I've been seeing more snowflakes this year than in the last few winters. Watching the falling snow is so mesmerizing and calming.

The kids and I have been filling the windows with paper snowflakes so on the days we don't get at least a dusting, we still feel justified having a cup of hot cocoa by the fireplace in the afternoon. 

A friend recently told us how to make these cool ice crystal decorations using borax and boiling water. We had a ton of fun making them and are going to add them to our snowflake window collection.

Want to try it?

Materials:

•     Borax Laundry Booster
•     Boiling water
•     Pipe cleaners
•     Glass container
•     String
•     Pencil

Instructions:

1. Shape the pipe cleaners into twirls, swirls, stars, hearts, etc. (They can't be wider than the opening of your glass container.)
2. Tie a string to the pipe cleaner design.
3. Pour boiling water into a wide mouth glass container (pipe cleaner shouldn't touch the bottom or sides). Add about a cup of Borax - enough that the water is very cloudy.
4. Suspend the pipe cleaner by tying the other end of string to the middle of the pencil. Place the pencil across the top of the jar.
5. The pipe cleaner needs to be completely immersed and not touching the sides or bottom of the jar.
6. As the Borax/Water cools, crystals will begin to form. Leave overnight then take out of the jar and let dry. (You can leave it in for less time if you want - it all depends on how thick you want the crystals to be.)
7. A coat of clear spray paint will prevent the crystals from falling off too quickly.

Happy Crafting!