Monday, December 19, 2011

Branch Impressions - Quick, Inexpensive & Lovely


We made these fabulous little ornaments this weekend.
they are budget friendly, preschooler friendly, last minute DIYer friendly & look great!

I bought a 1.75 lbs. box of white Sculpey for under $10.
A box that size can make about 50 ornaments.

I did this project with my 5 yr old & 3 yr old.  
they were able to be very involved. 
Many project attempts here do not go very smoothly.
But this one was enjoyable for them both!

Items you will need:
Sculpey Clay - White
Rolling Pin
Evergreen branches 
toothpick
knife &/or cookie cutters
twine or embroidery floss
small beads



the sculpey has to be kneaded.
this is really fun for the kids.  But give them small enough pieces so they can work it.
Once it is soft, roll it to about 1/4 inch thickness.
Set branches all over clay.
Lightly roll them into the clay.

If you place them with the ends hanging off the clay, they will be easier to remove.
If you need help getting then back out, use a toothpick to carefully lift them.
Now you can cut out the ornaments.
We used circle cutters, a star cutter & a heart.
I tried free hand cutting with a butter knife to make an oval & a tear drop shape.
those ones turned out decent, but the cutter did a better job than me & a butter knife.

Poke a hole in the top of your shape with your toothpick.
Bake as directed on your Sculpey box.


Once they are baked & cooled, thread your string/floss/twine
through the hole to make a hanger.
We knotted the floss & threaded a bead onto each one.
But, that part can be skipped, if you don't have any beads on hand.

Now you have a lot of last minute gifts for neighbors, teachers & friends.
You could also tie them on top of your gift package for a beautiful addition.






* Inspired by a pin floating around from Garden Mama's blog.

5 comments:

Ginger Ramin said...

looks like fun, Erin! I miss those days--used to spend HOURS making Christmas ornament gifts with my kids when they were younger. every year when I get out the ornaments, I get wistful. I can show you lots of different fun things we made!

Nini said...

This is a super cute idea! I bet you could put a little watercolor in your imprints and it would be pretty too! (that is if you can get that material slightly wet...or maybe markers...

Stef said...

Those are awesome! Thanks for sharing the details - I think this will be a January project I do with the girls.

Melissa said...

WOW, hese are so beautiful!!

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