1. Meredith Sinclair’s DIY Clothespin Xmas Tree

2. DIY Christmas Spoons

3. DIY Christmas Candle Centerpiece

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MeredithSinclair’sDIYClothespinXmasTree Materials:

• Clothespinsofvarioussizes,oldornew • Emptypapertowelrolls,TProlls,orcrafttubes • Gluegun • Gluesticks • Miniaturedecorations(optional) • Spraypaint(optional)

Instructions: 1.Gatheryourclothespinsandseparatethemfromtheirmetalspring.Thisiseasytodo...simplypullthehandlesoftheclothespininoppositedirectionstoloosenthemetal,andgentlywigglethemapart. 2.Prepareyourtubesbyremovinganyleft-overpaper.Ifyouwanttoeventuallypaintyourtrees,coverthetubeswithtissuepaperthatmatchesthepaintcoloryou’llbeusing.Ifyouaregoingtokeepthem“natural”,noneedtocover. 3.Usingyourgluegun,startgluingthepinsontothebottomofthetube,withthe“inside”portionofthepinsidedown.Youwanttogluetheslantedtipofthepintotheroll,sothatthebottomofthepinslantsdownandhitsthe“ground”ortablesurfaceyou’reworkingon.Createyourfirstlayerof"branches"bygluingthepinsside-by-sideuntilyougoallthewayaroundthetube. Thisisyourbase!

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4.Workourwayupthetubecreatingrowsofclothespins.TIP:eachrowyoudo,attachthepininbetweenthetwobelowit.Thismakesformorerealisticbranches,it’sokayifyouseeabitoftherollunderneath. 5.Whenyou’renearthetopyouwanttogluethemiddleoftheclothespintothetopareaoftheroll.Thelayerthatfinishesthetreeoffwillbegluedontopofthis,soyouwanttohaveitprettysecure. 6.finishoffthetopbyholdingtwoclothespinstogetherwithglueinthemiddleovertherolltoseehowwidetheyneededtobesetapart,whenthisisdry,useitasthebasetofinishoffthetop,attachingpinstoittoformapeak.Usesmallerpinstofillinthegapsifneeded,untilitcreatesa‘cap’onthetree. 7.Addfunminiaturedecorationstoyourtree,orspraypaintitfirstandthenaddyouraccessories!

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DIYChristmasSpoonsMaterials:

• Woodspoons(youcanevenusethesquareones) • Acrylicpaint • Acrylicpaintpeninblack • Paintbrushorsponge • Smallblackbuttons • Smallwoodenmushroombuttons • Plasticminiaturesnowmancarrotnoses • Hotglueandgluegun • Anyotherlittledecorativeitemslikeribbon,beads,googlyeyeballs,construction

paper,ribbon,pompoms,etc. Instructions:

1. Setyourspoonsonapaintablesurface,andpaintthemaccordingtothecharactersyouwouldliketouse.IammakingaSantaClaus,atoysoldier,areindeer,agingerbreadman,anangelandasnowman.Wewillbefocusingonthesnowmanforthestepout.

2. Paintyourbasecoatofpaintonallsidesandsetasidetodry.Forthesnowman,wewillbepaintingthespoonwhite.

3. Oncedry,addembellishmentslikeeyesandmouthwithyourblackpaintpen.4. Usingyourhotgluegun,glueonthecarrotnosetothemiddleofthe

spoon/snowman’sface.

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5. Addanyotherembellishmentsusinghotgluethatyouwouldlike.I’llbeattachingascarfmadeoutofribbon,atophatmadeoutofconstructionpaper,andthreebuttonsdownthehandleofthespoon.

6. PackupyourlittlecharactersoncetheyarealldryandenjoytheChristmascheeritbringsyourkitchen!

Tips: 1. Useoldspoonsthatmightbediscoloredorburned.Oncetheyarepainted,you

won’tbeabletotell!Thisisagreatwaytorepurposeoldspoons.2. Usingablackpaintmarkerinsteadofpaintandapaintbrushwillmakeyouappear

likeamuchbetterartistthanyouactuallyare!It’sagreatshortcut.3. Printpicturesofftheinternetforinspirationforanyofthecharactersyouwouldlike

topaint.4. Usethesquarespoonstomakesquarecharacterslikeatoysoldier.

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DIYChristmasCandleCenterpieceMaterials:

• Toiletpaperrolltubes• Papertowelrolltubes• Mailingtubes• HotgluegunandLOTSofhotgluesticks• Whitecardstock• Spraypaint• Glitter• ModpodgeorElmer’sglue• Maskingtape• Battery-operatedtealights• Greeneryforthebase,wirecutterifyouwanttocutthegreenery,ribbon,orany

accessoryofyourchoice.

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Step-out:

1. Cutthepapertubesinvarioussizes.Icutthetubesinthefollowinglengths:(2)Mailingtubesat11”(1)Mailingtubeat9”(3)Papertoweltubesat8”(3)Toiletpapertubesattheirstandardheight(4.5”)(3)Toiletpapertubesat2.5”

2. Coverthetubesinwhiteorcreamcardstockwithtape.3. Takeyourmaskingtapetocreatealittlevalleyforthetealighttositin.Thatpart

canbeabitmessysincewewillcoveritupwithglue.4. Usingalargehotgluegun,createthelookofmeltedwax.Youcandothisoverand

overagainuntilitlookslikealotmeltedcandles.5. Usingspraypaint,painteachindividualcandle.Thismaytakeafewcoats.Make

surethatyoupaintoveralloftheglue.Setasidetodry.6. Usingglueormodpodge,addacoattoeachcandle.7. Whileit’sstillwet,addglittertoeachcandle(Optional)8. Arrangethecandlestogetherinaconfigurationthatyoulike.Youcankeepthem

separate,orgluethemtogether.9. Tomakethecandlematchthetealight,wrapthewickofyourtealightintape&

spraypaintitwiththecoloryouusedforthecandle10. Addthetealightstothetopofeachcandle.11. Turnonthebattery-operatedlight,addsomegreeneryandenjoyyourChristmas

candledisplay.Tips:

1. Youcancutthepapertowelrollsat8”andusetheothersideforthe3smallertubesat2.5”.

2. Youdon’thavetousethecardstocktocoverthecandles,butitdoeshidethelinesofthetubes.Ifyoudon’tmindthelines,youcanskipastep.Ifyoudousecardstock,youcanusedoublesidedtapetohidethetape.

3. Whenyouarrangethemintoorder,youcanleavethemseparateorattachthemtogetherwithglue.