Some ideas to make your own Christmas wooden picture frames, with painting and napkin techniques.

Supplies needed

• a wooden welcome door plaque, 22 x 18 cm
• a paper napkin with a Christmas motif
• modelling clay
• craquelle medium
• red and green tree acrylic paint
• varnish glue for napkin technique, varnish spray

Measure the wooden plaque and draw a border all around (will be painted).

Cut out the napkin motif.
Put the motif on the wooden plaque and measure the place where the modelling clay will be applied : heads, bellies, little bag.

Roll out a small piece of soft modelling clay,cut out the sizes you want and glue them onto the wooden plaque or use a dimensional specific coating).

Let it dry and then you may be able to sand it if needed (with the papersand).

Apply the green coat of acrylic paint on the border, while the modelling clay is drying.

On the border frame, apply the craquelle medium onto the dry green paint in one direction only.
Let it dry a few minutes (or more, depending on the craquelle medium you use).
Apply the second coat with Christmas red paint : not too thick and in one direction only. Remember the thinner this coat is, the finer the cracks.

Remove the backing layers of the paper napkin motif.

Place the napkin motif on a paper (the top printed layer against the paper).
Spray it with a little spray varnish-glue (about 20 cm). Wait a few minutes.
Place the motif on the wooden plaque,
Start from the center and work your way out to the outer edges.
Be careful to put it on the right place, exactly on the modelling clay places. Else, with this kind of glue, you can try again because the napkin will not be ripped.

Add a coat varnish for extra protection.

Make the salt dough, using our salt dough recipe.
Get out the window from the little wooden frame.
Then, you can model the Christmas decoration :

• Santa's hat on the frame corner
• a Christmas gift
• a Snowman waring a winter hat

You can imagine others simpliest Christmas figures : angles, candy cane, sockets...
Once the various frames have been baked (see explanation on Salt dough baking), you can get down to painting...
Salt dough figures are painted with fine paint brush (see salt dough painting) and for the wooden frames use a gold spray paint. Add a coat varnish for extra protection.

Insert Christmas pictures taken in magazines or little kid Christmas colorings...