Textured Snowman Pots

I thought I would post a tut on the snowman pots that I have made for many years. I do several different kinds but we'll go with the textured one for now. These pots are for wrapped candies or goodies... NOT for plants and definitely not for food to directly touch the pot. Prewrap some homemade goodies and place it inside this sweet little snowman pot.

For the supplies you will need:

* terra cotta pots with all labels and stickers removed (you pick the size you want)

* off set spatula (ONLY for craft use-NEVER FOR FOOD)

* paint brush/ paint rinse container

* acrylic paints- white and any other colors of your preference

* interior latex texture paint

* clear or white glitter/ glass glitter

* table covering/floor covering

* old long shirt

* pumpkin colored sculpey clay

* toothpick

* parchment covered OLD cookie sheet (NOT USED FOR FOOD!!)

* black buttons for eyes/ or choose something you'd like for the eyes

* OLD powdered blush with brush

* black thin line fabric paint in a bottle (ie..tulip)

* varnish for sealing interior and lip edge of pot

* E6000 glue

* Qtip

Paint the interior of the pots you are making with a color of your choice. I used black inside mine. Along the rim edge of the pot you can paint it however you wish. You can do a solid color, plaid, stripes, tiny snowflakes, a scripture verse, a seasonal greeting, or perhaps someones name painted along the edge. After this dries paint the outside of the pot below the lip with your white acrylic paint. Do not worry about complete and even coverage. It's just to help hide the terra cotta color from peeking through the texture you will be applying. You can apply a thin coat of varnish to cover the interior of the pot and the decorated edge of the pot. Don't worry about covering the white painted sides with varnish. Let the varnish dry. After this step take your offset spatula and begin spreading the latex texture across the sides of the pot...without getting it onto the decorated edge. Do not make it a thick layer. Evenly spread it just enough to cover the sides of the pot. Do not put any texture on the outside bottom of the pot. You can use the offset spatula to carefully push up the texture just enough to meet the painted edge of the pot. Use a Qtip to wipe a very small dime sized area of texture from the area you will want to glue on the nose. If you want you can sprinkle the glitter on the textured area for a little new snow sparkle. Tap gently to release the loose glitter. Set the pot(s) aside to dry thoroughly for at least a full day if not a bit longer. While the pot dries get out the pumpkin colored sculpey clay and pinch off a small ball of it. Place it on a very clean work area and make sure your hands are clean as well. Knead it and roll it into a ball. On one side of the ball roll it slowly to bring it to a cone shape. Flatten out the large end so it will adhere to the side of the pot. Take your toothpick and make small lines randomly across and around the entire "cone" to give it the appearance of a carrot. You can bend it slightly or leave it as is. Bake as directed on sculpey package. Watch it carefully so it doesn't brown or burn. It may take a tiny bit longer if you make a thicker nose. Once the nose(s) have been baked and cooled completely, varnish with a thin coat. Let dry completely. Take your textured pot once it's dry and add a little bit of blush where the cheeks would be. Put a dab of E6000 on the end of the nose and attach it to the pot in the spot you wiped clean with a Qtip. When this is set, glue the buttons or whatever you chose for the eyes with the E6000. You can make a tiny white highlight mark at the top of each eye. When the glued items have set you can add a squiggly "happy" smile line with the fabric paint. Be sure when you do get ready to squeeze the fabric paint that the paint is to the tip of the bottle so the air bubbles don't pop and splatter on the texture. Let the pot dry again and fill it with whatever makes you smile. I have some other ways I've made the pots that you can see in the picture. Have a blessed day!!! No reproductions of this article without my express permission, thank you.