Xmas tree ideas?

[challada]

I know my awesomely creative friends here can come up with an idea....

My girl scout BROWNIE troop is decorating a minitree for a festival next month. The tree is about 3 feet tall and folks at the festival bid on these to take home (I've got last year's tree the girls made after both buying the tree, ornaments etc AND winning the bidding).

Anyway, I have 10 first grade girls.
For the tree, I already have:
10 last year Hallmark ornaments (girls will pick one to hang, stick it on and wrap the box as a present under the tree).
White lights
Clear glass balls (was going to have girls do something in them)


Well, I asked a girlfriend for ideas and she said "oh, do little baked brownies on the tree!"....I said...hmmmm...little brown dried shrivelled up squares should look really nice, but I don't want another minitree in my house...
However, this started me thinking...would it be cute to do some kind of "brownie" theme for the tree? How would you do it w/out making it look gross? I'd like the girls to make something that goes on the tree so that it's their tree and not mine.

Any ideas?

 

[clh2]

What about having the girls make some "cut-out" cookies as a gift to put under the tree, and then use the cookie cutters as ornaments?

 

[challada]

Yea...I was thinking more kitchen theme w/the extra ornaments on the tree since I've got all these Hallmark ornaments. I can't find mini wooden spoons which I thought would help the kitchen idea.

How weird would it look to put dried brownie mix in the glass ornaments (like those layered jars of dried ingredients)?

 

[DisneyBlonde]

Do they still do 'badges' in Brownies (humor me, I'm old ). Maybe each girl can make an ornament to represent one of the badges.

 

[Pam]

A couple of ideas here:

1) An actual "brownie" theme. Go to the Dollar Store and buy some of those toy baker's sets - a rolling pin, wooden spoon, etc. You could even buy a toy kitchen set with the bottles of milk, eggs, fake little boxes of cake and frosting mix, etc.


2)Have you ever thought of doing the theme of an actual Girl Scouts tree? Is there any way that you could buy some inexpensive material and make Brownie's uniforms and sashes?

Maybe even some merit badges? (I don't know if GS's uses the term "merit badges" or not as I am the Mom of an Eagle Scout. )

Make or buy little trunkets that depict merit badges or activities. I.E.: if there's a nature study, use butterflies. Sewing badge, spools of thread.

 

[georgiajaimie]

Last year my daughters made their own chocolate tree decs by melting down buttons, putting them into some christmas moulds and them bagging them up into small bags & tying with pretty ribbons. They looked very pretty on my tree.

 

[PrincessParty]

Felt smores or any other swaps? Good luck.

 

[Disney Doll]

Perhaps do the brownie thing and figure out some way of preserving the brownies so they don't get all shrivelly...maybe polyurethane them or something after you bake them?

 

[twinklebug]

- I love the smell of the cinnamon ornaments the kids roll out, cut out, dry and decorate. They can add sparkle glue and ribbons to spice it up
Those ornaments always leaves me hungry though.

- I love the idea of making it a girl scout tree. Put a beanie on the top, a sash around it and an old fashioned orange tie in the middle.

- How about the song "Make new freiends, but keep the old, one is silver and the other's gold." Make the tree in silver and gold. perhaps little pipe cleaner people holding hands etc. Silver (tinfoil) snowflakes etc.

- Pick one of the girl's favorite badges they worked on this year and theme the tree around that.

 

[challada]

Very cool ideas! Thanks everyone!

I didn't think of the mini baking sets at Dollar store...will look for those!


There are now HUNDREDS of badges for the girls to earn and frankly, my first graders don't really get the whole "badge" thing yet.

I do like the idea of the molds in plastic bags...how do you melt buttons???

Thanks again...keep them comin'!

 

[jaycat]

I like the idea of making The Brownie uniform, the vest with little badges, or a general Girl Scout tree, with things from all different GS age groups, and the logo.

 

[ChristmasElf]

You can take equal parts applesauce to cinnamon, add a dash of flour to form a dough. Roll it out as you would cookie dough and cut into little shapes with cookie cutters.
Place on a cookie sheet and remember to poke a little hole at the top of each cut out. Let dry overnight or in a low temperature oven for a few hours.
Lace a red thin ribbon through the hole on each cut out. Hang on tree.
The room will smell really nice too while they hang on the tree!

 

[twinklebug]

You can take equal parts applesauce to cinnamon, add a dash of flour to form a dough. Roll it out as you would cookie dough and cut into little shapes with cookie cutters.
Place on a cookie sheet and remember to poke a little hole at the top of each cut out. Let dry overnight or in a low temperature oven for a few hours.
Lace a red thin ribbon through the hole on each cut out. Hang on tree.
The room will smell really nice too while they hang on the tree!

THAT'S IT !!!!
Thank you for the recipie (the only one I had involved glue, yuck! I knew there was a better one out there)

You know what I'm having the kids make to ship off to family this year

There are times I do miss being a brownie troop leader.

 

[DisneyGerry]

Keep Christ in Christmas

 

[challada]

You can take equal parts applesauce to cinnamon, add a dash of flour to form a dough. Roll it out as you would cookie dough and cut into little shapes with cookie cutters.
Place on a cookie sheet and remember to poke a little hole at the top of each cut out. Let dry overnight or in a low temperature oven for a few hours.
Lace a red thin ribbon through the hole on each cut out. Hang on tree.
The room will smell really nice too while they hang on the tree!

Do you think there is a way to make them more brown (chocolate) looking? What if I used cocoa powder in place of the cinnamon...would it even work?


Gerry- I'm not starting a debate about Christmas....I'm asking for HELP, thank you very much.

 

[ChristmasElf]

Do you think there is a way to make them more brown (chocolate) looking? What if I used cocoa powder in place of the cinnamon...would it even work?


Gerry- I'm not starting a debate about Christmas....I'm asking for HELP, thank you very much.

They will be brown enough with the cinnamon (which will give off the nice smell when they are hanging on the tree) but, you could add a dash of the cocoa I suppose if you wanted to try it.

 

[challada]

Thanks, elf! I tried doing it w/just cocoa powder and no cinammon...made dough, went to the movies (Santa Clause 3....not joking). Came home and they were dry, but looked like dog food (DH thought an animal threw up on the counter). I'll stick w/the nice smelling cinammon ones instead!

 

[LadyBears]

- I love the smell of the cinnamon ornaments the kids roll out, cut out, dry and decorate. They can add sparkle glue and ribbons to spice it up
Those ornaments always leaves me hungry though.

- I love the idea of making it a girl scout tree. Put a beanie on the top, a sash around it and an old fashioned orange tie in the middle.

- How about the song "Make new freiends, but keep the old, one is silver and the other's gold." Make the tree in silver and gold. perhaps little pipe cleaner people holding hands etc. Silver (tinfoil) snowflakes etc.

- Pick one of the girl's favorite badges they worked on this year and theme the tree around that.

Or...
make the cinnamon ornaments in girl gingerbread cookie shapes & decorate each girl in a brownie uniform. Each girl can make her two of her own to represent herself - one for the tree & one for her to take home.

 

[camreesmom]

what about making green trefoils out of that dough?

 

[kimmikayb]

Sorry if some of these ideas are repeated...I haven't read any responses.

One year our troop put a tree in a large silver container, we decorated the tree with gingerbread ornaments (bought, not made), lights and balls. In the container we put boxes of GS cookies. It was a big hit.