Warming Winter Craft Projects

Gather your Friends
Your friends will probably welcome the chance to sneak away from the winter holiday bustle. Invite them to your house to reconnect over these simple holiday craft projects that can make thoughtful homemade gifts. The adorable Homemade House Slippers made from felted wool sweaters may require some light sewing, but if you’re all thumbs with a needle and thread, try your hand at the Brown Sugar Foot Scrub. Use this handy Shopping List for all your project supply needs.

Project 1: Homemade House Slippers
Give old wool sweaters new life in these toasty House Slippers.

• Step 1: Get Materials: Look no further than your very own closet or a thrift store for a pure wool sweater, blanket, or coat to felt. Tightly-woven, 100% wool works best, so try to shy away from polyester blends. Buy some batting for insulation and a strip of hook and loop tape for the strap. If you love a few details, collect some extra buttons for accents.
• Step 2: Felt the Wool: Put your 100% wool sweater, blanket, or coat in the washing machine and wash it with a little bit of soap on the longest, hottest wash cycle. Then dry on high heat for as long as possible, but don’t forget to clean your lint filter several times throughout this step. Feel free to have everyone do this step at home before they arrive.
• Step 3: Cut Patterns: With your felted piece lying flat, trace the outer edges of each of your feet, twice for each foot, and cut out with scissors. These are the “soles” of your slippers, so leave a little bit of room on the outside edge to allow for seams. Cut two of these same-sized pieces from the batting. Then cut two “over-the-toe” pieces and two “strap” pieces.
  
  
• Step 4: So Sole-ful: Place one of the soles right side up on a flat surface. Top this piece with another sole lying right side down, and top this with a piece of batting. Using a needle and embroidery thread, whipstitch these three pieces together, or, if you feel like a tighter stitch, use a sewing machine. Leave space near the toe open, with enough room to turn the entire piece right side out. Once the right sides are facing out and the batting in is the middle, use a pen or pencil to shape the batting into place. You won’t have to close the top, since you will do that when you attach the top piece to the sole. Repeat for the other foot.
• Step 5: Top It Off: Fold the right foot over-the-toe piece in half, right sides touching, so the piece looks like a candy cane. Pin together at the toe and heel, and sew the heel edges together with a gradual curved line. This will start the heel.

  Next, pin the hooked edge of the “candy cane” to the center of the right foot sole at the toe (the hook should be facing in toward the slipper). Flip the over-the-toe piece inside out, and pin the heel of this piece at the corners at the sole. This shapes the heel of the slipper.

  Tip: To add some decorative reinforcement to the heel of the slipper, cut off the ribbed cuffs of your sweater, trim to fit around the heel and stitch on.

  Using a tight whipstitch, sew together the touching edges of the top piece and the sole. Repeat this process for the left foot pieces.

  Attach the straps across the tops of the two slippers with hook and loop tape and garnish with a button or two. Enjoy and stay warm!

Project 2: Brown Sugar Foot Scrub
Get the luxury of a spa treatment with this simple three-step foot scrub, giving your feet that extra soft and smooth feeling with just a few on-hand ingredients straight from the cupboard.

• Step 1: Shop for Materials: Brown sugar and oatmeal give this concoction its gentle, but effective skin-sloughing properties. The honey, oils, and lemon juice will help rejuvenate any dry patches or cracking.
• Step 2: Prepare the Ingredients: Whole oatmeal can scratch or irritate tender skin, but in a different form it calms and soothes. Run the oatmeal through a coffee bean grinder or food processor first to create fine powder.
• Step 3: Mix and Match: Mix aloe vera, olive oil, honey, vanilla essential oil and lemon juice together in a bowl. Add brown sugar and mix again.

  Add the first mixture to the oatmeal. Run the whole batch through a food processor again until it looks and feels smooth, with just a little bit of texture.

Put the finished scrub into jars and take home for your own moments of relaxation. Or, add a little ribbon to the jar and download and create a custom label. With these simple touches, your personalized homemade gift will be stocking ready for any number of weary winter feet.

These two fun and simple holiday craft projects will give you and your friends something unique to create while you chat and re-connect this hectic winter holiday season. Warm feet, warm heart!

Clean-up:
Tiny pieces of embroidery thread, a little brown sugar, or pieces of oatmeal are sure to find their way to the floor. Get it all, big and small, with Swiffer ^® SweeperVac. It uses dry cloths to trap and lock smaller particles and then uses a vacuum to pick up larger pieces, leaving no trace of your winter holiday craft project anywhere.