More Recycled Bows

I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas!  We had a nice quiet Christmas in our apartment in Jakarta.  It was different not to be around friends and extended family, but it was also nice since this was the first time we had ever celebrated Christmas just with our little family.

Anyways, awhile back I posted that I had made some recycled gift bows.  I ended up making tons of them for the Holiday Market fundraiser put on by the school my kids attend.  I put mounting tape on the bottom of the bows so the kids (first graders were in charge of the Holiday Market) could just peel and stick like you would on a normal gift bow. 

I kept the wrapping paper from our Christmas gifts, and I will make more holiday bows for next year.  I think this craft is a great way to give new life to all that wrapping paper that would otherwise just end up in the trash.  I love making these bows…it really can be addicting because making them is so fun.  I just love the way the recycled bows look. I think they are so much more interesting than your average bow. 

Teacher Gift

My son made a snowman from an empty peanut butter container.  I got the idea from Google images when I searched for container crafts.  The hat is made from the cuff of an old sock and the scarf is made from a band cut from just under the cuff.  He colored the band green with a marker, and we tied it on the container.  I helped him tie a bow around the top of the snowman’s hat.  He cut out larger circles from black paper for the eyes and smaller black circles for the mouth.  He cut out an orange triangle-shaped piece for the nose.  The face parts were glued onto the container.  We originally put cotton balls inside the jar.  Then, I thought it would be a good idea to line it with white paper and put a treat on the inside. We took out the cotton balls and I put in some home-made treats. 

My son also made his teacher a card. I wrapped the snowman and card in a clear plastic bag that used to contain some cardstock I bought. I tied it off at the top with a gold ribbon that was from a previous gift someone had given to us.

The whole gift minus the treats was made from re-used items.  I thought it would be nice for my son to give a gift he had made himself…a gift from his heart. I hope his teacher likes it.  We are going to make more snowmen stuffed with treats to give to friends.

This snowman craft is a good way to use those old jars and containers I’ve been accumulating.