5ft Nutcracker — Tabitha Sewer

On Instagram, I asked you all what you would be interested in seeing and I got a request for a 5ft tall nutcracker. I was 4 inches shy of 5 ft so I think I succeeded. I thought it would be a fun challenge to see if I could grab everything I needed from the dollar store. I did it! It totaled to approximately $25. I think that’s a great deal!

I love the way it came out! It’s colorful, it uses a lot of great textures, and most importantly, it was fun to make. If you want to see a video tutorial on how I made it, you can watch it on my instagram. Be sure to follow me if you aren’t. Grab your supply list below and head on over to your local dollar store and grab these items to build your own.

Watch Video Tutorial HERE and be sure to follow me on instagram.

SUPPLIES

1 White Pool Noodle

1 Holographic Metallic Border 12 ct (Teachers use this as borders in their classrooms)

3 Iridescent Tinsel Tree

1 Soccer Ball

1 Picture Frame 2x3

3 Red Santa Belt Bucket

1 Permanent Vinyl in Black

1 Party Bowl

4 Red Round Cylinder Boxes

2 Silver Round Cylinder Boxes

1 Tinsel Gnome w/ Beard

Other Items you’ll need that I already had at home, but if you don’t, they can also be found at the dollar store:

Skin Tone Paint

Bright Colored Paint

Black Paint

White Paint

Paint Brushes

Painters Tape

Sandpaper

Cardboard box

Hi Temp Hot Glue Gun + Glue Sticks

Lo Temp Hot Glue Gun + Glue Sticks

INSTRUCTIONS

Prep your plastic bins, bowl, and ornaments by taking the sandpaper and sanding them. They should have a rough texture when finished.
Paint the Santa Belt Buckets. Paint one a skin tone color, paint one a light pink color, and the last one a dark pink color. (Feel free to paint it whatever color you choose.) Set aside to dry.
Take the ornaments and remove the silver hooks. Paint the ornaments a skin tone color and set aside to dry.
Remove the tops of the two Silver Round Cylinder Boxes and set the tops aside. Paint the main body of the cylinders dark pink
Cut 4 inches from your white pool noodle. Then cut that 4 inch piece in half. You should have two 2 inch pieces. Cut a slit down one side so that it opens. You’ll use this later for the arms. For now, set aside.
Take the remaining pool noodle, paint it dark pink.
Tape a ‘V’ shape on the front of the bowl with painters tape. Paint it light pink and set aside to dry.
Once the bowl is dry, remove the painters tape and paint the blank area white.
Cut the soccer ball in half. Then, take one of those halves and cut it in half. Paint the two smaller halves dark pink. Set aside to dry. This will be the front of the boots.
Let's assemble the boots. Using hot glue, attach each soccer ball quarter to the bottom side of the round cylinder boxes you’ve previously painted dark pink. Be sure that the ball and cylinder are both flush to the ground.
Take the silver tops you set aside earlier and place them back onto the pink boots. Hot glue them in place so that it doesn’t open. Set aside.
For the legs, glue the tops in place on all 4 red cylinder boxes.
Then, glue two red cylinders together. Repeat with remaining cylinders.
Glue each boot to each leg. Set aside.
Pull out your cardboard and trace the top edge of the bowl and one bucket. Cut out.
To create the helmet, glue the light pink bucket to the cardboard.
With the bucket upside down, wrap two Holographic Metallic Borders to the bottom edge. Glue in place.
Let’s make some hair. Remove the tinsel from the Iridescent Tinsel Trees.
Glue the tinsel to the sides and back side of the skin tone bucket. Leave enough space for the face.
For the mustache and beard, Remove the beard from the Tinsel Gnome w/ Beard,
Draw the mustache and beard onto the back of the gnome beard and cut it out.
Glue facial hair onto the skin tone bucket. Don’t forget to paint on the eyes and eyebrows.
To create the belt, cut the Permanent Vinyl in Black in these dimensions 3” x 20”
Without removing the backside of the vinyl, wrap the belt around the bottom half of the bucket. Cut partial slits on one side so that it comfortably wraps around the bucket.
Remove the backside of the vinyl and adhere vinyl the the bucket.
For the buckle, cut a small black piece of vinyl to fit into the frame. Place inside the frame and remove the back stand.
Glue the buckle to the center of the belt.
Glue the top side of the bowl to the cardboard.
Remove the red tinsel from the gnome and use it to decorate the jacket of the nutcracker. (Bowl and bucket)
To assemble the jacket, apply glue to bottom of bowl and attach to bottom of bucket.
With hot glue, attach the hat onto the head.
Glue the head to the jacket. [TIP: You’ll need a hot glue gun that takes several minutes for the glue to dry. You’ll need that time as you apply the glue to the rim of the bucket.]
Place the legs onto a flat surface making sure they are even. Apply glue to the top of the legs and attach the body.
Let’s assemble the arms. Cut the pool noodles in the following dimensions.
1. Right Arm
2. Left Arm
Glue the ornaments to the bottom side of each noodle.
Take the 2 inch pool noodle we cut earlier and apply glue to the inside. Wrap around the top edge of each arm.

37. Take left arm and cut a ‘V’ half way into the arm where you think the bed of the arm would be.

38. Using a low temp glue gun, apply glue to the ‘V’ and bend the pool noodle in place and hold for
several minutes. [TIP: It is extremely important that you use a low lemp glue gun because the
high temperature glue will melt the material of the pool noodle] Set arms aside.

39. Cut cardboard into three rectangle pieces as follows:
Cut one at 13.75”
Cut two at 9.75”