Button Wreath Ornament

Make some Button Wreath Ornaments with the kids this holiday season!

These ornaments are a fun, simple, inexpensive and quick project that even the kids can do!

Glitter Ribbon Christmas Trees

One of my favorite traditions is decorating for Christmas. Although it can be a lot of work, I always try to get my Christmas decorations up the day or weekend after Thanksgiving. Last year I decided to change my color scheme from the traditional reds & greens to bright pinks, purples, blues and greens. Other than the tree and an adorable wreath my sister made me {yes, I'm bragging about it AGAIN - I love it!!!}, I don't really have very many Christmas decorations in this color scheme. So, I did some shopping and was able to find all the things I needed to make these fabulous, sparkly, fun Glitter Ribbon Trees - on sale!

What you'll need:

4 styrofoam cones
4 rolls of glitter ribbon
4 wooden candlesticks

Paint

Felt {matching ribbon colors}

Hot glue/glue gun

First, I painted the candlestick holders with a couple coats of silvery white paint. Then I added a coat of silver Extreme Glitter paint over top to give it some glittery goodness! Set aside to dry.

Next, I cut a large and small circle out of felt to fit the bottom and top of the cone.

Hot glue them on.

You can also do this step after wrapping with ribbon. Either way works just fine!

Start by hot gluing the end of the ribbon on the top edge of the cone. I left the ribbon sticking up a little at the top since the angle I was wrapping it showed the top of the cone.

Add a drop of hot glue when you bring the ribbon around the "back" {the back will be where you started your ribbon - see picture above} to keep the ribbon from shifting or coming undone.

Keep wrapping until the cone is covered and glue end down.

Once candlestick is dry, hot glue it  to the center of the bottom of the tree.

Stand back and admire your sparkly trees! Super easy, and so cute!

Glitter Snowman

I recently shared this tutorial at Newlyweds on a Budget and Embracing Messy...

Introducing:

Glitter Snowman!

You can also see a similar tutorial I did for Halloween when I made my Glitter Witchy Jars.

Here's what you'll need:

2 Glass Jars

Floor Finish

White/Iridescent Glitter

Top Hat (found mine in the doll section)

Fabric (hat band & scarf)

Glitter Stickers (eyes, mouth & buttons)

Orange Felt (nose)

Glue Gun

Amazing Goop or other glass adhesive

Wash the jars out & dry thoroughly. Try not to get any lint or dust inside of it, or the floor finish may not stick. Pour a small amount of finish in the jar and slowly swirl it around the jar. Don't shake it up or it may get bubbles. Keep swirling the finish around and tilt the jar to completely coat the inside of the jar. Then pour the excess finish back into the container.

Next, pour some glitter into the jar. A finer glitter will coat the jar better, but regular glitter works fine, too. Swirl & tilt the jar slowly like you did with the finish to cover the inside with glitter. You can pour out the excess glitter back into the container, but DO NOT tap the jar. If you do, the glitter will look a little sparse in some areas.

Set jars aside to dry for a little while.

While they are drying, you can put together the hat and get your glue gun warmed up.

For the hat band, I just cut a thin strip of glittery purple fabric and folded it into thirds so the raw edges weren't showing. Then I just hot glued it to the hat. I also cut a strip of fabric to use as the scarf.

Add some hot glue around the inside corner edge of the hat (where hat and brim meet) and place the hat on top of the jar.

Next I put a small amount of Amazing Goop (you can use any glass adhesive) around the top edge of the other jar and place the jar with the hat on top. Let it dry completely before putting the rest of the snowman together so it doesn't shift or come apart.

Once dry, it's time to decorate that snowman!

Tie a strip of fabric around the "neck" (it also hides where you glued the jars together). I cut out parts of a black glitter sticker alphabet to make the eyes, and used other stickers for the mouth and buttons. As for the nose, I just cut out a carrot shape out of some felt and hot glued it on.

And that's it!

Super easy and looks so cute!

DIY Rice Bag Warmers

It's getting colder {where I live, anyway}, and there's nothing better than coming home and snuggling up on the couch with a blanket and warming up your toes! My tutorial today isn't necessarily a new idea, but it's an idea that I'd love to share anyway.

These rice bag warmers make for great gifts to friends and neighbors for the holidays. Plus, these work great for when you're sick and need a heat or ice pack, too! I also used them a lot when my daughter was a colicky, gassy newborn. It seemed to help a lot.

Supplies:

Fabric - Cotton, fleece, or flannel fabrics work best

White rice {NOT instant rice}

Sewing machine, pins, etc.

Scented oils (optional)

To start out, cut fabric 14" x 11" {adjust size for different sized bags}. Fold fabric in half, right-sides together so it measures 7"x11". Sew along the longest edge so you make a sleeve or tube.

Flip sleeve right-side out. Tuck one of the edges in and pin. Top-stitch closed using a 1/4" seam allowance.

Fill bag with rice. I used about 2 1/2 - 3 cups. Don't overfill the bag, otherwise it won't conform to your body and will be difficult to sew closed. If you are using scented oils, add a drop or two in your rice and mix well before adding the rice to the bag.

Tuck edges and pin other end and top-stitch closed. Now your rice bag warmer is complete!

As you can see in the picture above, I also decided to make some pocket-sized warmers! These fit perfectly in your hands and pockets for early mornings out or if you are going to be spending time in the cold and want to keep your fingers warm. Just heat before you leave and you're good to go!

I used a couple of scraps that measured about 6 1/2" x 2 1/2". Fold the strip in half, right sides together so it measures 3 1/4" x 2 1/2". Sew along the edges, starting at the fold, leaving an inch or so gap. Flip the bag right-side out. Carefully fill the bag using a funnel with about an 1/8 cup of rice. Fold the gap closed and top-stitch closed.

...and ta-da!

A tiny, adorable, comfy, pocket-sized hand warmer!

Heat bags in the microwave for 1-2 minutes or until warm. Don't overcook or make too hot or you could burn the rice {and you thought burnt popcorn was bad...}, or worse, burn yourself or your child. No bueno.

If you'd like to make and give some bags away as a gift, I've created a printable tag for you to attach to your rice bag warmer.

I found this poem here.

Just click on one of the images below, right click, "Save As", and print!

I tried to make one wintery colors, traditional Christmas colors and the other can be used any time of year!

  

Some things you should know before downloading:

*Artsy-Fartsy Mama printables are for PERSONAL USE ONLY.

*You may NOT modify, re-sell, redistribute, or claim the design as your own.

*Please do not remove the watermark.
*If you post this on the internet, credit must be given to Artsy-Fartsy Mama & linked back to my blog.

Hope you enjoy and have a WARM winter!!