Papercrafting

Our recent snows made everything seem right for making paper snowflakes. The kids got out the Martha Stewart Kids magazine (one of the very first issues) followed the directions, and had great results, as you can see in the photo. In the past, we have cut flakes out of interfacing, but this year we used scratch paper. It is easier to find and easier to cut.

My hope is to have the snowflakes visible from the street. I like to see the Christmas tree when we drive by, and I thought snowflakes would be a nice effect, too.

This is our first year for having snowflakes in the front room. We'd like to add more. In fact, there is a small pile of flakes waiting for me to iron and thread up tomorrow. The front entryway is the usual place for our snowflakes, and we may put some in there yet. Because of the breeze from the using the door, interfacing would be more appropriate for flakes in the hallway. You have an "aha" feeling when you enter a hallway of snowflakes!

"N" of GAIN even made tiny flakes for my scrapbook page that he knows I will make to commemorate the day. I really loved seeing him challenge himself in making progressively smaller snowflakes and feeling pleased in his work. Learning and being familiar enough with how to cut paper is a skill that brings happiness and I was satisfied in watching him go through this process.

Last year, we added a garland of paper stars, shown to me by homeschool mom Colleen, and small snowflakes to the doorframe between our hallway and kitchen. I taped them to a string of white yarn. Not sure if we'll have that again this year. It looked very pretty in the baby pink, baby blue, and white paper that we used (also scratch paper).

I started a gingerbread kid chain, just like the paper dolls my maternal grandmother would make for me. I traced a cookie cutter to get the proportions right. Grandma never used a cookie cutter for my dolls and they looked great, but I don't feel like I cheated. "I" of GAIN will need to use a marker to trace the faces and hair tomorrow, and we also need to find a place to hang or stand the "gingerbreads."

In the words of Robert Krampf,

Have a wonder-filled day.