Gifts Kids Can Create

Image Compliments Of Homemade Pet Rock

Visit Pebble Pets For Full Article

Pet rocks make great paper weights. Add a secret message below and you have an adorable, personal gift a kid could make, without breaking the bank.

All the kid has to do is to collect some smooth pebbles, each around the size of his or her palm. Mom can supply the felt, glue, cardboard and pens. Kids just spend their free time making gifts they can give out on Christmas day. The glue must be able to stick the felt to the stone. To avoid disappointment, test first by sticking a small piece of felt to a stone that you do not want. Stick another small piece of felt on top of it. Let it dry. If the felt pieces stay stuck to each other and to the stone, you are all set to go.

How To Make Pebble Pets

1. Wash and clean the pebbles. Let these dry. Take 1 dry pebble to begin with.

2. You need white, black, brown, pink, and red felt, and a light colored felt to write the message.

3. Cut 2 ovals from the white felts to be the white of the pebble's eyes. Cut 2 smaller circles out of brown, blue or green felt to be the irises of the eye. Cut to even smaller circles out of the black felt to be the pupils of the eye.

4. Glue the 2 white ovals towards the end of the pebble, where the eyes should be. Remember to leave some room for the nose and mouth. Glue the irises to the white of the eyes and the pupils to the irises.

5. Cut out a small triangle out of pink or brown felt to be the nose. Glue it right at the center, beneath the eyes, where the nose should be.

6. Cut out a small crescent out of pink or red felt to be a happy smile. Glue it below the nose, where the mouth should be. Let the pebble pet dry.

7. Cut a piece of light colored felt slightly smaller than the pebble. Write a secret message on the felt. Glue the felt under the pebble with the message facing outwards. That way, whoever gets that pebble can turn it over and read the secret message beneath it. Kids love secret messages. This should appeal to them.

Once you and your kid have made the first pebble pet together, your kid should be able to make the rest of the pebble pets he or she can give away on Christmas day.

Visit Pinecone Mouse Craft

Materials Needed:
Pine Cone
Worn, Smooth Wood or Branch that Sits Evenly for Base
Felt
Wiggle Eyes
Pom-pom
Craft Glue
Scissors
Instructions:
Before you use a pine cone to make a mouse, you might want to follow these suggestions for treating it to get rid of any small bugs, seeds, and sap.

Start out by making the mouse's ears. Cut two circles out of grey felt. Cut two pink circles a little small than your grey circles. Glue the pink circles into the middle of the grey circles to make the ears and then glue the ears onto the pine cone.

Cut a tiny heart out of the felt. Glue the pom-pom onto the point of the heart and the two wiggle eyes onto each hump of the heart. Glue this heart onto the pine cone to be the moue's face.

The last thing you need to do is add a tail to your mouse. Cut a piece of felt about an 1/8th of an inch thick and about 6-inches long. Glue this to the back of the pine cone and your pine cone mouse is done!

I don't have my original Salt Dough Recipe but I found the one below and know that it is very close to the one my brother and I used many years ago. We didn't add any of the optional ingredients but they might be fun to experiment with.

You can help your gift maker with making the recipe then set them up with cookie cutters and other items to make fun magnets, ornaments, signs, animals, or whatever their imagination can come up with!

Visit Original Salt Dough Recipe Article

SALT DOUGH RECIPE:

2 cups of Plain Flour
1 cup of table salt
1 cup of water

OPTIONAL

1 tablespoon of vegetable oil (makes it a little easier to knead)
1 tablespoon of wallpaper paste (gives the mixture more elasticity)
1 tablespoon of lemon juice (makes the finished product harder)

METHOD

Put plain flour, salt and any, or all, of the optional ingredients into a mixing bowl and
gradually add the water, mixing to soft dough. This should be neither too sticky, in which
case add more flour, nor too dry, in which case add more water. When mixed remove
from the bowl, place on a flat surface and knead for 10 minutes to help create a smooth
texture. If possible it is best to let the dough stand for approximately twenty minutes
before beginning a project. Unused dough can be stored in the fridge, in an airtight
container or cling film, for up to a week. Children always love making models, and as
long as you don't add wallpaper paste all of the ingredients are natural. So if they are
tempted to put it in their mouths, all it will do is taste incredibly salty.

DRYING

The drying of your work can either be done naturally in the open air, or it can be baked in
an oven. However it is not recommended that you have your oven hotter than 100C
(200F/Gas Mark 1/4) as this can cause unsightly bubbles and cracks in your pastry.
Personally, I tend to start at 50C and after 30 minutes increase to 100C. The drying time
needed for each piece varies according to size and thickness, but an average time for
natural drying is 30-48 hours, whilst oven times are generally reduced to 3-4 hours. These
figures are only offered as a rough guide and remember that both sides must be dried out.
When your model is dry, turn off the oven and leave it inside to cool
down.

Varnishing is not the most satisfying of activities - the best part is that it means we're nearly finished our model. However, it's crucial to protect against dust and dampness. Two to three layers on both sides may be needed, using a mat or gloss wood varnish, according to the look you want. For practicality, spraying is the easiest solution.