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It seems that winter is my challenging time of year for getting my work posted. I have some great projects to share. Please be patient as I get my less than professional photos together.

Glass Jar Turkey Decoration

Using the same glass jars we used for our pumpkins we created turkeys for Thanksgiving. We removed the orange and green paper, the black noses and mouths. We then created tail feathers using scrapbook paper. I solved the glue problem by using Beacon's 3 in 1 Advanced Craft Glue that I got at Michaels. The kids call it snot glue. It is thick, but gooey and stringy. It does stick to everything so far.  

Thanksgiving Turkeys

Before they become turkeys. They looked scared!

Supplies, including the Snot Glue.

Using the scrap paper was Hey's idea. Personally I thought using the traditional red, yellow, and orange tail feathers would look great. The girls wanted them to look like real feathers and thought the patterns on the scrapbook paper was the best choice. Little did I know that meant lots of different paper.  We used the orange and green paper from the pumpkins to guide the size of the brown paper for inside the jars.

Using the paper from the Pumpkin to size the paper for the inside of the Turkey Jar. 

The tracing of feathers from the template to be cut out. 

I took a chance and did one feather template free hand. I must have done 10 of them before we came up with a general consensus on the one we liked. We then used it to trace others onto the scrap paper. I think the feathers came out okay.

Tracing the hard way.

I had to tell Hey it was easier to trace it on the white side of the paper. Myrrh wanted all peacock feathers despite my discouragement. It doesn't look like a turkey to me. It looks like a peacock! Oh well, it is one of my areas of growth. Letting go and allowing my children to direct what they see as art. They are cute no matter what they may or may not look like.

Using the snot glue to attach the feathers to the jar.

I will claim credit for the yellow foam feet since that was my idea. The top hat and red scarf were again Hey's idea. She thinks that makes it a decorative turkey. The top hat was a challenge. Hey stapled the circle of the hat. Then she taped the top from the inside. It doesn't look good from the inside, but it works all the same from the outside.

Taping the top of the hat.

Finished hat. See you barely can see the mess.

The beaks and red gobble neck on one of the turkeys were cut from vinyl type shape stickers that we had.

Completed set of Thanksgiving Turkey Jars.

Turkey with a gobble.

The snot glue was very helpful this time keeping the tail feathers attached to the jar and the red scarf. Just think if we had discovered how good the snot glue was to begin with, we may never have gotten the pumpkin jars that we are able to transition for every holiday. Wait until you see the Christmas jars!  Until then, happy crafting. I am linking up to these craft parties!

Glass Jar Pumpkin Decorations

This is truly a kid created craft. My girls wanted to turn some empty jars we had into pumpkins. They wanted to paint the glass jars orange and the lids brown or green. We didn't have any paint that would stay on glass. Myrrh and Hey started to brainstorm ideas. They decided they wanted to glue or tape paper to the outside of the jar. There was a suggestion that they cut jack o'lantern patterns in the paper then use a candle on the inside to illuminate it. I thought that sounded cool, jack o'lanterns with tea lights inside the glass.

Glass Jar Jack O'Lanterns

Then the paper didn't want to stay on the jars with glue. I don't know how it all happened, but the paper ended up on the inside. When I told them they couldn't put candles on the inside with the paper they decided they would put faces on the outside of the jar. Stickers worked where the glue had failed. I haven't seen anyone else use paper inside of a jar as a decoration. It isn't the best looking thing, but creative. My little artists never cease to amaze me.

Supplies:

Glass Jars without labels

Colored construction or cardstock paper

Ruler

Scissors

Stapler

Foam Stickers

Googly Eye stickers

1. Soak the jars in warm soapy water to remove the labels.

Soaking labels off bottles

2. Dry the jars out. 

Myrrh drying out the inside of the jars.

 3. Cut the paper to the proper size to fit the size of the jar. They used a Cricut paper cutter to get a straight edge.

Cutting paper down to size.

4. Roll the paper to fit into the jar. Measure the height of the jar to determine how short the paper roll needs to be inside the jar.

Measuring the jar to cut the paper to the right size.

 5. Cut the paper to the proper size to fit as close to the inside wall of the jar as possible.  

The orange paper cut to fit the bottom section of the jar.

6. For the top piece, green stem of the pumpkin, you will need to measure and cut again. Roll it to the proper size. Staple it into a roll so it stays uniform in size.

Added the green paper for the pumpkin stem.

7. Choose your decorations for the outside. My girls decided to use foam stickers to create the nose and mouth.

 

Foam stickers that got slaughtered for the girls idea of a face.

 

8. They decided the $1 store stickers were to big for the jars, so they cut out their own faces. 

 

Glass jars decorated as pumpkins. 

 

They don't look like jack o'lanterns to me (more like ghosts), but the girls loved them just the same. They were very proud of their creation and displayed them in our front window for all the neighbors to see.

Sure they could have filled them with candy corn, or some other clever thing, but these are their unique creations. The beauty of them being paper and stickers is that we can recycle the jars for the next project. I have plans for the next holiday for these, just wait and see.

  I am linking up to these craft parties!