Crafts for All Seasons

Here are some ideas for crafts you can enjoy according to the season.

1. Winter

Winter is a good time for crafts as parents and caregivers look for indoor entertainment. Try this necklace making craft for older kids or teens.

Snowflake Necklace

Materials:
* Necklace wire
* Needle nosed pliers
* Beads of various sizes and shades of blue, clear, and white

First, make the snowflake pendant. Bend the wire into a dime-sized circle and string beads loosely onto the circle. Twist the ring closed. You should have a small beaded ring that allows the beads to slide a bit.

Next, use the needle nosed pliers to attach eight pieces of wire about 2 inches long each between the beads at even intervals.

String beads along the pieces of wire that project from the ring. Leave about 3/16 of an inch of wire at the end of each piece. When you are satisfied with the look, use the needle nosed pliers to bend the remaining 3/16-inch piece of wire into a tiny loop to keep the beads from slipping off. Choose which "prong" you want to be the top of the snowflake, and make sure that loop is large enough to allow the necklace wire to go through.

Slip necklace wire into this top loop and string beads on either side, free-form or symmetrical. Twist the wire at the end or attach a necklace clasp. 


2. Spring

Here's a springtime craft idea for younger kids, but older ones can enjoy this, too.

Door Hanger

Materials:
* Metal coat hanger
* Green pipe cleaners
* Flowers - dried, made from tissue, construction paper, or silk
* Hot glue gun

Bend the triangular part of the coat hanger into a large diamond shape. Leave the hanger hook intact.

Wrap the diamond and hook with green pipe cleaners. Glue the flowers of your choice around the diamond shape and hang on the door.


3. Summer

It's a good time to be outdoors in the summer, and evening cookouts and parties are in full swing. Light up your summer nights with this craft.

Hanging Garden Tea Lights

Materials:
* Tealight candles (use citronella if you want to repel insects)
* Small glass jars such as baby food jars
* Thin wire
* Needle nosed pliers
* Beads

Around the rim of the jar, bend a ring of wire; then remove it and string beads on it. Put it loosely back on the jar, closing the ring slightly with the pliers.

Use the needle nosed pliers to attach two pieces of wire on either side of this ring. These are the hangers. String beads on these hanger wires, then bend the top of them into hooks. Now twist the wire of the ring, making it fairly tight. Pop in a tealight and hang from a branch or plant hanger.


4. Fall

Nature provides lots of "fall out" this time of year! Gather up some autumn leaves to make a nice placemat. Kids of all ages can help with or do this one.

Materials:
* Autumn leaves, pressed and dried
* Clear contact paper
* Construction paper
* White glue or decoupage medium
* Small paint brush with fairly stiff bristles
* Scissors

Choose a rectangle or square of construction paper in a color that will complement your leaves. Brush glue or decoupage medium carefully onto each leaf and place it where you like on the paper.

Use the glue or decoupage medium on top of the leaves to smooth them into place. Then, cover both sides of the leaf-covered construction paper with clear contact paper. (One side will have leaves; the other side will be plain.) Trim the edges to make them even.