I write an art & craft column for the fabulous family oriented magazine, NI4Kids. You'll find this project and many others on their website. You can also see more creative project ideas by subscribing to: www.youtube.com/joliedennison and www.facebook.com/jolieart.
Some of my favourite childhood memories are of making Christmas decorations with my family. We would listen to Christmas carols while we coloured, cut and glued our hearts out. Over the years, the Christmas box grew and grew with clothespin Rudolphs, toilet roll Santas and of course, what’s a Christmas tree without the angel? This lovely angel craft is easy to make and can adorn your own Christmas tree for years to come.
Supplies needed: white card, white crepe paper, wrapping paper, 1 gold pipe cleaner, craft stick, styrofoam ball (about 5 inches in diameter), fuzzy wool (in a colour that can be used for hair), scissors, glue, tape, pencil, black pen, felt tips, paper plate, stapler, tray for materials
1. Cover your work area with an old tablecloth and put your materials in a tray.
2. Draw a circle on the white card by tracing around the paper plate with the pencil and cut it out.
3. Fold the circle in half and press along the fold with your fingers to create a sharp crease. Cut the circle in half, using the crease as a guide.
4. To create the angel’s body, fold the two ends of the half circle inward, so that they overlap and create a cone shape. Be sure to leave a small hole at the top, then staple it together.
5. To form the angel’s head and neck, put a bit of glue on one end of the craft stick and push it into the styrofoam ball.
6. Use the black pen to draw outlines of the eyes, nose and mouth. Use felt tip pens to colour in the eyes and lips. You could even give her some rosy red cheeks!
7. Create the angel’s hair by folding the wool back in forth in about 20 centimetre lengths. You’ll need at least 20 lengths, but the more you do, the thicker your angel’s hair will be. When you have enough wool, use another piece of the same wool to tie a knot around the centre of the pieces.
8. Put glue all over the top and back of the angel’s head and carefully attach her hair. Work from the top of the head back, to make sure you have it covered everywhere. Use your scissors to trim and even out the angel’s hair if necessary.
9. Attach the angel’s head to her body by sliding the craft stick into the top of the cone shape. Use a few pieces of tape to secure it to the inside of the cone on the side that does not have staples. Do the same with the gold pipe cleaner, but secure it to the side that does have staples.
10. For the angel’s dress, set the unused half of the circle on the back of the wrapping paper to use as a template. Trace around it and cut it out. Wrap the paper around the cone shape and secure it at the back with staples.
11. To make the halo, twist the top part of the pipe cleaner into a circle.
12. Use the white crepe paper to create wings. Start with a piece that is about 40 centimetres long by 24 centimetres wide. Fold it in half along the length (making it 20 centimetres), then fold it back and forth approximately every 2 centimetres. This is called an accordion fold or a fan fold.
13. Wrap a piece of tape around the middle of the wings to secure the fold, then tape it to the back of the angel.
14. Now put on the Christmas music and get ready for some fun, because it’s time to decorate the tree. When you and your family are all done, ask your mum or dad to help you put the angel on the top of the tree for the finishing touch!
