I'm going to interrupt the quilling art for some nature crafts today... fun for kids, families, groups of all kinds. You just need to collect some milk weed pods, golden rod galls, acorns and pine cones when you're out on one of those nature hikes you take for fun and good health. Keep an eye out for stray feathers too, if you can find some gifted to you by wild birds. Of course, the golf tee is only found in nature if you're walking on a golf course. ;o) Otherwise, you can probably get those at dollar, craft or sports stores.
This is the bird... I love the shadow in this photo. Choose a longer milk weed pod for the body, and two slightly curled ones for the wings. The golden rod gall makes the head... leave the stem longer on one side to be glued onto the bird body, and create a nice "beak" on the other end. Then affix the feather for the tail. The tail can also be made with strips of paper which you can curl with a knife or a blade of scissors. Use a glue gun for all gluing.. it just works best. Just a little craft glue gun is great. The kids might like to add some glitter sparkle for fun too. You can use a little fish line to hang this in your window, or just set it into a plant, or of course, on the tree at holiday time.
This is the angel. Pick out two nice milk weed pods for wings. Glue the acorn onto the top of the pine cone. You may have to clip the top piece of the pine cone off first. The acorn is the head of course, and the golf tee should be glued on to look like a trumpet. Then glue the wings on at a nice angle and you have an angel! I like to paint my angels white and the trumpet gold with craft paint. My mom used to paint hers all gold. It's personal preference! You can add a piece of ribbon, string or line for hanging it, or just set it on a table for decoration. If you're going to do this, be sure to choose a pine cone that sits nicely.
Again, if you don't have feathers, you can also make the bird tail out of strips of paper by gluing on several strips and curling them with scissors or a knife. I usually toast the galls, acorns and even the pine cones in the oven to make sure they're clean before I put them in my craft supplies. Just spread them out on a cookie sheet and toast them at 250 degrees for 20 mins. Since the milk weed pods are generally still on the stem when picked, I just empty the seeds outside and brush off the pods. But the cones and acorns are usually picked off the ground. The golden rod galls are formed by insects, so I even though they're on a stem, I toast them too, just to make sure there are no tenants. ;o)
Enjoy those nature walks and have fun with the crafts! They make great little gifts, either made up, or all the makings put together in a "kit" for the giftee to enjoy making.
This is the bird... I love the shadow in this photo. Choose a longer milk weed pod for the body, and two slightly curled ones for the wings. The golden rod gall makes the head... leave the stem longer on one side to be glued onto the bird body, and create a nice "beak" on the other end. Then affix the feather for the tail. The tail can also be made with strips of paper which you can curl with a knife or a blade of scissors. Use a glue gun for all gluing.. it just works best. Just a little craft glue gun is great. The kids might like to add some glitter sparkle for fun too. You can use a little fish line to hang this in your window, or just set it into a plant, or of course, on the tree at holiday time.
This is the angel. Pick out two nice milk weed pods for wings. Glue the acorn onto the top of the pine cone. You may have to clip the top piece of the pine cone off first. The acorn is the head of course, and the golf tee should be glued on to look like a trumpet. Then glue the wings on at a nice angle and you have an angel! I like to paint my angels white and the trumpet gold with craft paint. My mom used to paint hers all gold. It's personal preference! You can add a piece of ribbon, string or line for hanging it, or just set it on a table for decoration. If you're going to do this, be sure to choose a pine cone that sits nicely.
Again, if you don't have feathers, you can also make the bird tail out of strips of paper by gluing on several strips and curling them with scissors or a knife. I usually toast the galls, acorns and even the pine cones in the oven to make sure they're clean before I put them in my craft supplies. Just spread them out on a cookie sheet and toast them at 250 degrees for 20 mins. Since the milk weed pods are generally still on the stem when picked, I just empty the seeds outside and brush off the pods. But the cones and acorns are usually picked off the ground. The golden rod galls are formed by insects, so I even though they're on a stem, I toast them too, just to make sure there are no tenants. ;o)
Enjoy those nature walks and have fun with the crafts! They make great little gifts, either made up, or all the makings put together in a "kit" for the giftee to enjoy making. 
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