Crafty Kids

First off - if you are a grandparent to my children STOP READING THIS POST. {Unless you've already received your gift}

Have you stopped?


Still reading?


Okay, now that that's out of the way I can share with the rest of the class. ;)

Our parents & grandparents know should expect by now that they'll always receive an updated family photo from us each Christmas. This year they're also getting wreath ornaments made out of buttons. I had some directions saved on my computer for sometime now and decided to finally put them to use. One week before I needed the finished products I finally gathered all of my supplies {wire, buttons & ribbon} and the night before we left for California I sat with the kids to make the ornaments. Surprisingly Shawn sat down to help out too. We ate pizza, strung buttons onto wire and thought of all that was left to do before heading to the airport at 4am. Have I mentioned that I'm a procrastinator before? We had 10 ornaments to make and I thought it would go pretty quickly. I was wrong. Do you know how long it takes to put approximately 72 buttons onto a 9" piece of wire? Longer than you'd think. They all got done though. Michael finished one and started another before he got bored of it. Lydia was determined to finish one all on her own with no help at all. And she did. Shawn & I finished the rest, keeping one for our own tree. :D Next year I'm going to think of something fun for them to do that will hold their interest a little longer.

We kept the ornament with the white & clear buttons. The directions called to use binding {or something like that} for the bow and the ribbon only for the loop but when you get supplies last minute you use what you got. Click on the button above to see what others are talkin' about.

Updated: I've added directions for making these ornaments should anyone {or your children} be interested in trying it out.

TECHNIQUE
Needle-nose pliers or wire cutters
16-gauge copper wire, or 22-gauge green floral wire, cut to 9-inch lengths
72 buttons for each wreath
Scissors
Satin ribbon, 1/8 inch wide and 6 inches long
Seam binding for decorative bow

1. Using pliers, make a small loop at one end of the wire.

2. Thread buttons onto the wire until you have enough to form the size of the wreath you want. Our wreaths are 2 1/2 inches in diameter.

3. Using pliers, bend the plain end of the wire around the looped end. This will form the wreath.

4. Use the satin ribbon to make a loop for hanging the wreath; tie the ribbon in a knot about 3 inches above the wreath.

5. Tie a bow of seam binding to decorate the wreath.