All Bundled Up

I realize this post is a little out of season but Ruche is launching this really awesome Blogger Family Program and is asking bloggers to submit posts for their blog. And to kick the program off, they've asked for submissions for their upcoming holiday guide. So I put on my thinking cap and this is what I came up with for them. I hope it gets the holiday wheels in your heads going and the Ruche family likes it too!
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This craft was inspired by my love of warm colorful mittens and my grandmother. When I was a child, she would knit mittens for me with a long chain to wear underneath my jacket so I wouldn’t lose them!

These fun and easy instructions will have your packages bundled up snugly while they wait to be opened this holiday season!

Materials
the gift you’re wrapping

wrapping paper

2-3 yards of yarn

decorative piece of scrapbook paper

scissors

tape

pen

optional:  ink pad, snowflake stamps, “to” and “from” stamps

Instructions
1. Wrap your present in whatever wrapping paper you have chosen

2. To measure the amount of yarn you will need for your yarn chain, tie the yarn around the package in whatever way you want it to look at the end. I chose the criss-cross way through the middle of the package

3. Triple the amount of yarn it took to go around the gift; this is how much yarn it will take to make the chain fit around the box

4. To make the chain, follow the instructions in the picture. A-E will show you how to start the first stitch in the chain. Continue to repeat steps a-e until you reach the end of the yarn

5. Steps f-h will show you how to make a knot in the chain when you come to the end. Try to use as much yarn as you can

6. Use your decorative paper to cut out two mitten shapes. Punch two holes closest to the edge opposite the thumb

7. Wrap your gift the same way you did in step 2, this time using your yarn chain

8. When you bring the two ends of your chain to the top of your gift, thread one mitten through each end

9. Tie the ends into a knot or a bow

10. Use the mittens as “to” and “from” tags. Have fun with your stamps or markers to add
snowflakes to the mitten tags or your wrapping paper

Now your gift is all BUNDLED UP!