Snow Crafts

Splashes of color make winter white a little warmer when you do the Snowscape Stomp!

What You'll Need:

Does it look like winter weather has put a freeze on creative fun? Think again! Grab your gloves and your paintbrushes, and that snowy hillside becomes an artist's canvas.

Mix 2 tablespoons water with 10 drops food coloring in a paper cup (make as many colors as you desire).

Go outside and march out a playful pattern of footprints in the snow. Splatter splashes of color in each frosty track, and watch the magic begin.

Be sure to check for chilly changes later as the snow begins to melt and the colors soften.

Remember that food coloring stains if it gets on clothing or light-colored boots, so be sure to wear old clothes your mom won't mind getting splattered. And don't forget to bundle up.

For another fun snow activity, try making the Snow Snake on the next page.

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Create wondrous winter snow snakes that won't hibernate!

What You'll Need:

Everyone's heard of a snowman. But making a slithering snow snake is ssssserious fun.

Instead of making a snowman of 3 large balls, try a snow snake made of as many ­basketball-size snow sections as you can make. Once you've lined your snow snake balls up, carve out a pointed head and rattling tail at either end of the snake.

Decorate your snake with bits of food, such as raisins. These will be good treats for hungry birds and squirrels.

See the next page for another outdoor snow craft project: Rainbow in the Snow!

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Spray paint a rainbow in the snow!

What You'll Need:

Are you tired of everything in your yard looking colorless and white? Put some life back into your yard! Fill up empty spray bottles with water.

Add a tablespoon of food coloring to each bottle, and shake well. Make at least 4 or 5 colors then dress warmly, and spray paint a nice, big arch in the snow. Add a second arch next to the first one, and keep adding colored arches until you have a giant rainbow.

You can also use paintbrushes to paint other things around your rainbow.

But what if you don't feel like getting cold and wet today? You can still "play in the snow" by making the Indoor Snow Person described on the next page.

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This jolly snow creature can actually live inside the house!

What You'll Need:

Fold six double sheets of newspaper in half. With a black marker, draw the outline of a large half circle on the paper.

Cut out the circle, and unfold the papers. Do the same for a smaller circle, then another circle smaller than that one. You now have the snowperson's base, body, and head.

For each stack of circles, staple the sides together 1/4 of an inch in from the sides. Leave about three inches of the circle unstapled so you can stuff the circle.

Stick your hand inside the circle -- there should be three sheets of paper above your hand and three below. Stuff the inside of the circles with old plastic bags. Staple the openings closed, and staple the circles on top of each other.

Paint the snowperson white, and let it dry. From brown construction paper, cut out "branches" for arms, and staple them to the body. Glue on black paper "coal" eyes and mouth and an orange paper "carrot" nose. Place an old hat on its head, and wind a scarf around its neck.

For another indoor yet snowy project, see the next page and make a Glitter Globe.

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Snow globes are fun to watch, but these miniature glitter globes put a personal touch on the traditional wintertime trinket.

What You'll Need:

Remove labels from the baby food jar. Wash and dry the jar thoroughly. If you wish, you may paint the outside of the lid with acrylic paints. Let the paint dry.

Then put a dime-size amount of clay on the inside of the jar lid, and stick the bottom of the trinket into the clay. Place 1 teaspoon of confetti in the jar; use more or less confetti depending on the size of the jar.

Slowly let water trickle into the jar until it's full. Screw the lid on tightly, and turn over the jar. Watch the sparkling glitter rain down!

See the next page for another fun snow craft for kids -- a Packing Peanuts Snowman.

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Make a snow person you can keep indoors!

What You'll Need:

Draw three circles (one dinner-plate size, one salad-plate size and one saucer size) on white construction paper. Cut them out. Draw and cut out a hat from black construction paper.

Glue the circles and hat onto the poster board to make a snow person shape. Glue packing peanuts on the circles. You may need to cut some of the peanuts to make them fit in the circles.

Draw and cut out eyes, nose, pipe, buttons, and a scarf from construction paper. Glue them onto the snow person.

Drizzle glue onto the poster board, and sprinkle glue with salt to make the background sparkle.

For a combination indoor/outdoor craft project, see the Ice Hanging instructions on the next page.

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When the weather turns cold, you can make these temporary, but still beautiful, natural decorations.

What You'll Need:

Fill a pie pan with water and line the edge with yarn, making sure the yarn is submerged in the water. Leave the ends of the yarn loose, so you can hang up your project when it's finished.

Next, arrange your objects in the center of the pan. You can use fresh or dried flowers, greenery, berries, or anything you like. If the temperature outside is below freezing, set your plate outdoors. Or you can place it in the freezer. Wait until the yarn and flowers are frozen completely into the ice before removing.

Once it is frozen, you can remove the ice circle from the pan. (Dip the bottom of the pan in warm water if you need help removing it.) Now hang it up outdoors on a tree, post, or anywhere its beauty can be seen. Watch your creation sparkle in the sun. As long as the temperatures stay below freezing, your ice hanging won't melt away.

For more outdoor art ideas, see the Snowstorm Art craft project on the next page.

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The next time your world turns into a winter wonderland of white, add a little color of your own by following along with this craft for snow painting -- art on a snowy canvas never looked so colorful.

What You'll Need:

Add about ten drops of food coloring in any shade you like to about three teaspoons of water in a bowl that it's okay to get dirty. (For each color you want to make, use one bowl.) Carry your colorful "paint" outside.

Pack a four-foot by four-foot section of snow hard and firm to make your canvas.

Now, splash that bright color onto the snow using your paintbrushes for an abstract splash. Or paint your favorite characters right on the snow.

Be sure to wear older clothes that you can dirty up, because food coloring doesn't wash out of most fabrics.

If you don't want to venture out, you can create a snow scene indoors with the Warm Fuzzy Snow project on the next page.

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Use cotton balls to create a 3-D winter scene of fuzzy snow that won't melt away in the spring.

What You'll Need:

Paint the inside of a shoe box. Use a good sky-colored paint such as blue or gray. When the paint is dry, tilt the shoe box on its side.

Then make a snow scene using cotton balls as snow. Use your imagination to make snow-covered hills and trees, snow people, snow animals, and more. (If you want to, you can make your drawing in crayon first, then glue on the cotton.)

Add glitter to make your snow sparkle like the real thing!

To really get out in the snow and have an adventure, see our instructions for Arctic Snow Goggles on the next page.

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Make your own Arctic Snow Goggles with some everyday cardboard.

*Adult Help Needed

What You'll Need:

Snow-covered areas are very bright places, even though they are very cold. That's because the sun's rays reflect off the snow. Those reflections can damage a person's eyesight. To protect their eyes from these harmful rays, the Inuit (native people of Canada, Alaska, and Greenland) wore goggles that they carved from wood or whalebone.

To make your own pair of snow goggles, draw an hourglass shape on the piece of cardboard. Be sure the shape is large enough to fit on the front of your face. Cut out the shape.

Have an adult mark slits on the cardboard where your eyes are. (You hold the cardboard on your face, and the adult can mark the cardboard.) Have the adult use a craft or utility knife to cut out narrow eye slits.

Punch holes in the upper corners of the goggles. Cut two 18-inch pieces of string. Feed an end of a piece of string through the hole on the side of the goggles, and tie a knot. Repeat for the other piece of string and the other hole.

Add a decorative border along the edges of your goggles with markers or colored pencils. Try out your goggles!

(Warning: These glasses reduce the glare of the sunlight reflecting off the snow -- they are not protection from the sun! Never look directly at the sun, even with these goggles on! You could damage your eyes.)

If you don't want to be outside with your goggles, you can make a snowstorm inside with the project on the next page.

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You don't need snow to create a snowstorm -- all you need is a little starch or glue, some rice and a shake of the hand to create your own dazzling winter wonderland!

What You'll Need:

Love the winter weather, even when it's too cold outside to play? Well, make a winter project in your warm house that expresses how much you love the snow!

Draw a winter scene on the construction paper. Do you like sledding or building snow creatures? Then draw that! A pretty cabin in the woods with smoke curling out of the chimney would also make a pretty picture. Create whatever scene you'd like.

When you are done drawing and coloring your picture, brush a generous amount of starch or glue over your picture on the construction paper.

Sprinkle the rice over the glue on the paper. Shake off the excess rice and discard. (Don't put the rice back in the package -- you won't want to be eating starched or glued rice for dinner!)

Now watch out for the blizzard!

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ABOUT THE CRAFT DESIGNERS

Rainbow in the Snow by Lisa Lerner and Kersten Hamilton

Indoor Snow Person by Lisa Lerner and Kersten Hamilton

Packing Peanuts Snowperson by Lisa Lerner and Kersten Hamilton