Make a gingerbread man

1. Dye a wool jumper with brown hand dye according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Wait for it to dry, then press. Download the gingerbread man template below and use it to cut out two shapes from the jumper.

2. Take a length of pink ric rac long enough to fit around the gingerbread man and hand stitch it all the way around the edge of the front piece. Cut a smiley mouth from white felt and neatly stitch it onto the face.

3. Lay the two gingerbread man pieces together, right sides facing. Pin and machine stitch, leaving a small gap between the legs. Stuff the toy through this hole, then neatly hand stitch the gap.

4. Roll out a piece of black polymer clay to 4mm thick. Use a 12mm round cutter to make two button eyes. Pierce two holes in each then place them on a papered baking tray. Next, blend a little white clay with turquoise. Form into a semi-circle in the palm of your hand. Make dimples with an embossing tool or blunt pencil, add holes and sprinkle liberally with glitter.

5. Bake all the clay pieces according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Leave to cool then use matching thread to stitch on the eyes and buttons. Cut a length of blue ribbon, position around the neck and secure with a few small stitches.

Stitch a Christmas tree

1. Download the tree pattern. Use it to cut two shapes from a 23cm x 30cm piece of lime green felt. Stitch alternating coloured ric rac across the tree front, then cut a pot shape from blue felt and glue it to the base.

2. Make four holes in a small horizontal rectangle shape, one third down the back of the tree. Cut two lengths of thin green ribbon and thread them through the holes. Tie in two loops to create handles.

3. Blend pink clay with white, roll it into a thin sausage then coil it into a spiral. Press a 3mm pink crystal into the centre. Make two more in the same way. Mix turquoise clay with white and roll it to 4mm thick. Press the end of a felt tip lid to make a pattern in the clay. Use a 17mm round cutter to make three circles. Add a turquoise crystal to the centre of each. Roll a piece of purple polymer clay thinly and use an embossing tool to stamp six small snowflakes in it. Cut them out using a 12mm round cutter.

4. Blend turquoise clay with a little white and roll to 4mm thick. Mix purple with white, roll out the clay and cut out a 15mm blossom. Lightly press the lilac clay surrounding the cut hole onto the turquoise clay and cut them both out with a 25mm blossom. Make two more and press a crystal and a little turquoise clay into the centre of each one.

5. Make a lime green decoration for the tree tub with a 10mm cutter and a crystal. Create a tree topper using a 22mm and 10mm cutter with pink and turquoise clay. Bake all the polymer clay pieces according to the manufacturer’s instructions then, once cool, glue them all to the tree, except the purple decorations and the tree topper.

6. Pin the trees together, right sides outwards. Hand sew them with green embroidery thread. Leave a gap and stuff the tree. Sew up the gap and glue on the remaining decorations. Complete the look by tying the tree to the arm of the gingerbread man.