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With all the bright lights and merrymaking of December, the weeks after the holiday always seem a bit cold and sad. Especially this year, as we’re still here at home, 10 months after kidneys and COVID. Do you remember making paper sack snowflakes back in elementary school? I think I was in the 4th grade. Each kid in the class made one and then our teacher hung them from the ceiling with fishing line. 30+ paper snowflakes rustled and fluttered around the room every time the heater turned on. It was absolutely magical to 9-year-old me.
During Christmas 2020, the paper sack snowflakes trend blew up on Instagram. They were everywhere and it brought back memories of that classroom full of snowflakes all those years ago. I know it’s no longer the holidays and the hype has passed, but why not make some now to chase away the January quarantine blues?
Here in my neck of the woods, we’re having a very dry winter.
Maybe if enough of us make snowflakes, it’ll do some kind of voodoo on the weather? Like a rain dance but with scissors calling for snow? I’m willing to give it a shot! Crossing my fingers!
*The number of bags you will need to make a snowflake will depend on how big your paper sacks are. It took 9 paper sacks for me. You might have to do a little trial and error on your first attempt. Don’t stress though, it’s super simple.
Place a paper sack with the folded flap side down. Run a bead of hot glue vertically down the seam in the middle of the bag. (You could use a glue stick or double-sided tape if you want to make these with little kids.)
Stack a second paper sack on top of the first sack and press down with your hands to secure the glue. Run another bead of glue in the same place as before, stack another paper sack on top.
Continue until you have all 9 bags glued together.
Cut designs and shapes along the outsides of the stack of sacks. You can make triangles, cut out hearts, or whatever brings you joy. On one stack, I traced the outside of a small cup to create pretty little half-circles.
Just like real snowflakes, no two need to be the same. Have fun and get creative.
Once the design is cut, grab your glue gun and run one more bead of glue down the seam of the top sack. Slip your hands inside that top sack and the bottom one.
Now comes the fun part! Fan out the accordion of bags into a snowflake shape and smush the top and bottom bags together to adhere.
Punch a hole at the top of the snowflake and string some twine through.
Hang your snowflake anywhere you need a pick-me-up! I suggest somewhere near a heating vent for full magical 4th grader snowflake flutter.
My youngest and I hung our paper sack snowflakes from the curtain rod above our dining room window. They flutter around and remind me of the pretty holiday displays in the windows of old bookstores. I love it and so does my daughter. Every time I walk by, I am reminded that there is joy to be found even in the dead of winter.
We made 3 for our window and then 3 more to create a backdrop for my sister’s virtual baby shower. Virtual baby shower… there’s a first time for everything, eh? Lemonade out of lemons, yall!
I forgot to take my DSLR when I set up the backdrop so all I have are these lovely nighttime/basement cell phone photos. And yes, I totally should have hung a drop cloth over the window before I hung the backdrop. Oh well, still cute, and my sister felt loved. And really, that’s all that matters.
If you’re currently quarantined or just need something to brighten up your January, brush off your elementary craft skills and create your own picture window or magical snowstorm.
Because sometimes the littlest things can become the best things.
“And above all, watch with glittering eyes the whole world around you because the greatest secrets are always hidden in the most unlikely places. Those who don’t believe in magic will never find it.”
Roald Dahl
Great! Thank you