painted with acrylics and now she is ready to have her hat
and slippers finished. Her shoes were painted and so was the stem on her hat's flower.

Her flower on the hat is shaped from felt and attached with 
tacky white glue.

More details of Willie, the hole cut-out of his pants for his
tail to stick through, the white buttons are attached to his
pants at the front.

Now they are ready to sit sweetly on the Christmas tree!

• The Original Steamboat Willie, Walt Disney Animation Studios from 1928. hosted by Wonderland Way. Now your dolls can craft their own versions of the steamboat mice by Walt Disney.
• CBS "Disney loses famous Mickey Mouse copyright in 2024 along with many others..."
• How Disney Will Control Mickey Forever? LegalEagle

Craft Vintage Clothespin Soldiers Plus A Gingerbread Fort

Kids can craft their own Popsicle fort, trimmed with faux candy,
clothespin soldiers, fake ''lace'' icing... (Wooden skies in photo 
are crafted here.)

       Our gingerbread cookie fort began with the discovery of two, well-loved, clothespin soldiers at the thrift store. These British gentleman had worn looking bear skin hats, chipping paint and funny drawn expressions; they looked as though each had seen many battles in the nursery...  I decided to recycle them into something new.

Gingerbread fort guarded by soldier's wearing
bearskin hats, holding peppermint lollipops.
I added faux "chocolate" chunks to their
hats made from scrap brown foam mat.

Supply List:

• two wooden clothespins
• acrylic paints: brown, red, white, and blue 
• white braid
• permanent black ink marker
• two large black pom-poms (if your soldiers are British)
• wire  and white ribbon for hanging
• large, medium and small wooden Popsicle sticks for the gingerbread fort
• white school glue
• hot glue and hot glue gun
• four red chenille stems, three white
• colorful Styrofoam beads
• narrow white lace trims
• novelty Christmas trims (optional)

Step-by-Step Instructions: 

1.  With the help of an adult, use the hot glue gun to attach black pom-poms, or ''bearskin'' hats to the heads of two wooden clothespins - that is if you are making guards of the gingerbread fort British. You can make these guards look more like soldiers from your own country, of course.
2. Paint the upper part of the soldiers red for their icing coats and the lower halves blue for their icing pants.
3. Cut a red chenille stem down to fit the length of each soldier's arms. Slide the arm piece into a small nail hole on either side of the soldier's shoulders using glue to make the arms stationary. Let dry and set the soldiers aside to make the Popsicle fort.
4. Glue on rows of Popsicle sticks like those shown below in the photograph, on top of Popsicle cross bars underneath. There should be two that are horizontal to each other. You can see the lower one sticking out under the draw bridge at the bottom of the fortress. Let the first gluing dry.
5. Next attach the turrets and drawbridge.
6. Use the permanent ink pen to draw the opening for the draw bridge and windows. Now you are ready for the painting of the fort.
7. Paint the gingerbread fort entirely brown to begin with. The openings should be a bit darker.
8. Hot glue the soldiers on either side of the drawbridge. 
9. Wind together red and white chenille stems to make two peppermint lollipops; one for each soldier to hold. (optional candy canes)
10. Wind together two more small white and red stems to make the candy canes attached to the front gates at the drawbridge.
11. Using oven-bake clay make the circular candies painted red and white to trim the drawbridge and top of the fort outer-wall.
12. Now trim the gingerbread with tiny colorful Styrofoam beads to make strands of lights.
13. Glue on white lace trim to mimic decorative white icing. 
14. Also glue on white braid to trim out the soldier's uniforms to look like icing. Because our soldiers were once trimmed in gold braid, I painted these white for icing during this craft.
15. Trim out the rest of the gingerbread fort with any other novelties you like.
16. Hot glue on hook and white ribbon to hang the gingerbread fort on a Christmas tree.

Left, two typical soldiers for Christmas crafts dressed in bear skin hats, British? Center an early
log fortress made with Popsicle sticks. Right, the old clothespin soldiers guarding our childlike
fort from Rat King most likely...

Details of fort and soldiers. Left, smiling soldier happy to retire from battle and decorate a 
Christmas tree instead. Center, turret of the fort trimmed with lace, Styrofoam beaded 
Christmas lights and a tiny gingerbread star cookie. Right, the drawbridge decorated
with oven-bake peppermint candies. (Left-over from this tree tutorial here.)

Video by CuratorCrafts at Seminole County History Museum

For soldier uniforms of United States 

See Also, External Links:

• The March of the Toy Soldiers
• Clothespin Soldier Ornaments

Build a Toddler Size Rocking Horse

       Below is a favorite friend on rockers. The child's legs can make the rocker go, his hands can grasp, and his arms can push and pull. Attach the rockers using a groove joint. Use the Hobby Horse Plan for the rocker's head. 

       The rocker graph below measures 1 inch squares. 

Wood Supply List: 

• Rockers - 2 pieces. 1" x 4", 17 1/2"
• Back - 1 piece 1" x 4" x 7 1/2"
• Seat - 1 piece 1"x 8" x 14"
• Head - 1" x 8" x 9"
• Dowel for handle bars -1 piece 3/4" x 6"
• Corner Brace - 3 pieces 1/2"  x 1/2" quarter round or 1" x1" strips
• Nails and wood glue

Rocker graph and illustration of how the rocking horse looks when finished.

Sculpt a cotton batting turnip for a Christmas tree . . .

A basic turnip shape made with 

Styrofoam and a toothpick.

       This is a different way to make a cotton batting ornament. I would not ordinarily begin this craft using Styrofoam but certainly it is an authentic method of working for those of you who are interested in using it. So, I will include several designs on my blog here to get you familiar with how to apply cotton batting to foam elements.

Supply List:

• one toothpick
• white school blue
• two cotton balls
• lavender paints
• a green wave chenille stem
• wire for hanging
• 1 to 1 1/2 inch Styrofoam ball
• transparent glue

Step-by-Step Instructions:

1. Unravel the cotton balls and set these aside.
2. Push a wire hook into the top of the foam ball and shape a hook with it to hang the ornament as it dries from layers of glue and batting.
3. Brush on a bit of white glue onto a tooth pick and push it into the middle of a small Styrofoam ball from the bottom, opposite of the hook. 
4. Apply white glue with your fingertips around the surface of the Styrofoam ball and layer fine cotton over the surface. Smooth down the cotton into the glue with your fingers. 
5. Repeat these steps as many times as you need to cover both the toothpick and the ball entirely with cotton batting to shape a turnip. Just make sure that the cotton batting layer overlaps on every surface area.
6. Once the cotton veggie is dry, poke a coupe of holed into the top where turnip leave might grow. 
7. Cut and shape leaves from the wave chenille stem pushing the stem ends into those holes with glue.
8. Once the turnip is dry, paint the middle part with a couple of shades of lavender paint. Let dry.
9. Swipe on a bit of white glue to the center surface on painted parts. Then sprinkle on some transparent glitter.
10. These ornaments are very light weight and may be hung for the most delicate of tree branches!

More Garden Veggie Themed Ornaments:

• Cotton batting peas in a pod
• Two little spider ideas: one made with cotton and wire the other painted wood...
• a hydrangea under glass . . .
• And a corn on the cob ornament design here

How to make miniature swans for your feather tree...

        Swans like these are both charming and delicate on miniature trees. I prefer the tiniest pinecones and clothespins I can find for this craft, however, I have seen similar versions made into much larger swans. So, the same technique can be easily used for larger versions if you are decorating a giant tree.

I shaped the wire around the pinecone.

Supply List:

• wooden clothespin clamps (As always the size of the clamp dictates the size of the ornament. I used very tiny miniature clamps for these swans.)
• Tiny pinecones
• hot glue gun and hot glue
• transparent glitter
• a two to three inch length of chenille stem or wire
• one cotton ball for each goose head and neck
• white school glue

Step-by-Step Instructions:

1. Loop a wire in and around the inside of the pinecone to shape the head and neck of an elegant swan sticking out and above the pinecone. 
2. Unwind a few cotton balls and twist these around the wire along with some white school glue. Don't forget to shape the swan's beak, head and neck similar to the proportions shown in the photos below. 
3. Paint the pinecones white. Let dry.
4. Spread white glue across the body of the swan and sprinkle glitter all over the the pinecone "feathers."
5. Hot glue the swan to the top of a small clothespin to attach it to a Christmas tree.
6. You may wish to paint the clothespin green or white depending upon the color of your Christmas tree.

Left the pinecones covered with glitter. Right, the swans now hot glued to the clothespins.

More Bird Themed Christmas Crafts:

• Bend and twist a cotton batting bird cage
• Swans on a lake for a lovely ballerina

Make a merry little tinsel-backed Santa...

A vintage tinsel-back wire trim ornament
surrounds and highlights Santa's face.

       Recycling 'scraps,' charms, or clay novelties was common practice among Victorians. They believed that one could never have too much ''bling'' on a Christmas tree, so naturally adding tinsel to any small novelty was appropriate for the season during that era. 

       Here you see that I have crafted a simple ornament in much the same attitude with tinsel stripped from last year's gift wrapping scraps and a magnet saved from a twenty year old craft stash in the basement. 

        Wether you wish to admit it or not, I'm sure some of our readers could make one similar to this from several forgotten boxes of rubbish in their own attics and crawl spaces!

   Supply List:

• wire wrapped tinsel garland (any color)
• recycled Christmas refrigerator magnets
• hot glue gun and hot glue
• wire snips or old scissors 
• scrap cardboard
• scrap decorative paper or old wrapping paper
• white tacky glue

Step-by-Step Instructions:

1. To remove the magnet from the Santa face I soaked the bottom in soapy hot water. This loosened the glue. Then I inserted a butter knife between the glue and resin to pop off the magnet with little effort.
2. Then I traced around the half head with a pencil on top of a small piece of scrap cardboard. 
3. Around the cardboard cut-out, I shaped a ''teardrop'' using red tinsel wire that ended in a bow. 
4. Around the bow I then twisted white wire into a bow and then wrapped it's remainder around the cardboard cut-out.
5. Then I hot glued the mask to the wrapped cardboard cut-out.
6. Next came a little holly and leaf trim attached with glue to the wire bow along with a hook for hanging.

Far left, are a couple of Santa head magnets left over from Christmas decoration for a refrigerator 
or clipboard. Center, is the tinsel wire wrap to emphasize the festive nature of Santa. Right, 
even more white tinsel added to highlight Santa's features.

Print, Trace, Cut and Paint a Hobby Horse Toy

        Galloping is fun and legs grow stronger when this hobby horse becomes a favorite toy.

Click to enlarge. See Rocky Horse plans too.

Step-by-Step Instructions:

1. Trace this pattern on 1/2 " or thicker plywood or dressed 1" lumber.
2. If pointed ears are objectionable, cut along the dotted line.
3. Paint on the ear lines when painting nostrils, eyes etc...
4. A leather strap or rope can be used for bridle reins. It may be attached to the head with screw eyes and key rings.
5. Mount the head on a 3/4" x 36" dowel broom handle or piece of 1" x 1" material.

More Wooden Toys To Make for Christmas:

• Build a Simple, Wooden Doll Cradle
• Build a doll's house using a bookcase
• Transform a small table into a parking lot for toy cars...
• How to construct a life-size play castle for little ones!
• old-fashioned plans for a fire-engine, motor-lorry and a steam roller
• The fastest hobby horse rider in the world, so fast he broke more than one pony and several other pieces of furniture...

Craft a Paper Candle Stick for The Feather Tree

Vintage paper candle stick made
using a accordion paper folding
technique that most children 
learn in school.

        This light weight, construction paper candle stick ornaments is perfect for a feather tree ornament. Here I have clipped it onto a regular tree branch but it is so "feather" light that it could be attached even to a young cedar tree and not bend a single branch!

Supply List:

• any two colors of construction paper
• two cotton balls
• tacky white glue
• recycled paper egg carton
• acrylic grey to silver paints for the candlestick "holder"
• 2" clothespin
• green or white paints for the clothespin
• orange paint for the pretend flame

Step-by-Step Instructions:

1. Fold your accordion braided candle stick to any length you wish but cutting two long lengths of narrow paper strips from contrasting colors. 
2. Cross the two strips of paper on top of eachother with a dab of glue to start. 
3. Then alternate folding the strips over and over on top of each other to create the braided look you see here. I've included a diagram below illustrating the steps.
4. Finish the candle stick off with glue at the top. 
5. Then unravel the cotton ball and wad up a tiny ''flame'' shape, rolling it between the tips of your fingers with a dot of glue. 
6. Glue the flame to the top of the candlestick and let it dry before painting the flame orange.
7. Now cut a small dish for the candlestick to sit inside from a paper egg carton cup.
8. Glue this egg carton part to the top of a 2 inch clothespin.
9. Paint the little dish grey or pewter or silver.
10. Once the candle stick is dry, paint the clothespin the color of your Christmas tree so that it will appear to disappear into the branches once attached.

Left, the candle sticks are attached with tacky white glue. Right, al of the pieces of this ornament
have been finished with acrylic paints.

Illustrated accordion braid process.

"J" is for Jesus Card Craft

"I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. The hired hand is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it. The man runs away because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep." John 10:11-13

 

       This traditional Christmas Card is assembled with bright red stripped paper, large letters cut from an alternate polka-dot red paper and a real candy cane. Include also The Legend of The Candy Cane inside the card or on the back of the card if you like. Legend of The Candy Cane can be read here along with a poem.

Handcraft a Block Sorting Cart

        The block cart is twice as much fun to play with because it is two toys in one -- the toddler can not only walk around with it and pull it along, he can also take the pieces apart and put them together again. It's fascinating to be able to make it's parts fit just right. 

Step-by-Step Instructions:

1. Cut 1 piece of wood for the frame, 1" x 4" x 12".
2. Cut another piece 1" x 3" x 24" for three 2" x 5/8" diameter circles, and three 2" x 5/8" x 2 5/8" right triangles. 
3. Bore a 5/8" diameter hole in the center of each block
4. Measure and cut 1 piece 1/2" x 10" dowel for three pegs 3 1/4" long.
5. Cut and measure 2 piece of 1 1/2 x 4" dowel for wheels and attach wheels.
6. Round off edges and corners of all pieces.
7. Finish with your choice of non-toxic paint.

More Toddler Toy Crafts and Eye-Candy:

• Push and Pull Toys - Alligators and frogs, trains, phones and dogs . . .
• Stack more toy soldiers, penguins and blocks 

Fold and Assemble a Waldorf Paper Star

Finished, hanging Waldorf paper star.
The paper folding technique is simple
enough for little children to follow, ages
 five through nine. 

       This particular paper star example is traditionally referred to as a "Waldorf" star, but the pattern design has been around long before this name was applied to it inside the classrooms of Waldorf schools in Germany and America.

       I suspect that patterns like the one shown here were originally developed by Moravians because there are so many star pattern examples like this one in their Christian design work featured in quilts, birth certificates and baptismal records.

       The Moravian church is the very oldest Protestant denomination that began back in 15th century, Bohemia. It even predates the Lutheran Church Reformation by 60 years.

Supply List:

• ribbon or wire for hanging
• Two generous sheets of contrasting print or solid colored papers
• white tacky glue
• small clamps or paperclips to hold paper segments together to dry during assembly

Step-by-Step Instructions:

1. Cut a two inch square piece of decorative paper.
2. Fold this square in half, unfold it.
3. Repeat this same step after turning that same square once to the right. Unfold the second fold. Now with the paper unfolded completely you should see a perfectly divided square with four equal marked areas between the creases in the paper. (Not shown unfolded in photo below.)
4. Fold two corners into each the center directly opposite to each other.
5. Repeat the step again with the two remaining flaps. You should now have a perfect square shape again.
6. fold in two sides opposite of each other to make the edges line up in the center. This should create a "kite" looking shape.
7. Once you have folded this shape eight times with two alternating patterns or colors, glue the star together so that the shorter sided corners tips meet in the center of your assembled Waldorf Star. Glue this pattern in place as you go.
8. Take a needle and poke a tiny hole at one of the points of your star. String in a ribbon or push through a fine wire to make a hanger for this paper ornament.

Steps 1. through 3. illustrated.

Steps 4. through 6. illustrated.

Assembling the star using tacky glue and clamps illustrated.

Craft a "Pound the Peg" Toddler Toy

         What fun to have something that Mom lets you pound on! There is real satisfaction in being able to put the peg in the hole and hit it right on the head with a toy hammer or mallet as they used to say. At least there is for a two to three year old...

Supply List:

• 1 piece of 1"x 6'' x 20" wooden board
• 6 pieces of 3/4" x 2" dowels
• 4 pieces of 1/2" x 1/2" x 5 5/8" quarter round or 1" x 1" strips
• Glue and nails

Step-by-Step Instructions:

1. The center lines of the two rows of 3/4" diameter peg holes are 1 3/4" from the outer edges of the board. The center lines of the holes in the rows are 2 1/2", 4 1/2", and 6 1/2'' from the end of the board.
2. If the pegs fit too tight make a 1" saw cut lengthwise in both ends of each peg.
3. Be certain the cut at one end of the peg is at right angles to the cut at the other end.
4. Use a 12 or 13 ounce clawhammer for a pounding device or make a mallet of 1 1/4" dowel with a 1/2" dowel for a handle.

Craft More Charming Wooden Toys:

• Here is a whole page of wooden peg dollies; not for pounding though!
• People, animals and homes featured on blocks . . .

Mold St. Nicholas and his bag of toys...

This faux clay cookie version is shaped using a Cotton Press mold by AMACO. You can paint
it in a variety of styles and colors. My version is just one way to interpret the casting. Copy
it if you like or make your own color choices to match your personal ornament collection.

       This terracotta cotton press mold was acquired about thirty years ago; I'm not certain of it's age. It was produced by American Art Clay Co., Inc. in IN. Saint Nicholas is dressed in a Victorian, fur trimmed, red wool coat. He holds up his green trousers with a giant brass buckle and carries a sack of toys for good children, of course. 

       I gave him some rosy red cheeks and a winter white beard. Under his coat is a burgundy wool vest with big brass buttons down the front. His boots are classic black. This flat back, molded Santa was made using Sculpey oven-bake clay. This clay is quite durable and may be painted with non-toxic acrylic paints. Make sure to seal the surfaces with some kind of clay varnish once you are satisfied with the painted finishes. He looks as new as when he was first painted over 25 years ago!

DIY Gingerbread Barnyard!

Faux gingerbread silo, barn and cow.

       This year one of our family trees will be decorated with a food theme. This tree is located near the kitchen and dining room. Lots of sugar plums, gingerbread, caramel apples, doughnuts and candy will fill out its green branches along with colorful LED lights.

Supply List:

• Styrofoam beads
• scrap cardboard
• 3 or 4 cotton balls
• fancy joint tape or drywall joint tape
• acrylic paints
• white school glue
• brown paper 
• masking tape
• small farm animal figure (cow, pig, chicken etc...)
• cardboard tube
• white puff paint
• candies shaped with Sculpey
• recycled cheese box lid
• wire for attaching it to your Christmas tree
• wooden toy tree shape
• realistic pine bough chenille stem 
• Mod Podge

Step-by-Step Instructions: 

1. Use a recycled cheese lid to build your barnyard on top of. In this case I used a lid only but you could keep the bottom and the ornament can also be used to hide a small gift inside of the box if you like. Cover the top half of the lid with masking tape and then decoupage it with white school glue and brown paper.
2. Now glue a box and long narrow cardboard tube side by side on top of the lid to start the faux gingerbread ornament. cover with masking tape and glue and brown paper as well.
3. Glue on any other kind of detailed figures like cows, sheep and pigs. Glue on any small wooden details like a tree as well.
4. Paint out all of the elements using a warm brown shade of acrylic that mimics the color of gingerbread.
5. Next, trim the surfaces with faux candies, drywall tape, glue, and white puff paint.
6. Use unwound cotton balls for cotton candy or cupcake icing and Styrofoam beads for sweet lighting to trim the barn with fake sugary goodness!
7. Add painted highlights to your artificial chocolate details.
8. Squeeze on white puff paint icing to accent details.
9. Give the ornament a final coat of Mod Podge if you like.

See the gingerbread silo and barn from four sides.

Left, faux chocolate cow. next, faux chocolate Christmas tree. Center, icing covered
silo roof. Right, a tiny wreath with twinkling stars hangs above the barn door entrance.

What the ornament looked like in progress prior to it's painting and trim.

tape a wire into place inside the underside of the box top so that it
 can be firmly attached to a limb on your Christmas tree.

Craft a red-nosed reindeer with little ones...

Rudolf, the red-nosed walnut head.

       Rudolf is a very popular character around here so I guess we were eventually going to make him from a walnut shell. See how he is made from just about everything else by following the links.

• Make Rudolf using craft sticks here
• Make Rudolf using construction paper here
• Leaping reindeer clip art
• Shape and bake a reindeer cake
• Cut, color and fold a reindeer paper toy
• Color in a friendly reindeer picture

Supply List:

• walnut half
• decorative paper for backing
• scrap cardboard
• acrylic paints
• red pom-pom
• puff paint
• tacky white glue

Step-by-Step Instructions:

1. An adult must cut a walnut in half for this craft in advance of a child making it, unless you just happen to find a half of a walnut. The cutting of these nuts can be slippery, so do this part of the craft cautiously. Go to the post to see how I sliced the walnuts in half.
2. Place the walnut shell on top of a scrap piece of cardboard and draw both around the sell and include the reindeer's antlers on that same cardboard. Cut out this shape and glue it to the back, flat slide of the walnut using tacky white glue.
3. Paint the walnut shell and antler's with acrylics. I used several shades of brown.
4. Glue on the red pom-pom for Rudolf's nose.
5. Using puff paints squeeze on the white's of the reindeer's eyes, let dry and then squeeze on the center pupils using black puff paint.
6. Sandwich a wire hook between decorative paper and the cardboard backing and glue.

Crafting Ornaments with Cinnamon Salt Dough

Left, the finished result after painting on white faux icing. Right, some of the cinnamon dough
was reserved for shaping into pretend chocolates. These were then glued inside of tin foil sleeves.
Cinnamon salt dough looks just like gingerbread once it is painted! 

       To make cinnamon salt dough you will need to kneed together 2 cups of flour, 1 cup of ordinary salt, 1/4 cup of cinnamon or more and 1 cup of cool water. Sift together the dry ingredients first and then slowly add the water. Add flour to a wooden cutting board and kneed the dough on top of it. Put it into a refrigerator to rest for a couple of hours. Then roll out the dough approximately 1/2 inch and cut with cookie cutters. Put these cut-outs on a cookie sheet and let them dry out in a low temperature oven for about 3 hours. You can prick the surface as these salt dough ornaments dry to prevent air bubbles if you like and you can make a hole through the top of each ornament to have a place for a hook or ribbon to hang them on a tree. I also used cookie molds to craft some of my own cinnamon salt dough ornaments shown here.

Left, the gingerbread salt dough cooling down on a cookie rack. Some of them puffed up
too much so these were tossed. Right, some wooden cookie molds were also used in 
this project.

Left, a mouse then a little man next, a Christmas chocolate and candy cane hang on our tree.

Above are three gingerbread children holding hands.

More Delightful Gingerbread:

• Make a gingerbread castle for your dolls to decorate with inside of the dollhouse
• Color my gingerbread angel from Color The Bible for kids

Sew a "Tear Drop" Santa with Button Limbs

A very 80s/90s homespun button Santa

        This tear-drop shaped Santa once hung on my mother's tree. I made it based upon a similar one I once saw in the home of a friend. It is very vintage 1980s/90s looking. Around that time folk-like and primitive items for tree decorations were very popular. If you have an ample supply of buttons without matching pairs or sets, this is one way you can use these up. He is a little strange looking for my tastes now but to each his own when decorating a tree, right? 

       Supplies you will need to make an ornament like this one: scraps of plaid fabric, lots of buttons, tiny bit of faux fur, small two inch square of flesh colored felt, strand of white yarn for beard, cotton batting,  bit of red paint for his cheeks and needle with thread.

Step-by-Step Instructions:

• Cut two identical shaped tear-drops from the scrap plaid fabric. 
• With right sides together sew a straight seam around the two shapes together leaving a one inch gap to turn the right sides out and stuff with cotton.
• Sew the opening shut after stuffing using an invisible stitch. 
• Sew on fur trim a little lower than the top of the tear shaped, stuffed form to imply a fur-trimmed hat. 
• Use the same fur to top off the tip of the Santa hat with a ball.
• Cut face out from felt and sew it just below the fur trimmed hat. 
• Add the button eyes, nose and paint the cheeks.
• Loop the yarn directly onto the face for a beard and sew this in place. Trim it as you like.
• Now gather all of those odd buttons and string them together for Santa's arms and legs. Attach these firmly with needle and thread.

Similar Ornament Crafts from The 1980s and 90s: 

• Retro Craft Dreams shares her vintage 80s craftmas projects
• DIY sewn primitive Santa ornament by Painting Crafty - this kind of ornament was very popular in the 1990s
• Cut and sew vintage Christmas prints here - more vintage prints from our family collection

How to make mini accordion braid wreaths . . .

Three versions of construction paper accordion folded wreaths with ribbon trim are pictured here.

       This particular ornament is very light weight therefore a perfect handmade craft for a tabletop feather tree. It is possible to make it using all textile materials instead of paper but the samples shown above are made with construction paper and trimmed with real ribbons.
       Once you learn the simple folding method, there are several classic, accordion shapes one can make for decorative holiday ornaments. Also, these ornaments make excellent crafts to teach in school environments or student craft fairs because it takes very little money to manufacture simple kits for each person to work with. 

 Supply List:

• contrasting scrap papers: red and green, green and white or red and white in lengths measuring at least twelve inches (Once you begin to weave the wreath, you will be able to determine the size you will need.)
• A ruler for measuring consistent sizes and lengths
• scissors to cut the lengths of cut paper
• tacky craft glue to adhere the ends of paper together
• a hot glue gun for sticking the ribbon trim onto the paper wreath
• ribbon for trim (More ribbon if you should decide to make the entire wreath body out of it.)
• wire for hanging and a needle for making a tiny hole wear the wire is strung through

Step-by-Step Folding Process Pictured Below

Illustrated accordion braid process.
Click to enlarge.

• Paper Chain Wreath Craft - for elementary kids made using construction paper and cotton balls
• Kids can make an easy pom-pom wreath for their dollhouse

Were the gifts of the Magi Symbolic?

       The gifts of the Magi were symbolical of their three-fold faith; the gold that He was King; the incense that He was God; and myrrh, that He was man and doomed to death. The Virgin bestowed on the Magi gifts of the linen bands in which she had wrapped the Savior, for which they thanked her in great humility, and laid them among their treasures.

       According to the old legends, Caspar is king of Tarsus, the land of merchants; he makes the offering of gold. Melchior, the king of Arabia and Nubia, offers frankincense, and Balthasar, king of Saba, "the land of spices," offers myrrh. The gifts are described in scripture, the names of the kings are made up. The "kings" are called "wise men" from the East in scripture.

Before The Paling of The Stars

 Before The Paling of The Stars

Before the paling of the stars,

 Before the winter morn,

 Before the earliest cock-crow,

 Jesus Christ was born;

 Born in a stable,

 Cradled in a manger.

In the world His hands had made, 

Born a stranger.

 Priest and king lay fast asleep

 In Jerusalem.

 Young and old lay fast asleep

 In crowded Bethlehem.

 Saint and angel, ox and ass,

 Kept a watch together

 Before the Christmas daybreak

 In the wintry weather.

Jesus on His Mother's breast

 In the stable cold,

 Spotless Lamb of God was He,

Shepherd of the fold;

 Let us kneel with Mary Maid,

 With Joseph bent and hoary

 With saint and angel, ox and ass,

To hail the King of Glory.

 - Christina E. Rossetti.

Recycling old buttons for a trim on a stocking...

To make a stocking similar to my own, sew a felt or quilted stocking 
and then attach a collection of beads. This stocking is made of white
and pink felt, then trimmed with felt pine trees and random antique
buttons from my grandmother's old sewing box.

A collection of beads inside of an old canning jar. These may be found in many flee markets.

Santa stocking that I made in the 1990s; his beard trimmed with pearly white buttons in many
sizes. See a similar stocking for dolls here.

 

Folk stars trimmed with buttons too!

More Crafting With Buttons:

• Snip, stitch and tuck snowmen from notions
• DIY odds and ends tree stocking

How to work a felted lady's boot into a Christmas stocking!

The finished ladies boots representing something
that may have looked quite similar to the real
thing during the Victorian era.

       To sew this small Victorian inspired, felt stocking you will need just a few scraps of fabric in felted wool or cotton. I chose to use a woven plaid and/or tweedy looking primary wool combined with a contrasting solid color in each of the examples you see in the photographs; the possibilities for both color and pattern combinations are obviously endless.

       Each stocking is sewn together with an embroidery needle and floss using a blanket stitch and the pattern is included below for visitors to download and print off on their own home computers.

       Crafters may finish trimming each boot with three or more buttons each. For the boot on the left, I chose very pale pink buttons with rhinestones at their centers and for the boot on the right I used classic shell, pearl buttons to give each of them that vintage look.

       In these small stockings, a cash gift or tiny candies may be hidden from view while hanging from the branches of a tree or chimney mantle. Tiny stockings like these may keep your gift exchanges both modest yet stylish at the same time. 

       I think small stocking like these would also look so charming hanging from a ''charitable contributions tree'' as the primary decoration in an agency or church. Give a little gift to the givers and include a message in each to describe the whether the recipient of your chosen present should be male or female of a particular age, while inviting the person to keep the stocking as a small token for their contribution.

• See the angel tags and read about Angel trees during the holidays at The Salvation Army here.
• Read about how the Arc Giving Tree Works in the City of St. Louis
  

Left, is the plaid version of the boot stocking in classic colors, Right is a brown tweed version.

A vintage felt pattern of a ladies boot. Victorian looking design.