Hello All! This is Suzanne, Rebecca’s Momma, and I am excited to be her guest blogger this week. Rebecca and I have a long-standing joke that I can turn anything into a snowman. Truth be told, I’m not a big fan of real ones, because they involve winter and cold and snow. A cute little crafted snowman, though? I’m all over that. Today, I am going to share two examples of snowmen I have crafted from everyday objects, proving Rebecca’s point that almost anything can be turned into a snowman. First up is this cute Christmas tree ornament. This little guy is made from a spring clothespin. All you have to do is pull the wooden bits free of the inner spring and glue the flat sides together. Give it a quick coat of white paint and a little speckling with brown paint – nothing too neat because we are going for a rustic look here. Next, add his scarf, which is just a torn strip of cotton cloth. There is a natural indentation in the clothespin where you’ll tie the scarf around his “neck”. Then, we need a loop for hanging. This is a length of floral wire that is pushed through the little hole created from the grooves where the spring was seated. Give the ends a twirl on the front to keep them from pulling out of the hole. The strength of the wire against the back of the snowman will serve to keep our little friend upright. Finally, he needs some details. Use the end of a paintbrush dipped in black paint to make dots for the eyes and buttons and a little swipe of orange paint becomes a nose. I like these guys with no mouth – there just really isn’t enough room for mouth dots. Now he’s ready to hang on the tree or tie onto a package. Cost-wise, this is a very economical craft. A pack of 36 spring clothespins is available at any dollar store. Small bottles of acrylic craft paint will last forever making these, because very little paint is needed. The cotton cloth? It’s an old flannel shirt of my husband’s. I laundered it several time to make it nice and soft. I love working with plaid fabric, because I can follow the lines to cut straight. You could literally make hundreds of little scarves from one old shirt. Floral wire is available in small quantities at the dollar store, or use your 40% off coupon at one of the big box craft stores for a larger roll. Next, we have a darling little snowman figurine. This little guy is made from a picante sauce jar. Whenever I see a jar with an indentation, I immediately think it could easily be a snowman. After enjoying the sauce on some nachos, thoroughly clean the jar and remove the label and the “use by” stamp with a bit of Goo-Gone. After it is quite dry, drip some white acrylic craft paint inside and turn and twist the jar until the paint completely covers the inside of the jar. Give it a day to dry and replace the lid on the jar. I like fleece for the hat and scarf for these, since it has a bit more body than cotton fabric. These are made from a fleece scarf from the dollar store. Tie a long strip around the indentation in the jar for the scarf. For the hat, cut a strip a little longer than the circumference of the jar and about 8 inches wide. Use hot glue to turn a small cuff along one edge of the fabric, then glue the strip around the lid, overlapping the ends. Finally, cut a small strip of matching fleece. Tuck a few cotton balls into the hat to give it some height, then gather the loose end and tie it together tightly with the strip. Cut into the top of the remaining loose bit, about every inch. That makes the pompom on the top of the hat. If you wish, add a strip of contrasting ribbon over the cuff and decorate as you wish. His eyes and buttons are made with small shank back black buttons. A shank back button doesn’t have holes in it. Instead, there’s a little loop on the back where you’d sew the button onto the garment. Using pliers, cut the shank off and use a bit of strong glue (E6000 is a favorite) to pop on his eyes and buttons. His nose is a resin carrot, also glued on with strong glue. I would not recommend a hot glue gun for adding these details. Hot glue and glass is not the best combination for long term stability. I’d like to add a word here about shopping sales and keeping your eyes open for deeply discounted or free supplies. The dollar store is an amazing resource for inexpensive supplies. An old cotton flannel shirt is free plaid fabric. The resin carrot used on the jar snowman came in a pack of two, originally priced at $3.99. I got the pack for $0.39, sometime in February when winter items were 90% off. I rarely go to one of the big box craft stores without perusing the clearance rack for things to add to my stash. If you have room to store things and can keep them well organized to be able to find them when they are needed, you can save lots of money by purchasing items after the season, to be used later. Red baker’s twine in a Christmas package will be clearance priced when red baker’s twine in a Valentine package will be full price. Green Christmas ribbon at 90% off? St. Patty’s is coming, just around the corner. Be judicious in your purchases, to guard against becoming a bit of a hoarder. However, once you recognize your crafting style, you can start to build your stash. Finally, here are some photos of other snowmen I have made. The first is an old bed spring, the next one is a shutter and the last one is the box from a roll of washi tape. I’ve had a great time being Rebecca’s guest blogger this week so I’d love to know if you’d like more details on these. Let us know in the comments! - Suzanne
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AuthorI am a 28-year-old crafter from New Hampshire! Archives
January 2025
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