Crafty Christmas Countdown: 19

I was planning to change the decorations on our wreath this year. Then I found small wreath forms at the dollar store and the plan changed. I figured I'd wrap the form in some garland and maybe add some Doctor Who themed decoration. Again, though, I found some new craft supplies that changed the plan. Namely, I found some black tube ribbon which gives the wreath a decidedly outer-space feel. Some star garland and a craft foam TARDIS complete the look.

 

Crafty Christmas Countdown: 20

When I received the Conductor Mickey Funko Pop as a gift earlier this year, I immediately knew it would feature in my Christmas displays this year. I made instruments and earmuffs for a variety of figures, turning them into a band for Mickey.

Crafty Christmas Countdown: 21

I've become a fan of peg dolls as a craft. While my usual subjects lately have been real people, Christmas is the perfect time to delve into the fanciful. And peg dolls are a great shape for the Grinch and Max.

 

Crafty Christmas countdown: 22

Two years ago I made this pseudo-snow globe out of a jar and a Tsum-Tsum. Eventually, I decided I wanted Spider-man back leaving the jar fairly empty. It's been waiting for a new figure ever since. This year I found a little pony to glue into it. With her hooves up in the air like that, she was perfectly posed to hold a bead ornament.

Crafty Christmas Countdown: 23

Christmas crackers have become one of my favorite holiday traditions. I enjoy them enough that I wanted to include them in my crafting countdown in puppet form. I had this plastic tube in my craft supplies from last Christmas that was the perfect diameter for a cracker, though I had to cut off a fair amount of the length.

 A scrap of wrapping paper, a couple of wiggle eyes, and a short length of ribbon finished it off.

 

Crafty Christmas Countdown: 24

It's hard to believe December is here already. I'm working my way into 24 days of Christmas crafts with a small step. This little cactus ornament was a simple craft kit. It's cute but a little dull. And the edges are a bit blurry.

 A little bit of fabric paint and a fair amount of glitter go a long way to spice up this ornament.

 

Graphic Novel Spotlight - Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys

The Mystery of the Missing Adults by Scott Bryan Wilson

Wilson has taken the elements familiar to anyone who's read the original Nancy Drew or Hardy Boys books, these essential parts of the formula and laid them out in a blatant, obvious, humorous way. Nancy Drew must go under cover. Frank and Joe must stumble into dangerous situations, one of them getting captured. And Watson wants us to laugh at that situation. He's also taken pains to make some elements more realistic. These are teenagers, not mini adults. So they do some genuinely foolish things. They live on candy. They drive a bus. They bicker and fight non stop. At heart, though, this is a comedy. The entire scenario is ridiculous, a mild sci-fi plot with more jokes than danger. It boarders on satire and might serve as a good way to to introduce young readers to that concept.

Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley