I love the idea of making a special gift for children during the holiday season! This is a gift that little ones won’t see coming and will be completely surprised when opening the them! These will be a wonderful addition to any holiday toy collection and will be so fun to bring out year after year. These holiday magnetic tiles will become a special and cherished holiday toy in your home or classroom! 

Ready to give it a try!? Here’s what you’ll need..

Supplies for the DIY Leaf Activity for Kids:

• Clear Magnetic Tiles– This activity has been such a big hit that the first set of magnetic tiles that I used is sold out on Amazon and their website! They tend to go back in and out of stock, so you can TAP HERE to see if they are currently available. If they are not in stock, then try the following brands! I have used these as well and they work well for the DIY! This Magna-Tile set comes with 16 tiles and I found its the perfect amount to mix in with our regular colorful set of tiles. Imagsimags also work well and of course Connetix Tiles are gorgeous! 
• Holiday Themed Stickers– This is a nice set of stickers for this activity! This sticker set comes with one set of opaque stickers and the exact same set of matte/translucent stickers. I was a little confused when I first opened the set, so thought I’d mention it here! 
• Light Pad– This is optional, but a fun accessory for any magnetic tile fan! You can see this in action on my Pressed Flower Magnetic Tile Post. 
• Flameless Tea Lights– I started adding these lights to my magnetic tile section of my classroom and they are a big hit! The kids like building towers and adding tea lights to the different levels of their buildings. 

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RELATED: HOW TO MAKE ICE LANTERS

Here’s How I Made the Holiday Magnetic Tiles:

These are so easy to make! Just peel the stickers and place them on the magnetic tiles. Again, make sure you are peeling the matte/translucent stickers. The opaque stickers definitely do not look as pretty on the tiles!

The poinsettia stickers in this set are GORGEOUS and look pretty when you place a couple of them together on the same magnetic tile! Make sure you cut off any excess sticker that hangs off the side of the tile. 

I absolutely love the Santa and the Merry Christmas tiles! They are so cute and perfect for the holiday season.

These are so pretty when you play with them near a window! The light shines throw them and make beautiful sun catchers. 

If you like these, you might also like my pressed flower magnetic tiles and leafy magnetic tiles! 

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I hope you enjoy this Holiday DIY activity as much as I do!

-Tara

Need more Holiday ideas?! Check out:

Make Your Own Wax Paper Bookmark

Air Dry Clay Dish for the Holidays

The post Holiday DIY Magnetic Tiles appeared first on Little Pine Learners.

Here is my fall version of my viral pressed flower magnetic tiles! I loved that DIY so much that I had to recreate it for fall and I *think* I like these even more than the flowers! The leaf stickers that I found are so realistic and stunning. These tiles are incredibly durable and the pressed leaf stickers have a strong adhesive.  This DIY toy is perfect for little hands!

These make a wonderful and unique birthday or holiday gift for kids! They would be perfect to add to a fall equinox gift basket. Make a bunch of these magnetic tiles and place them in a basket along with fall books and other fun fall gifts, and give it to a special child in your life!

Ready to give it a try!? Here’s what you’ll need..

Supplies for the DIY Leaf Activity for Kids:

• Clear Magnetic Tiles– This activity has been such a big hit that the first set of magnetic tiles that I used is sold out on Amazon and their website! They tend to go back in and out of stock, so you can TAP HERE to see if they are currently available. If they are not in stock, then try the following brands! I have used these as well and they work well for the DIY! This Magna-Tile set comes with 16 tiles and I found its the perfect amount to mix in with our regular colorful set of tiles. Imagsimags also work well and of course Connetix Tiles are gorgeous! 
• Pressed Leaf Stickers– The adhesive on these brands are super strong and great for this activity!  This set of leaf stickers offers larger leaves and allows for one leaf per tile. 
• Light Pad– This is optional, but a fun accessory for any magnetic tile fan! You can see this in action on my Pressed Flower Magnetic Tile Post. 
• Flameless Tea Lights– I started adding these lights to my magnetic tile section of my classroom and they are a big hit! 

This post contains Affiliate links for your convenience.

Here’s How I Made the Magnetic Tiles:

These are so easy to make! Just peel the leaves and stick them on the magnetic tiles. You can combine the small and large leaf stickers or place just one sticker on each tile. It’s up to you how you want to decorate them!

How to Play with these Leafy Magnetic Tiles!

Try identifying the leaves with your child. It’s a fun challenge and great way to learn nature identification. The perfect leaf activity for kids!

They looked so beautiful in the sunlight! This presented a great opportunity to learn about shadows! The leaf shadows are gorgeous and fun to look at.

We also had fun stacking them on our sliding door. The tiles made a pretty sun catcher! They are also fun to arrange on the refrigerator or any metal surface. 

These are also so fun to play with on a light pad! The magnetic tiles are almost like DIY pressed leaf specimens. I’ve had this same light pad in my early childhood classroom for years and it has proven to be durable and long lasting! I guarantee the children will love stacking the tiles on and around the light pad!

We also loved making fall castles! My kindergarteners loved making up stories about the king and queen that lived inside the leafy castle. This fall activity offers kids the great opportunity to work on their language skills through storytelling! 

There are so many ways to play with these magnetic tiles! Perhaps the best way is to place them with other loose parts toys and let children come up with their own activities! The sky is the limit with these. 

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Here is a magnetic tile castle with flameless tea lights! So pretty. 

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I hope you enjoy this leaf activity as much as I do!

-Tara

Need more simple nature ideas?! Check out:

Stunning Leaf Lanterns

Leaf Sensory Writing Tray

The post A Leaf Activity for Kids appeared first on Little Pine Learners.

I recently purchased these stickers for my pressed flower magnetic tile DIY activity! I thought mushrooms and butterflies would be fun variations for the project, but quickly realized these stickers didn’t work well for that idea. They have a matte outline around the sticker, which I didn’t love on the clear magnetic tiles.

However, I absolutely LOVED the stickers and started thinking about new ways to use them. I tested them out on different surfaces and thought they were perfect on air dry clay! These stickers are very thin / flexible and the matte surface blends in perfectly with the color and texture of clay. 

If you love this craft, you might also love our nature pinch pots!

Ready to make a few dishes? Here’s what you’ll need..

Supplies:

• Air dried clay 
• Rolling pin
• Small bowl
• Knife
• Stickers- I have these mushroom and butterfly stickers. They are a washi style sticker and are very thin and moldable. I would not use a regular sticker because they would stick out too much and wouldn’t blend in as well with the clay. 
• Metallic paint- I used a metallic gold tempera paint for this project and didn’t love it. I needed to apply several coats and it still didn’t cover well. This gold leaf paint is highly recommended for clay crafts and I will be using this in the future. 
• Mod Podge– We used matte for this project.

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Here’s How We Made Our Clay Trinket Dishes:

Step 1: Prepare clay

Prepare your work space and roll the clay into a ball. Air dry clay is pretty sticky when it’s fresh out of the container, which makes it a little difficult to work with. I suggest letting it sit out for about 10 minutes to let it dry up a bit before starting your clay dish!

I covered a wooden cutting board with wax paper to keep the clay from sticking to the surface. 

Step 2: Roll out the clay trinket dish.

Use a rolling pin to flatten the clay. I suggest using a designated rolling pin for crafting projects. Roll clay until it is about 1/4 of an inch thick. 

Step 3: Cut out clay dish shape. 

Find a small bowl for your dish shape. Place it on top of the flattened clay to cut out the dish. Then, gently pull the excess clay away from the dish shape. If children are involved in this craft, make sure they are using a blunt knife or help them with this step.

Step 4: Lay clay dish in the bowl. 

Use the same bowl as used in step 3. Place the clay in the bowl and let it dry for about 24 hours. Placing the clay piece in a bowl, will help form a slight dip in your dish. After 24 hours, place the clay dish on a drying rack, to dry the underside of clay. The clay will turn slightly tan while drying, but will be a nice shade of white when completely dried. 

Step 5: Paint

Some people sand the edges to make them perfect at this point, but I skipped that step! I personally like the minor imperfections. Once the dishes are completely dry, use metallic paint to form a fancy rim around the dishes. I think this really elevated the look of the pieces! 

Step 6: Stickers

I played around with different sticker designs on the dishes before peeling and sticking. Once I found designs that I liked, I stuck them on the dishes. Carefully place the stickers on the clay dishes, avoiding lines and ripples in the stickers. 

Step 8: Seal the clay trinket dish.

Use a THIN layer of matte Mod Podge to seal the dish. Do not use a lot of sealer for this particular craft. These stickers are so thin, that they will pucker up a bit when covered with Mod Podge, but they should flattened out when dried! 

I absolutely love how these clay trinket dishes turned out! I tried to pick a favorite, but I just can’t decide. Which one do you like the most?!

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I hope you try making a clay trinket dish! I promise, your little nature lovers will love it as much as my boys.

∼Tara

Need more nature craft ideas?! Check out:

Homemade Pencil Case with Nature Prints

DIY Pressed Flower Night Light

The post Clay Trinket Dish appeared first on Little Pine Learners.

It’s no secret that I LOVE evergreen crafts! I made these lamps for my mom and mother-in-law for Christmas this year and I wanted to wait to see how they would hold up before I shared it with you all! As you can see in the photos, they still look beautiful months later. The shade of green has lightened just a bit, but still looks very green and tree-like!

I shared one in my Instagram stories about a month ago and many of you wanted to know how to make it, so here is my tutorial. I think you will find that these are extremely easy to make. Sometimes adding just a little detail to something makes all the difference in the world! 

With Father’s Day right around the corner, the gem-less version would make a great handmade gift for dad, grandpa or any other special guy in your life! 

Ready to give it a try!? Here’s what you’ll need..

Supplies for the Lampshade:

• • Lamp- I used this lamp and like the size and worked well of the craft. Just be aware that this has a USB plug. I own this lamp and this lamp and they are nice options as well!
  • Mod Podge- I used the matte version for the lampshade.
  • Mod Podge brushes 
  • Evergreen pieces- I picked some cedar branches from my yard!
  • Gemstone Stickers– Try adding these stickers if you want to turn your tree into a Christmas tree!

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Related: Evergreen Lanterns

Here’s How I Made this Tree Lampshade:

Step 1: Gather evergreen pieces.

Head outdoors and collect some branches for your lampshade! I picked different sizes and shapes so I could place them on my lampshade to see which one fits and looks best. These little branches are from our cedar tree. 

Step 2: Trim your evergreen pieces. 

I trimmed the bottom part of the pieces to make them look more tree-like.

Step 3: Add Mod Podge.

Next, add a layer of Mod Podge on the lampshade. I suggest covering the entire side with Mod Podge because even though I used matte, it still looks a bit shiny when dried. 

Step 4: Place evergreen piece on the lampshade. 

Arrange your evergreen piece on the layer of Mod Podge. Make sure it is centered and straight!

Step 5: More Mod Podge and let it dry.

Add a liberal layer of Mod Podge over the evergreen piece. The cedar piece is pretty thick and heavy, so it requires quite a bit of Mod Podge. The evergreen piece might pop up throughout the drying process, so you will probably need to check back on it to make sure it’s pressed down against the lampshade.  The drying process might take a few hours!

I even laid a pair of scissors on the piece of cedar to make sure it dried flat. 

It looked so pretty when finished! I have pictures below of the tree lamp in different settings. The first two pictures show the lampshade with the gem stickers and the third photo shows the lampshade without the gem stickers. 

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I hope you enjoy this nature craft as much as I do!

-Tara

Need more simple nature ideas?! Check out:

Make Your Own Bookmark with Wax Paper

Evergreen Clay Dishes

The post DIY Tree Lampshade appeared first on Little Pine Learners.

This super handy match jar not only looks beautiful, but is soooo useful as well! It’s very accessible since it is left out as a decoration and is a great conversation piece. It also cuts down on clutter and combines a match holder and striker, into one nice container. 

I also love that you can reuse a small condiment jar to create this cute match holder. You can decorate the jar however you would like, but of course I instantly reached for my pressed flower stash! They make everything so pretty. 

Ready to give it a try!? Here’s what you’ll need..

Supplies for the Match Striker Sticker Jar Craft:

• • Jar- Reuse an old jar or purchase a cute vintage jar from the thrift shop! Check out how to remove labels from jars HERE!
  • Mod Podge- I used the matte version for the lampshade. 
  • Pressed flowers– You can always press your own flowers if you have them available in your garden! If you currently don’t have flowers to press, then I suggest going with Amazon. I’ve used many pressed flowers from Amazon for my crafts and am happy to recommend them as well. I love this set from Amazon, this set, and this set! There are a ton of options available! Just type “pressed flowers” in the search bar and a bunch of options will show up. 
  • Match Striker Stickers- Here are the different sizes and shapes available: 2 inch circles, 1 inch circles, variety pack, and a cute rainbow match set with a 2 sizes!
  • Strike Anywhere Matches

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Here’s How I Made the Match Striker Jar:

Step 1: Think of a pressed flower design. 

You have a blank slate on the jar, so play around with different flower designs before you add Mod Podge. 

Step 2: Mod Podge

Apply a layer of Mod Podge on your jar. I prefer to use a small foam brush for this step, but I only had a paintbrush available. 

Step 3: Pressed Flowers

Place pressed flowers on the layer of Mod Podge. A tweezer is always helpful if you are having difficulties picking up the pressed flowers. 

Step 4: Mod Podge

Apply a layer of Mod Podge over the pressed flowers. Let the jar dry before the next step. 

Step 5: Match Striker Sticker

I got the 2 inch stickers and they were a bit too big for my jar, so I cut them down to size and placed them on the bottom of the jars. I also thought it would be cute to cut the sticker into a heart shape for Valentine’s Day!

Now your jar is all set and ready to use! Strike the match against the sticker and light your candle!

This jar is meant to be decorative and looks beautiful on the living room or a bathroom shelf. 

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I hope you enjoy this useful craft as much as I do!

-Tara

Need more simple nature ideas?! Check out:

Frozen Fruit Bowl for Animals

DIY Sun Art Paper Lanterns

The post Match Striker Sticker Jar Craft appeared first on Little Pine Learners.

If these look familiar that’s because we made beautiful Christmas bookmarks using the similar supplies. I slightly switched up the process for making these dried flower bookmarks and liked this way just a little more! I cut the bookmarks to size first instead of towards the end of the process. Both ways will work, but this helped with placement of the pieces of nature.

Ready to give it a try!? Here’s what you’ll need..

Supplies:

• • Wax paper
  • Towel or ironing board
  • Iron
  • Scissors or portable paper trimmer
  • Dried flowers– It’s the middle of winter for us, so I purchased some pressed flowers from Etsy. The large pressed poppy flowers are from this shop and the wildflower mix are from this shop! I love supporting these beautiful pressed flower businesses from Etsy, but these flowers took over a week to arrive at my house. If you need pressed flowers quickly, then I suggest going with Amazon. I’ve used many pressed flowers from Amazon for my crafts and am happy to recommend them as well. I love this set from Amazon. 

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Related: Check out this adorable 20+ Beautiful Pressed Flower Crafts

Here’s How I Made these DIY Wax Paper Lanterns:

Step 1:

First, fold a piece of wax paper in half and cut them to the size you would like. The entire piece of wax paper, unfolded, was 7.5 inches by 8 inches. Please experiment with different sized pieces of wax paper and use the size that works best for you!

This portable trimmer isn’t necessary, but makes cutting straight lines much easier. 

Step 2:

Unfold the piece of wax paper and place dried flowers on one side of the crease.

Step 3:

Fold your piece of wax paper over the dried flowers. 

Step 4:

As soon as your iron hits the wax paper, it will fuse together! It’s a neat process to observe. I quickly ran the iron over the wax paper several times, then I flipped it over and did the same thing on that side. 

There may be air bubbles around thicker flowers. That’s ok, it’s impossible to iron all of the air bubbles out. In my experience, since the flowers are already pressed and dried, they are preserved and will keep their vibrant color. 

Step 5:

Now trim your bookmark if necessary. 

I absolutely love how these turned out! They look so pretty when you hold them near a window. We actually made beautiful suncatchers with the same material!

These make a beautiful handmade gift for any holiday or occasion! We plan on handing these out for Valentine’s Day. I think a bookmark and a sweet book make a great gift for a friend! This would make a great birthday or Mother’s Day gift as well!

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I hope you try to make your dried flower bookmark! I promise, your little nature lovers will love it as much as my boys.

∼Tara

Need more simple nature ideas?! Check out:

Pressed Flower Suncatchers

DIY Pressed Flower Candles

The post Pressed and Dried Flower Bookmarks appeared first on Little Pine Learners.

Making a pressed flower lantern is so easy and the results are always gorgeous. The pressed flowers will keep their vibrant color since they are preserved, making this a colorful and beautiful decoration for your home! 

Ready to give it a try!? Here’s what you’ll need..

Supplies for your Pressed Flower Lantern:

• Jar- Any pasta sauce, juice or jelly jar will work!

• Mod podge- I used the matte variety for the the purple pansies lanterns and it gave the lantern a frosted effect. I used the glossy variety for a colorful wildflower lanterns shown at the end of the post and that gave the lantern a beautiful shinny finish! I suggest the combo pack to try each type and it also comes with foam brushes!

• Foam brush– These are very helpful for spreading Mod Podge on the jar.

• Pressed flowers– If you don’t have any flowers to press or are feeling impatient, you can always find a variety of pressed flowers on Amazon or purchase a bouquet to press at home. Here is a beautiful variety pack that includes pansies on Amazon and here is a beautiful wildflower pack from ETSY! 

• Flameless tea light candle

• Twine or string

• Tweezers- These are helpful for picking up delicate pressed flowers.

• Equal parts cooking oil and baking soda- This mixture will remove stubborn labels or printed expiration dates from jars and leave them sparkling clean.

• You also might like this beautiful Wooden Pressed Flower Organizer to keep all of your flowers readily accessible. 

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How to Press Flowers:

Look for flowers with a single layer of petals and have fun experimenting with different types of flowers! We love pressing pansies and wild violets during spring. Don’t forget to press the leaves!

Once you pick your flowers or buy a bouquet, place them between two pieces of wax paper in a book and close the book. Place a couple more books on top and check back in a week or two. If they are not dried, then let them press for another week and check on them again. Continue this cycle until they are dried. I have a more extensive guide on pressing flowers in 20+ Pressed Flower Crafts. 

How to Remove the Label from your Jar:

Step 1:

Give your jar a hot water bath! Let your jars sit in hot water for about 10 minutes to loosen the glue behind the label. Be careful when handling the hot jar and don’t use boiling water! Take the jars out of the water and peel off as much of the label as you can at this point.

Step 2:

Next, mix equal parts cooking oil and baking soda. I used two tablespoons of each. Rub it on what is left of your label and let it sit for about 30 minutes. Peel off the rest of the label and rub the glue off the jar. I like to fill the jar with more warm/hot water at this point to continue loosening the glue. You can also run the jar under warm water and add a little more baking soda mixture to get the last bits and pieces off.

How to Make the Jar Lantern:

Step 1:

Apply a thin layer of Mod Podge to a third of your jar with your foam brush. Don’t put too much Mod Podge on your jar at one time or it will dry before you get the chance to apply the pieces of nature.

Step 2:

Gently pick up the pressed pieces of nature with your fingers or tweezers and place them on the Mod Podge. I had to press some of the thicker leaves for about 30 seconds to help them stick to the Mod Podge. Finish your jar and let the Mod Podge dry completely.

Step 3:

After the first layer of Mod Podge is dry, add another layer of Mod Podge over the jar and pressed pieces of nature. This will protect the pieces of nature and keep them from peeling up as they dry.

How to Make the Jar Lantern Handle:

Step 1:

Tie twine around the neck of the jar two times and give it a double knot on one side of the jar. Cut any excess twine.

Step 2:

Take another piece of twine and weave it through the twine on one side of the jar. This can be tricky since the twine is tied tightly around the neck of the jar, but this method worked for all of my jar crafts! Once you wiggle/push the twine through, tie another double knot on that side. Do this same step on the other side of the jar. Again, cut any excess twine.

Your handle is all set. You can take this on an evening nature walk! Make sure you bring it inside when finished because Mod Podge is somewhat water resistant, but not waterproof.

They also make the perfect decoration for a table or shelf. They add a touch of whimsy to any space! Here is another version of our pressed flower lantern. This lantern is made with pressed wildflowers and sealed with the glossy Mod Podge. Which version do you like more!

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I hope you try making a jar lantern! I promise, your little nature lovers will love it as much as my boys.

∼Tara

Need more simple nature ideas?! Check out:

Butterfly Symmetry Craft

How We Used Story Stones on Earth Day

The post Jar Lantern with Pressed Flowers appeared first on Little Pine Learners.

These tic-tac-toe rocks are so fun to make! You can use special flowers from your yard that you dried yourself or purchase a pack of pressed flowers from Amazon. 

Try making Tic-Tac-Toe rocks for every season by painting simple pictures on the stones. For fall you can make pumpkin and spider stones and for winter try painting snowflakes and simple evergreen tree stones. The possibilities are endless! 

Ready to make a DIY Tic-Tac-Toe game? Here’s what you’ll need….

Supplies:

• 10 Rocks- Make sure your rocks are a little larger than your pressed pieces of nature. 
• You can also find stones in craft stores, landscape shops,  or Amazon.
• White paint
• Paintbrush
• Pressed Pieces of Nature- You will need 2 sets of game pieces with 5 similar types of nature. We made 1 set with 5 pressed flowers and another set with 5 pressed leaves. This set looks nice and this set does too!
• Mod Podge– Play around with gloss and matte finish to see which you like more. 
• Tweezers– These are helpful for small and delicate petals.
• 4 Sticks- Make sure they are large enough to fit your unique pieces of nature. Our sticks are about 12 inches (30.5cm) long.

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RELATED: Check out 10+ Simple and Beautiful Stone Activities for Kids!

Here’s How We Made This Beautiful Tic-Tac-Toe Game:

Step 1:

Paint your rocks white. Paint one side of the rock and let it dry. Then flip it over and paint the other side of the rock and let it dry.

Step 2:

Put a dab of Mod Podge on the rock and place your pressed piece of nature on the Mod Podge. The Mod Podge does not need to dry before moving on to the next step.

Step 3:

Cover the rock and pressed piece of nature with a coat of Mod Podge. Let the Mod Podge dry.

Step 4:

Repeat this process for all of your rock game pieces and let them dry thoroughly.

Step 5:

Set up you Tic-Tac-Toe grid with the sticks – Lay 2 sticks vertically about 4 inches (10 cm) apart and lay the other 2 sticks horizontally on top of the other sticks about 4 inches (10 cm) apart.

How to Play with the DIY Tic-Tac-Toe Board

1. One person has the flower rocks and the other person has the leaf rocks.
2. Players take turns putting their stones in the empty squares.
3. The first player to get three of 3 of his/her stones in a row (up, down, across, or diagonally) is the winner!

You can make a special bag for your game pieces and play over and over again!

Pin this activity to save it for later!

I hope you give this nature activity a try! I promise, your little nature lovers will love this activity as my boys.

∼Tara

Looking for more nature craft ideas?! Check out:

Preserving Flowers in Resin

Magical Pressed Flower Lanterns

The post DIY Tic-Tac-Toe appeared first on Little Pine Learners.

We made a leaf version of this lantern last fall and loved them so much that we HAD to try them again for a sweet winter decoration. 

We have accumulated quite the beautiful collection of these wax paper lanterns! I suggest making a few of them and placing them together for a more dramatic effect. We have our lanterns placed in front of the wood stove. I keep thinking we have a fire going because they are so bright and add a nice warm glow to our home.

If these look familiar that’s because we made beautiful wax paper bookmarks using the same supplies. You could make both crafts at the same time!

Ready to give it a try!? Here’s what you’ll need..

Supplies:

• • Arborvitae Pieces
  • Wax paper
  • Towel or ironing board
  • Scissors or portable paper trimmer
  • Tape
  • Flameless candles
  • Gem Stickers (optional)

This post contains Affiliate links for your convenience.

Related: Check out this adorable Rosemary Wreath Necklace

Here’s How I Made these DIY Wax Paper Lanterns:

Step 1:

Clip some arborvitae pieces. Next, turn on your iron to a medium high setting. If your wax paper doesn’t stick together, then turn your iron up to a higher setting. 

Step 2:

Cut a large piece of wax paper, fold it in half to make a crease, and open it back up again. My whole piece is about 32 inches long. 

Place your arborvitae piece on one half of the piece of wax paper. 

Step 3:

Fold your piece of wax paper over the arborvitae piece. This doesn’t need to be perfect because you can always trim it up later.

Step 4:

As soon as your iron hits the wax paper, it will fuse together! It’s a neat process to observe. I quickly ran the iron over the wax paper several times, then I flipped it over and did the same thing on that side. There will be some air bubbles and creases after ironing, but those add character! They make the lantern look like a beautiful frosted candle!

Step 5:

Now trim your paper to make it the height and width you would like. This is also when you can trim up those rough edges. You can use scissors, but I find this paper trimmer pretty handy! I wanted this lantern to be shorter, so I trimmed a lot off the top. 

Since there is an air pocket around the arborvitae piece, the green will fade a bit over time. They are just too thick to seal 100%.

Step 6:

This step is optional. We added some small gem stickers to mimic Christmas lights. They are pretty small and only noticeable during the day! You can’t really see them at night with the candle turned on.

Step 7:

Roll your paper to make a cylinder and tape the wax paper lantern together where the edges meet.

Now choose how you would like to light your lantern. If you will be adding a string handle and want to carry the lantern, you can tape a flameless candle on the inside of the lantern as pictured below.

You can hang your lantern with a string handle!

I love how beautiful these DIY wax paper lanterns look at night! We placed them in front of our Christmas tree and they look STUNNING.

But I have to say, they look just as beautiful during the day. The little gem stickers look so pretty in the sunlight. 

Pin it and save it for later!

I hope you give these DIY wax paper lanterns a try! I promise, your little nature lovers will love it as much as my boys.

∼Tara

Need more simple nature ideas?! Check out:

Jar Pine Lantern

Clay Dish with Evergreen Pieces

The post DIY Wax Paper Lantern appeared first on Little Pine Learners.

Here is a little helpful hint before we get started! Prep the air-dry clay before using it. When the clay first comes out of the container it’s pretty sticky and can be difficult to work with. Open the lid to your air-dry clay for about 30 minutes before you use it. This will dry it out just a bit, making it easier to handle. 

Ready to make an air dry clay dish? Here’s what you’ll need….

Supplies:

• Pine Needles
• Wax Paper
• Rolling Pin
• Circular Tupperware Container- about 4-5 inches in diameter
• Butter Knife
• Air Dry Clay
• Matte Mod Podge
• Sticker gems– If you want to turn your tree into a Christmas tree!

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RELATED: Check out Pine Tree Jar Lanterns

Here’s How We Made Our Clay Dish:

Step 1:

Place a sheet of wax paper on your work surface. Evenly roll the clay with a rolling pin about ¼ inch thick.

Step 2:

Using your Tupperware container as a guide, cut out a circle of your clay. Use a dull butter knife to cut out your shape.

Step 3:

Pinch up the edges of the circular clay piece to form a functional tray. Smooth out any fingernail or fingerprint marks.

Step 4:

Place pine needles along the border of the tray, near the pinched edge. Gently press one or two pine needles at a time into the clay. This will help them stay in place when you apply Mod Podge. Don’t place too many pine needles in one area, or they will not stick to the clay.

Step 5:

Put a layer of Mod Podge over the pine needles. This will seal the pine needles and prevent them from falling out. During this step, gently press the pine needles into the clay one more time! Let the clay dry. Follow the directions on your air-dry clay container to see how long your particular clay will take to dry.

Step 6:

After your clay trays are dried, you can choose to add gem stickers if you want to make them a bit more festive. For this tray, we added clusters of red gem stickers to mimic winterberries. This will look like a beautiful wreath when you are all finished!

We took a different approach for this tray. Instead of using a Tupperware lid as a shape guide, we used a large evergreen tree cookie cutter. Then we added pine needles. Mod Podge, and gem stickers!

Do you like these tree dishes plain or with gem stickers?

If these look familiar, that’s because we made a similar dish a couple of years ago! Click on the photo below to learn more about the craft and the type of evergreen we used.

Pin it to save it for later!

I hope you make a clay dish! I promise, your little nature lovers will love this craft as my boys.

∼Tara

Looking for more Christmas activity ideas?! Check out:

Irresistible DIY Reindeer Ornament

Handmade Nature and Cardboard Ornament

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