Fun and Easy Winter Crafts
Lying in a window or up against a door this winter, these charming homemade draft blockers will help keep indoor temperatures up and fuel bills. Both are easily made using a pair of tights and filled with rice, which makes them easy enough to tuck tightly into nooks and corners.
HEAT-SAVING SNAKE · 1 pair striped women's tights · Uncooked rice (ours took a full 5-pound bag) · Needle and thread · Fabric glue · Felt · Googly eyes · Scissors DOGGY IN THE WINDOW · 1 pair women's tights · Uncooked rice · Needle and thread · Fabric glue · Felt · Googly eyes · Scissors · Paper clips · Button
· Old belt or bracelet
HEAT-SAVING SNAKE: 1. Cut off one leg from a pair of striped women's tights and fill it with rice (ours took a full 5-pound bag). An easy, spillproof method is to use a plastic cup with the bottom cut out for a funnel. 2. Pinch the open end of the leg into itself to form a tapered snake tail and stitch it closed. 3. Glue on googly eyes. Lastly, sew on a felt tongue, using the same technique described for attaching the dog's ears (see step 3 below). DOGGY IN THE WINDOW: 1. Cut one leg from a pair of women's tights and fill it with rice. Leave enough room to tie the open end into a tight knot. 2. For a tail, apply fabric glue across the base of a felt triangle (ours was about 2 1/2 inches wide and 7 inches tall) and sandwich it around the knot. 3. Apply more glue to the sides and then fold the felt in half. Secure the tail with paper clips until the glue dries. 4. Glue on googly eyes. Attach felt ears by draping each one over the head, as shown, and then sewing the base in place. This way, when you flop the ear down, the stitching won't show.
5. For the finishing touches, sew on felt feet and a button nose (we used a triangular shank button). Then use your hands to shape the nose and body. Don't forget a collar: an old belt trimmed to fit, or even a bracelet.
This cozy cap is just the homemade gift to give for fighting brisk winter weather with easy instructions to make. Materials · Tape measure · 1/2 yard fleece fabric · Scissors · Needle and thread · Buttons, appliqués, or felt pieces for decoration · 1 yard decorative cord Winter Crafts - Instructions: 1. First, determine the size of the hat. (To avoid ruining the surprise, measure the head of someone who is similar in size to the recipient.) Now cut a piece of fleece that´s 16 inches wide and as long as the measurement you took plus 2 inches. 2. Fold the fleece in half, right side in so the 16-inch edges match up. Sew a 1/2-inch-wide seam along this edge, stopping 5 inches from the bottom. Just below the last stitch, make a 1/2-inch cut in from the side. Turn the material right side out. Now sew a seam along the last 5 inches of unsewn fleece. 3. Roll the bottom of the hat up two turns, so the cuff conceals the bottom part of the seam. To keep the cuff from unrolling, sew on a decorative button, an appliqué, or a felt cutout.
4. Finally, gather the top 3 inches of the hat and tie a colorful cord around it.
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Winter Crafts 
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