Paper tube snowmen...

My grandson Patrick stayed with us for the last couple of days, and he always likes to do some crafting with Grandma (bless his heart!). With Christmas coming soon, I decided this time we would make some snowmen out of some sturdy paper tubes that I had saved.

First, I cut the tubes into three different heights, and then Patrick helped me paint them white. Then we went to work on the hats. I cut some strips of fleece that were about 4 - 5" wide by 10" or so long. I created the "roll" on the hat by first folding over about 1/2" of the fleece and hot-gluing it down. Then I hot-glued this to the edge of the paper tube. No sewing needed! Just be sure the two ends meet snugly at the back and then trim off the excess fleece.

To create the tassel at the top, I made 3/4" snips into the fleece at very short intervals along its length. I then took some embroidery thread and tied it tightly around the fabric where the snips ended. Be sure to make a good knot to hold it securely.

Patrick stuck on some self-adhesive black gems for the eyes, drew on the smiles with a black Sharpie and used some Gem-Tac glue to adhere the tiny buttons. He also picked out a ribbon from my stash to serve as a scarf for each snowman.

The "carrot" noses were probably the hardest part of the entire project. I tightly rolled some orange cardstock, making sure it came to a point at one end. I added a bit of glue once I felt I had rolled an adequate amount. I then cut it off to an appropriate length and attached it to the snowman with a bit of hot glue.

Patrick was very proud of his snowmen, saying that the smallest one is him (he's the youngest in the family) and the other two are his older sisters. They'll probably be the first Christmas decorations to be put out on the fireplace mantel at his house.

So if you've got some extra paper tubes around, along with some ribbon and fleece (or other fabric), give this simple project a try. It's a fun one to do with kids.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and remember to laugh--a little or a lot--every day.
Cheryl