Craft a simple holiday garland inspired by winter's favorite mascot, the friendly snowman. Using common craft materials and a little creativity, the garland is an easy holiday project for both adult and child craft lovers.
The snowman design can be expanded to a three-tiered snowman, but the steps below incorporate a classic two-tier design to keep the project as simple as possible. Substitute craft clay for paper mache if desired, to reduce the time and cleanup involved in making the garland.
Materials Needed:
- Styrofoam balls, mini version
- Styrofoam balls, two-inch diameter
- Styrofoam balls, one-inch diameter
- Craft glue
- Torn strips of newspaper
- Toothpicks
- Orange craft paint
- White craft paint
- Paint brush
- Clear craft glitter
- Black magic marker
- Scissors
- Mini pom poms (1/4-inch diameter)
- Black yarn
- Black sequins, small
- Craft felt squares, any colors
- Christmas garland or craft twine
- Large craft needle
Making the Snowmen
- Break a toothpick in half and daub one sharp end in craft glue; use the glue end to penetrate a two-inch Styrofoam ball.
- Let the glue dry before dipping the other end of the toothpick half in glue and pressing a one-inch Styrofoam ball over it. This secures the snowman's head to his body.
- Repeat with materials until the desired number of snowmen is completed.
- Break apart more toothpicks to use each half as a support for a snowman's nose.
- Tear the newspaper strip into small pieces; twist and roll them using craft glue to form a thick, sticky paper mache. Mold each piece around a broken toothpick half, leaving the pointed end exposed.
- Shape the paper mache into carrot-shaped noses; paint each one with orange craft paint.
- Once the noses are dry, insert the toothpick end in the snowman's face. Dip the tip in glue first to help secure it in place.
- Paint each snowman with a generous coat of white paint; sprinkle with glitter while the snowmen are still wet.
- Paint the mini Styrofoam balls with white paint also, and coat with glitter; make two for each snowman.
Decorating the Ornaments
Decorate the front of each snowman with two shiny black sequins to represent his buttons. Use craft glue to secure them in place. Make a scarf by cutting craft felt into strips (approximately eight inches in length) and slitting the ends with a pair of scissors to create a fringe trim. Wrap a scarf around the neck of each snowman and glue or sew it in place.
To make the mini earmuffs that decorate each snowman's head, glue two matching mini pom poms of the same color to either side of the face. Cut a small piece of black yarn and glue each end behind the pom poms, hidden from sight. Let the band stretch across the snowman's head to represent the earmuff's band.
Glue the mini Syrofoam balls to either side of the snowman's torso to create his arms. Save this step for last if stringing the snowmen using the steps below, since the arms will need to be strung between snowmen bodies and glued at the very end of the project.
Stringing the Garland
- Cut the twine or cord the length desired for the garland; if a cloth twine is used or a sturdy wire version, then thread one end through a large craft needle to string the snowmen in place.
- Thread a mini Styrofoam ball, followed by a snowman pierced through his torso; then thread two more mini Styrofoam balls followed by another snowman.
- Continue until all snowmen are strung, along with the proper number of arms.
- Assemble and space the snowmen properly, then secure with glue.
For pre-glued snowmen with arms, pierce the Styrofoam arms and body slowly with a large craft needle, drawing it carefully through the other end using a pair of pliers or sturdy tweezers. This method requires adult supervision, making it less than ideal for young crafters. Space the snowmen apart and glue.
To string the snowmen quickly and simply, use decorative Christmas garland twine; glue directly to the back of each snowman with a daub of glue applied to the fabric scarf. Once the glue is dry, curve or tie the garland's ends into loops. Hang the garland from hooks or decorative tacks and display the glittering snowmen for everyone to admire.
Sarah Briggs - For the last two years, I have designed primitive dolls and folk art sculptures (such as Edwin Drood and the Ghost of Marley) for Cordwood ...
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