Events/2020/Holiday

See last year's class for more information: 2019 Holiday Ornaments More detailed instructions, with pictures, to follow...

Gingerbread Person or Reindeer Felt Ornament Kit

The typical 2020 Gingerbread Person / Reindeer kit includes:

2x laser-cut tan felt gingerbread person shapes, with lacing holes
yarn for lacing (may have choice of colors, typically a matching tan and at least one contrast color)
assorted laser-cut felt decor items in various colors
safety plastic lacing needle
craft sticks to aid in gluing and stuffing
cotton balls for stuffing
kid-safe, washable glue

Basic instructions for either option:

Set up a work space for gluing; with old cardboard, newspapers, wax paper, or something to avoid getting glue on the furniture
Carefully separate out the various parts from the bag
Place the two tan pieces on top of each other, lining up the holes
- (Note: they should be identical, and symmetrical, so it doesn't matter which way they go. In case they slightly vary, consider the larger one to be the "front".)
Thread the yarn onto the needle.
If using the Gingerbread Person option, place the "head" pointing upward; if using the Reindeer option, place the "head" pointing downward
Starting at the topmost hole (top of head, or between legs/antlers), thread the yarn through both pieces; leave about 1.5" out the top to help form a hanging loop in the end.
Lace (or "stitch") down one side of the head, one arm, one leg, then a bit over halfway around the other leg
Take a cotton ball, and unroll it to be more of a strip, and/or pull it into smaller bits
Use the craft stick to tuck the cotton between the pieces to stuff the ornament, starting with the limbs
Repeat with additional cotton balls until desired stuffed look is achieved. This is typically 5-7 balls worth; you will typically have a bit extra.
Finish lacing up the remaining side, and then go through the topmost hole again on the last stitch
Tie a knot at the top
Using the excess yarn, form a hanging loop, and tie a knot to finish it off. Trim any excess yarn.
Use the various colors and shapes of laser-cut felt to decorate the gingerbread person or reindeer as you see fit. You may want to lay out your design to test it out before gluing.

Christmas Tree Kit

The typical 2020 Christmas Tree Felt Ornament kit includes:

2x laser-cut dark green felt tree shapes, with lacing holes
dark green yarn for lacing
assorted laser-cut felt decor items in various colors
safety plastic lacing needle
craft sticks to aid in gluing and stuffing
cotton balls for stuffing
kid-safe, washable glue

Basic instructions for the default look, a decorated Christmas tree:

Set up a work space for gluing; with old cardboard, newspapers, wax paper, or something to avoid getting glue on the furniture
Carefully separate out the various parts from the bag
Place the two tree pieces on top of each other, lining up the holes
- (Note: they should be identical, and symmetrical, so it doesn't matter which way they go. In case they slightly vary, consider the larger one to be the "front".)
Thread the yarn onto the needle.
Starting at the topmost hole, thread the yarn through both pieces; leave about 1.5" out the top to help form a hanging loop in the end.
Lace (or "stitch") down one side and across the bottom of the tree, then about two holes up the other side
Take a cotton ball, and unroll it to be more of a strip, and/or pull it into smaller bits
Use the craft stick to tuck the cotton between the trees to stuff the ornament, starting with the furthest corner
Repeat with additional cotton balls until desired stuffed look is achieved. This is typically 4-6 balls worth; you will typically have a bit extra.
Finish lacing up the remaining side, and then go through the topmost hole again on the last stitch
Tie a knot at the top
Using the excess yarn, form a hanging loop, and tie a knot to finish it off. Trim any excess yarn.
Use the various colors and shapes to decorate the tree as you see fit. You may want to lay out your design to test it out before gluing.

Wreath Kit

The typical 2020 Wreath kit includes:

3x laser-cut green felt rings, with integral slot for wreath hangar
at least 32x laser-cut green felt holly leaves
at least 8x laser-cut red felt holly berries
laser-cut red felt "bow" shape
craft sticks to aid in gluing
kid-safe, washable glue

Basic instructions for the default look, a fairly symmetrical holly wreath:

Set up a work space for gluing; with old cardboard, newspapers, wax paper, or something to avoid getting glue on the furniture
Carefully separate out the various parts from the bag
Glue the 3 rings on top of each other, lining up the slot to match, and being generous with the glue.
(Consider the top with the slot to be "North" for purposes of the following directions)
Take 4 leaves, and glue them on top of the ring, at N, S, E, W points, with the longer axis of the leaves pointing radially, and roughly centered on the ring. Make sure the N leaf is not glued in such a way as to cover the hanging slot.

wreath with 4 leaves applied

Take 4 more leaves, and glue them on top of the ring in between the first set, at NE, NW, SE, SW points
Take 8 more leaves, and glue them on top of the ring in between the previous leaves. You should have mostly covered the ring with leaves at this point.
Take 16 more leaves, and glue them on top of the previous leaves, in between. You may wish to offset them a bit to the outside.
Take the bow shape, and glue it on top of the leaves on the bottom (the "South" position), with the arms hanging below
Take 7 berries, and glue them on top of the leaves at the N, NE, E, SE, SW, W, NW positions