DIY: Paintbrush Gnomes! Or Santas! Or Bearded Dudes! Your choice!

Last weekend was our annual art teacherin' Christmas party where we do a little drinking, dining, ornament swapping and crafting. Exactly two days before I was to host the event, I had no idea what we were gonna make. Nothing like procrastination to get the wheels turning, right?

 I have exactly a million old crusty paintbrushes that I just cannot bear throwing away. So, with those in mind, I decided to have our craft be Paintbrush Gnomes! Or Santas...or bearded dudes resembling my husband. Whatever you wanna call them, it doesn't really matter. I mean, look at this epic cuteness. And, good news, they are so super simple to make. Here, let me show you how:

One thing I failed to mention in the clip is that I created the faces, popped them into the toaster oven, painted and then put them back in to speed up the paint drying process. Probably not something I would recommend unless you got that heat down on to a low 200 and you keep a close eye out. Nobody wants their kitchen smelling like burnt gnome hair.

 Here's a little peak at the brushes created at my craft night before they went into the oven. So cute!

 And here's how they looked when they came out! Also what I didn't share in the clip is that the yarn was added by just yarn bombing the part above the ferrel and attaching with hot glue. 

 I love how silly and fun each one came out, don't you?

 And so you can make them all year round, call 'em Paintbrush Gnomes! I want to make them into the new Quiet Critter for my art room. Noiseless Gnomie, if you will. 

So if you need a fun craft for winter break, here you go! Have fun, y'all!