Stand-up pictures and figures

Nearly any figure or photo can be made into a free-standing figure with a few simple cuts.

Supplies:
Duplicates of the figure or photo, mounted on heavy paper or cardboard
Sharp scissors, craft knife or paper cutter

The key to the success of the project is interlocking slits in the figures. By cutting one from the top and the other from the bottom, the figures can be slid into the corresponding slits at right angles.  The figures will then be able to stand.

The finished figures can be mounted for display, hung for decoration or used in other projects such as dioramas. Make stand-up photos for gifts - just print two copies of each photo.


A few cautions:

Use extreme care with cutting tools when children are present. Consider doing the cutting ahead of time or outside of the meeting room or work area if the children are very young.

Correct placement of the slits is crucial, especially for asymmetric items such as photos. Make the placement easy by turning one copy of the photo upside down and placing it face down on top of the second photo. Cut both at the same time, to the midpoint.

Cardboard Tube Crafts

Use those paper or cardboard tubes from paper towels, toilet tissue, food wrap and gift wrap to create fun projects for your group. Whether for small tots or older children, there are many ways to use paper tubes for fun.

Avast, me hearty!

Cover a long tube in black construction paper to form a play telescope. You’ll spy lots of play through this easy toy.

Use two shorter tubes to form binoculars. Tape them together and add a yarn or ribbon strap and you’ve got one child ready for look-out duty.

An added bonus to using these toys is the ability for a child to focus on a single thing while peering through the tubes. It allows concentration on that thing. Great for starting discussions.

Personal presents

Put tiny gifts into a tube and cover in gift wrap for an interesting gift presentation.

Make little favors for a party. Little candies can be wrapped in food wrap or snack bags before insertion into the tube. Gather the gift wrap and tie the ends for a firecracker look.

Safe candles

Make safe candles for little ones by wrapping the tube in tissue paper of the appropriate color and use a pipe cleaner as the flame. Tuck the ends of the tissue into the top of the role, and stick the pipe cleaner into the center. For processionals and ceremonies, these flameless candles will allow little ones to participate without danger.

Add a scripture reference to provide an enlightening lesson: “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.” Psalm 119: 105, KJV, for example.

Little lighthouse

Use ribbon or construction paper stripes to wrap around a covered paper roll to make a lighthouse. A ball of yellow paper or a yellow yarn pompom on top serves as the beacon.

Add a scripture, such as “Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee.” (Isaiah 60:1, KJV) for inspiration.

Let’s make music

Seal one end of the tube by cutting a circle of cardboard to match the size of the end. Place it in the end and secure it with a square of paper and tape. Place a tablespoon of uncooked rice or beans into the tube. Seal the open end. Decorate as desired. One rhythm instrument is ready to go.

The timbre of the instrument will vary depending on what is put inside, how much there is, how long and wide the tube is and how tightly it is sealed. With enough different “voices” you can create a real band.

Add a scripture, such as: “The Lord is my strength and song.” (Exodus 15:2, KJV) or “…therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth; and with my song will I praise him.” (Psalm 28:7b, KJV).

Kaleidoscope

National Geographic Kids has a great page on making a kaleidoscope from a paper towel role. Check it out: http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/Activities/FunScience/Be-dazzled. This is one I haven’t done myself yet, but I’m looking forward to it.

Napkin Rings

Slice tube into rings approximately 1” wide. (You’ll probably have to do this for younger children to avoid squashed rings.) Decorate the rings to use as napkin rings. Here are some ideas, but feel free to use your imagination:

Glue ribbon around the ring.

Wrap the ring in yarn.

Measure strips of plain paper to cover the rings. Let the children draw on or put stickers on the paper before covering the ring with it.

Glue pieces of colored paper in a patchwork pattern (great for using up scraps of construction paper left over from other projects!).

Glue wrapping paper appropriate for the occasion on the ring.

Glue decorative braid or little ornaments to the ring.

Glue a strip of paper with a scripture verse on it around the ring. (“The righteous eateth to the satisfying of his soul…’ Proverbs 13:25a, KJV, for example.)

Playing with Food for Christmas

I know, I know, we're always told not to play with our food. Most of the time that's true. When it comes to crafty ministry, though, you'll find fun ways to play and have a tasty treat.

Snowman Cake

Long before all of the fancy shaped pans were available, cake mix companies offered ideas for cutting layer cakes to create fancy shapes. This was always one of my favorites, because I love coconut cake. It makes a lovely presentation, and serves a good sized group.

Supplies
* White cake mix or recipe for two-layer cake (two boxes or recipes)
* Fluffy white frosting (enough for the double cake recipe)
* Shredded coconut (optional if allergies are a concern or you just don't care for coconut)
* Gum drops for features and buttons
* String type red candy (licorice, Twizzlers or Red Vines) for scarf
* Nine-inch cake pans (two)
* Muffin tin (one tin of six or twelve holes)

Step 1

Cover a platter or cutting board with aluminum foil, waxed paper or any desired food-safe covering.

Step 2 - Baking

Prepare the pans as directed by the cake mix or recipe. Make one box or recipe of cake batter.  Fill one muffin hole half-full and set aside. Divide the remaining batter between the two cake pans. Bake and cool as directed. Repeat with the second batch, except bake the two muffins as well. (Note: If you have sufficient pans and a large enough oven, feel free to do all of the mixing and baking as one step.)

Step 3 - Assemble layers

Level two of the layers across the top.  Spread frosting on these two layers. Add a plain layer to each of the frosted layers.

Step 4 -  Shaping the snowman

Cut a shallow arc from the side of the two cakes. Make the arcs as equal as possible because these will become the arms. Frost the cakes along the cut line.

Place the cakes as shown in the diagram - cut side to cut side - to form the snowman's body. Frost the top and sides of the cakes.

Trim the muffins as necessary to form the head and be the same height as the body. Frost the layers of muffin together.  Place it at the top of the snowman's body. Frost head.

Align the cut arcs on the sides to form arms and frost in place.




Step 5 - Dressing the snowman

If you are a coconut nut, as I am, this is the time to sprinkle on lots of coconut snow.

Use gumdrops to form the facial features, for example, a line of red ones for the mouth, an orange one for the nose, green ones for the eyes. Black gumdrops make great buttons on his chest. Form a scarf from string-type candy such as licorice whips, Twizzlers or Red Vines.


And there you have it, a snowman layer cake ready to brighten your table and your palate.

Miscellaneous tips:

If your crowd isn't large enough to need the two-layer version, just use one box of mix or recipe and make it a sheet cake. Don't level the layers - the dome effect makes it look more like a three-dimensional snowman.

Other candies can be used to decorate - basically anything round and colorful will fill the bill.


Individual Snowmen

Little individual snowmen make fun party favors, desserts, place cards or projects for kids at a party.

Supplies
Regular sized marshmallows
Miniature marshmallows
Food coloring
Graham crackers
Toothpicks

Pretty simple to assemble: skewer two regular and one miniature marshmallow on a toothpick. Use a toothpick dipped in food coloring to add features. Two more toothpicks form the arms. Stick the end of the toothpick holding the snowman together into a graham cracker.

Add more miniature marshmallows around the base for stage-setting.

Miscellaneous tips:

For very young children, use uncooked spaghetti instead of toothpicks.

Use white frosting to cover the graham cracker and secure the snowman in a fluffy field of white. (You can add coconut, too!)

Dots of hot fudge ice cream sauce (but not heated) work as features and buttons.

Use cupcakes instead of graham crackers to make the little snowmen even more festive.

John 3:16 Poster

This time of year can become a little crazy, and it's easy to lose sight of what we celebrate. I first made this poster more than 40 years ago.

I was away at college and there was a door decorating contest in the dorm. I had no decorations with me and no money to buy any. What I did have was a shallow box, just the right size to hold a piece of paper bearing John 3:16, the description of the first, best and most precious Christmas gift ever given. While I didn't win the contest (and didn't expect to when I saw the many fancy tinsel and ribbon decorations around the dorm), I did feel good about the number of people who thanked me for the reminder.

These days, I have word processing and desk top publishing to help me make the poster fancy, but it doesn't change the importance of the content.

This one was created in Microsoft's Publisher 2007. You can create one in virtually any publishing or word processing program you may have. You can add artwork or a different background, change to whatever font you prefer - make it your own vision of God's Gift.

If you're short of time, here is a .pdf version you can download and print: John 3:16 Poster

Have a most blessed Christmas!

Reindeer Games

Candy Cane Reindeer

What would Christmas be without reindeer? Bring Santa’s team to your party or table display with just a few minutes work. They are also adorable peeking out of Christmas stockings.

This is another of those projects I’ve been doing for nearly 40 years and don’t remember where I first learned it. Have fun!

Supplies:

* Full-sized, individually shrink-wrapped candy canes (approximately ½ ounce each and measuring 5 to 6 inches long) – 1 per reindeer (but get a few extra to allow for breakage)
* Pipe cleaners, aka chenille strips, in a shade of brown – 9 to 10 inches per reindeer
* Glue-on eyes – 2 per reindeer
* Chenille poms – 1 per reindeer (I like the 10mm size)
* School glue or craft glue
* Scissors or wire cutters
* Ruler

Step 1

Cut the pipe cleaner into three pieces: one measuring 5 inches and two measuring 2 to 2-1/2 inches each. These will be the antlers. Bend each piece in half.

Step 2

Place the bend of the 5 inch piece of pipe cleaner under the crook of the candy cane. Bring the two free ends of the pipe cleaner above the candy cane and twist tightly together where they cross the cane.

Step 3

Place the free ends of the pipe cleaner horizontally at 90 degree angles to the pipe cleaner. Bend the ends up by 90 degrees to form the antler base.

Step 4

Twist a 2 inch piece of pipe cleaner at the bends of the antler base. Bend each of those ends to 90 degrees, at a 90 degree angle to the base.

Step 5

Glue two eyes on the short side of the candy cane, about ¾ of the way to the curve. Glue a chenille pom for the nose.


Miscellaneous tips:

The pipe cleaners I bought were about 12 inches long. So cutting 5 and 2 inch pieces gave me two 5 inch and one 2 inch piece, or six 2 inch pieces per strip. Mix and match as necessary to get the most without waste from your pipe cleaners.

Poke holes in a piece of Styrofoam or the back of the empty candy cane box to stand your reindeer for safekeeping as the glue dries.

The antlers don’t have to be perfect – if you have children helping you with this project, don’t get hung up on the angles.

Chenille poms come in all sorts of combinations. I had a bag of assorted colors and sizes from other projects, and I purchased a bag of the 10 mm black poms.

Because of the small pieces, use caution around very young children. You may prefer to dab eyes and a nose on the wrapper with acrylic paint for little ones.

More Thanksgiving Ideas

Thanksgiving brings with it lot of images of turkeys and Pilgrims. Here are some ideas for Thanksgiving crafts to help you entertain the little Thanks-givers.

Supplies:
Construction Paper
School glue or glue stick
Pencils
Crayons
Safety scissors
Apples, oranges or styrofoam balls
Cheese cubes
Toothpicks or uncooked spaghetti
Marshmallows, full-size and miniature
Candy corn


Snack time:
Make little turkey treats with marshmallows: Use a full-sized marshmallow or two as the body. Thread miniature marshmallows on toothpicks or uncooked spaghetti pieces (for younger children) for the tail feathers. Use a single miniature marshmallow as the head and a piece of candy corn for the beak. Cut a marshmallow in half to serve as the wings and two pieces of candy corn for the feet. Try to enjoy it for a moment or two before devouring!

If you can find the multicolored marshmallows, they make a fun display. Or roll plain ones in cocoa powder for a brown turkey. If your turkey seems a little "tail heavy," prop it with a toothpick in back.

Larger turkey treats can be formed on apples, oranges or styrofoam balls for the body. Thread cheese cubes on toothpicks for the tail feathers. Attach a small triangle of cheese to a single cube to form the head and beak.

Just a caution: this works much better with medium cheddar (or something with a similar smooth texture) than sharp cheddar. Witness the disaster below:

Sharp cheddar is a little too crumbly to make neat cubes. So you can learn from my mistake - LOL.

Pilgrim buckles:

Cut rectangles of gold (or yellow) or silver (gray) construction paper. Cut two openings in it to form a simplified buckle.

Print a scripture or scripture reference about thanks along the outer edges. Cut a strip of black or dark blue construction paper and thread through the center.

 

Secure with a small piece of tape or a dot of glue on the back. These make nice little bookmarks or place cards for the table. The blue or back strip provides a good surface for a small sticker, if desired. Make them as large as you would like. My sample is about 3.5" by 4.5" for the buckle size and 2" X 9" for the strip inside.

Test your writing implement on a sample of the paper before starting the lettering. The marker I used wasn't quite as fine a tip as I would have liked. It worked - it just wasn't as tidy as I hoped it would be.

Drumsticks for all:

Cut out construction paper drumsticks, large enough for a scripture verse or reference on one side. On the other side, you might put the person's name or have each person write something for which they are thankful.

 

You can get several from a single sheet of paper if you reverse every other one. A template for five to an 8.5" X 11" page is here: Drumsticks Template

These make great bookmarks or place cards as well. And everyone at the table can have a drumstick!

Turkey Time - Handprint Turkeys

Ah, the handprint turkey! Is there anything more personal for little ones to do at Thanksgiving? Choose the appropriate activity level for your group.

Supplies:
Paper - plain white paper to trace on
Construction paper - to cut out feathers and other features; to mount finished pictures on
Crayons
School glue or glue stick
Finger paint
Watercolors
Assorted glitz - sequins, glitter and such


To begin:
Have each child open one of his or her hands as far as possible. Trace the hand on the white paper with a crayon. Older children may want to trace their own hand. For very young children, you can make photocopies of a hand you traced from an older child.

The thumb will be the turkey's head; the other fingers serve as the tail feathers and the hand itself is the turkey's body.

Very young children:
Draw wings on the body. Draw eyes, a beak and wattle on the head. Add feet. Let the children color the bird.

Youngsters:
(Adults should pre-cut construction paper features for the birds.) Glue construction paper tail feathers on the tail. Glue a yellow beak and a red or pink wattle on the head. Draw in eyes, feet and wings. Color as desired.

Any age that enjoys getting messy:
(With thanks to Dr. Karen Romito of HobbyTown USA in Folsom, CA) Put finger paint on the hand and fingers in a variety of colors. Place the hand down on the paper and move the four fingers (but not the thumb) back and forth a little to create a fan of colored tail feathers. Draw in any additional details after the paint dries.

Older children:
Using safety scissors, cut features for the turkey from construction paper. Glue them on as desired and use crayons to color the other parts.


Here's a picture of a real feather, if you'd like to use that:

You can download the image here: Feather Photo



Feel free to get creative within your group's abilities with things like glitter, water colors (use water color paper to start rather than copy paper), colored pencils or other decorating techniques. This is a very adaptable project, suitable for a wide variety of time frames and skill levels.

Some ideas for incorporating "Thanks" into the project:
Have the children print something or someone they or thankful for on each tail feather (or have an adult print it for them);

Have them print an appropriate scripture reference or passage at the bottom of the picture. Some options are:
I Chronicles 16:8
I Chronicles 16:34
I Chronicles 29:13
Psalm 30:4
Psalm 69:30
Psalm 75:1
Psalm 92:1
Psalm 95:2
Psalm 100:4
or have older children find their own verses;

Have them address the picture to someone they are thankful to and give it to that person as a thank you gift.