How To Make A Christmas Angel from an Recycled Plastic Bottle

   Christmas is my favorite time of year! And because of this, I decorate anything and everything I can find to reflect the holiday spirit! This year, I created pretty little angels that cost minimal and give a beautiful end result!

 

To make them you'll need:

 

 

- A small plastic bottle, preferrably with a tapered top (a small medicine bottle is perfect)

-Enough fabric to create a circle large enough to cover the bottle and make the arms

-A small circle of white or light brown muslin

-Decorator's Moss

-White muslin for the wings

-Accessories (optional : lace, doilies, buttons, etc...)

-Hot glue gun

-Needle and thread

-Polyfill

 

 

 

First, you'll need to set your bottle on your fabric, then cut a large circle around the bottle, making sure you're allowing enough material to cover the base. (I used an 11" plate for my pattern)

Next, cut a small circle (approximately 6"). Then cut this same circle in half. These are your arms.

For the face, cut another 6" circle of the muslin. Then, holding the muslin in one hand, put some polyfill into it, cradling it in the palm of your other hand until you have a full enough face for your doll. Squeeze the muslin around the polyfill so that all the cut muslin ends meet and gather in the back - then sew it up! You should have a nice round face with an ugly gather in the back (don't worry about the back, the moss will cover it).

 

 

 

   Now, laying your dress circle on your working surface, place dabs of hot glue around the top of your bottle cap and press it gently and directly onto the center of the circle. Now, sit your bottle up! The circle should cover it like a skirt.

 Now, cut your 6" circle for the arms in half. Twist each half around a few times - these are your arms! Hot glue them directly to the top of your fabric covered bottle (look at the green doll below).

 

 

Next, with the hot glue gun, attach any accessories or added items to your doll's dress. I used decorative pearls, doilies, ribbon - anything that matched and was pretty!

 

Almost finished!

Hot glue your head on, making sure that the smooth muslin is in the front for the face.

Now, hot glue the decorator's moss onto the head, arranging it however you would like. If the moss is too long, just snip it with some scissors!

Add a dab of blush and you're done!

You now have pretty, upcycled decorative angels or dolls - or whatever you can imagine and create!

 

 

Good luck and happy holidays!!

 

 

 

 

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Creating Homemade Decorations for the Holidays

    It's almost that time of year again! Time for apple cider and aromas of cinnamon! I can almost see the trees changing color already ;).
  If you're like me, you're ready to start decorating your home already - putting up fall garlands, fall wreaths, wall hangings, quilted pillows... and so much more! You're ready to run to the nearest Michaels Arts and Crafts and grab everything premade to bring it home and decorate! And then you realize the cost and quality and think "I could just make that scarecrow myself!" and suddenly you're in every aisle, thinking creatively of everything you could piece together to make the most adoreable scarecrow in this universe!

Applique and Quilted Scarecrow Wallhanging

by Me

 

(Bigger view of same quilted wall hanging)

 

  And so, arms loaded with bags of goodies, you return home to assemble your little fella. Suddenly, your living room is strewn with crafts, glue, scissors, needles, thread - everything is laid out in eager anticipation! You sit down, wanting to do everything at once, not sure where to begin. And before you know it, your little scarecrow is put together, looking just as adoreable as you'd imagined - and it's now WAY past dinner time! My, how the time has flown!
 But doesn't it give you such a feeling of satisfaction to know that you've handmade your own decoration. To know that when you put him away and then take him out next year, he'll be that much more precious - because he was made by hand by you!   
                                                                                                      (Quilted Table Runner by Me)

 That is why crafting by hand for the holidays is such an important, if seemingly long-lost, tradition. The holiday decorations in most homes seem to be too commercial. Yes, they're cute, but they have no real value and no true attatchment to the owner because they did nothing but make a purchase!
 If you take the time (and yes, there is a lot of time required for most handmade projects) it will give you such a sense of joy for so many years, each time you take out your holiday crafts to display.
 So I encourage you to make your own holiday traditions. To have something, even if it is simple, but just something handmade that you can look at proudly each Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter - and all the other holidays!
  I wish you the best in the upcoming holiday season - and hope you keep on crafting!


       Anne

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