Nature Crafts and Critters-Nanaimo, BC

 Catkins? What are catkins you ask? They are the male part of the tree that sheds pollen. In most trees and shrubs, the catkin falls apart soon after it releases the pollen. The type of catkin we will use comes off an evergreen tree and while somewhat delicate, it holds it's shape for quite awhile and we can prevent it from losing the bits by spraying it with a coat of hairspray. My interest in it is that it has a really neat texture with curling ends we can use in crafting all sorts of things. Since it is the holiday season, a tree sprang to mind! :) My tabletop Christmas tree turned out well and I thought of several ways to adapt it to your liking. Below is how to make the basic tree and some ideas of how to dress it up, if you choose. I really like it in it's natural form. It could also be used in a model railway train set up. Materials: glue gun glue sticks 20cm x 28 cm (8" x 11") light cardboard (What color is up to you and may depend on how you decide to dress u...

This week, I found this very lightweight large cone in my collection. It was damaged and so not one I would sell. I decided to have some fun with it. I combined it with a piece of driftwood, some smaller cones and a last minute acorn elf and this is what came out of it! Materials: paint (white, yellow, green) paintbrush glue sticks and glue gun scissors red ribbon bead chain or wrapping cord, 3 wraps of the cone 2 x 2.5cm (1 inch) foil-wrapped gifts (foam and colored wrapping paper and tie) piece of thick cardboard (I use a cereal box) or thin plywood at least as long as the driftwood piece and wider than the driftwood and large cone combined. scissors white glue or tacky glue 1 piece of driftwood 25cm-30cm (10-12) inches long (interesting shape) 1 large 15cm-20cm (6-8 inch) Pine Cone 5-7 small and medium pine cones 20 partially developed acorns Step 1 Gather the materials that you are thinking of using. This was before I thought of adding an acorn elf to the scene. Tip: I use a plasti...