Felt Ornament DIY

 Felt ornaments are a simple and fun project for the holidays with endless possibilities! So far I've made a bird and a reindeer, but I have plans to make more (updated 11/30 with pictures below). Once you decide on the ornaments you want, create a paper pattern. Fold over your felt so you're cutting through two layers. Pin your pattern to the top of the felt and cut out your shape. For my ornaments I just searched Google Images to find simple animal shapes that I liked and could create fairly easily.

 Pin your two layers together and insert a loop of twine or ribbon for hanging. Next, top stitch around the edge of your ornament leaving a small opening for stuffing. Stuff the ornament with a bit of poly-fill, then finish sewing.

 Now the fun part: accessories! For my bird, I added a beak and hot glued on a button eye and some feathers. He's now a very happy part of our Christmas tree.

 This is my reindeer outline. It follows the same steps as above. It was a little tricky cutting and sewing because of the details, but it's well worth it. I finished him with a button eye and a little scarf made out of scrap fabric. These ornaments are really fun to make. They're also inexpensive, extremely customizable, and they would make great personalized gifts!

I made this Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy inspired whale ornament for my older brother and the black and white kitty for my cat loving aunt. What kind of felt ornaments would you make?

Sock Snowman DIY

 I can't believe it's already December. Having such a late Thanksgiving really threw me for a loop! Christmas is just over three weeks away. Weird. Now that everyone is in a mad dash to get ready for  holiday parties, here is a simple and fun DIY decoration perfect for winter. Snowmen ornaments and decorations are my favorite. I think they tend to be the cutest :) My mom and I made a horde of these sock snowmen to give as door prizes at our upcoming family Christmas party.

You will need as many white socks as you intend to make snowmen, a bag of rice, poly-fill or some kind of fluffy stuffing, scrap fabric to make scarves, an assortment of buttons, black and orange paint, pom poms of some sort (we made ours following this method), rubber bands (optional) and a hot glue gun.

 Start by putting a quarter cup of rice in the bottom of your sock. This will provide a base for the snowman and allow it to stand. On top of the rice, fill your snowman half-way full with poly-fill and secure the top with a rubber band. Fold the top part of the sock down over the rubber banded section to create the hat of the snowman. Cut a length of scrap fabric for the scarf and tie it several inches below the brim of the hat. Glue on buttons under the scarf and a pom pom on top of the hat. We made our pom poms, but if you're looking for a faster option you can usually find a bag of pom poms at the dollar store or a craft store for a dollar or two. All that's left is to paint on the snowman's face and he's set to go!

Make a bunch to put around your house and to hand out to friends! They make a perfect hostess gift to bring to holiday parties and it's a good craft to get the kiddos in on too.

 Little happy snowman family! :)