Snow that Won’t Melt: DIY Snowflakes Crafted from Eco-Friendly Materials

snowflakes image via Shutterstock
snowflakes image via Shutterstock

Are the kids in you family going crazy because there’s no snow yet? Mine are!

You lucky ducks who’ve had feet upon feet of snow already probably don’t care, but I’ve been desperately staving off the whining for snow in my house with tons of snowflake crafts. If you, too, feel the need to get your DIY snowflake craft on, here are several crafty tutorials to get you started.

And, because a snowflake that harms the environment is a pretty darned poor snowflake, all of the crafty snowflakes below are made from primarily eco-friendly ingredients.

toilet paper roll snowflakes from Darling Doodles
toilet paper roll snowflakes from Darling Doodles

toilet paper roll snowflakes: I usually save all of our toilet paper rolls to make homemade sidewalk chalk, but I suppose it wouldn’t hurt them to take a winter break to make these toilet paper roll snowflakes from Darling Doodles. Paper towel rolls also work–sometimes recycling centers collect these to give away for crafts, or you can request them on Freecycle. My personal tip: I REALLY like the look of these snowflakes when they’re painted and glittered using the toilet paper roll stars tutorial from Muffin Tin Mom.

snowflake cookie cutter ornaments from Martha Stewart
snowflake cookie cutter ornaments from Martha Stewart

snowflake cookie cutter ornaments: With vintage cookie cutters subbed for Martha’s “cheap aluminum” ones, these cookie cutter ornaments from Martha Stewart make for extra-special snowflakes with a beloved photo inside. My personal tip: after the glue adhering the paper to the cookie cutter has set, use epoxy resin to make these ornaments glossy and durable.

puzzle piece snowflake: I’m not the only one who has puzzles with missing pieces, right? Um…right? Well, whether you’re as careless as I am, or you just want to rescue a now-useless puzzle from a thrift store or yard sale, you can use some of those pieces to craft an ornament using the puzzle pieces snowflake tutorial from Lisa’s Craft Blog.

macaroni snowflakes: I’m a huge fan of food crafting as an eco-friendly alternative to the use of  conventional craft materials, especially when working with kids. These cute macaroni snowflakes from Katy Elliott  are certainly kid-friendly, and pasta is compostable, which means that I know that our mistakes are NOT headed for the trash! My personal tip: to make more colorful snowflakes, dye the pasta before you craft with it, instead of painting it afterwards.

junk mail snowflakes from Michele Made Me
junk mail snowflakes from Michele Made Me

junk mail snowflakes: By using junk mail, you don’t have to waste any paper to make beautiful kirigami snowflakes. Michele Made Me uses, in particular, those thin paper sale flyers that come in newspapers to make these colorful and decorative junk mail snowflakes. And as if that’s not enough, check out her series on Junk Mail Snowflake Possibilities, for a bunch of ideas on using these junk mail paper snowflakes in your holiday decorating.

vintage button and wire coathanger snowflake: I have SO many white buttons in my stash, which means that these vintage button and wire coathanger ornaments from Shanty 2 Chic are both a good way to make another upcycled ornament AND a good way to shrink my stash! My personal note: I discovered, while creating a garment for our city’s Trashion/Refashion Show, that old wire coathangers can be really hard to come by. You may have to substitute crafting wire for the wire coathangers in your snowflakes.

We really are snowflake crazy around here these days, so if you have any more ideas for crafting eco-friendly snowflakes, thrill my kids and link to them in the comments below!

1 thought on “Snow that Won’t Melt: DIY Snowflakes Crafted from Eco-Friendly Materials”

  1. Pingback: Crafting a Green World | Yes, I DID Wrap All of My Christmas Presents in Newspaper and Brown Paper Bags | Page: 1 | Crafting a Green World

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