First get the glue gun hot and ready!

Assemble the base of your Christmas ballerina friend by gluing THREE jumbo popsicle sticks and TWO mini popsicle sticks together to look like a fence {3 next to each other and the mini popsicle sticks across}

Set aside to let it dry completely. Repeat for each ballerina craft piece you want to make today.

When dry enough, go ahead and squirt your choice of color in craft paint on your paper plate.

Paint your newly made popsicle stick shape completely with the paint brush. If desired, this would also be a great time to paint your mini clothespins {the ballerina's arms and hands} however you like as well.

When done, set everything aside to allow the paint to dry.

Now grab your cupcake liner, gold glitter scrapbook paper, skin tone cardstock and craft scissors.

Take the cupcake liner and fold it in half for the ballerina tutu. Put a little bit of hot glue in the inside, so it doesn't come apart.

Out of the skin tone paper, cut out a simple circle shape for the ballerina's head.

Out of the gold paper, cut out some hair for your ballerina.

Go adhere the hair cutouts to the circle shape.

When ready, hot glue the folded cupcake liner tutu and decorated paper head shape, to the painted popsicle stick shape from earlier.

The next step is CRUCIAL. Take your TWO mini clothespins and pinch them around the decorative nutcracker stickers to look like her hands/arms are holding it.

Go ahead and hot glue the combined piece you just made, to the center of the painted popsicle stick shape with the tutu.

The last step on completing your Nutcracker ballerina puppet is to take the two Sharpie markers and draw on a simple face on the circle head cutout {black eyes, nose and red lips.}

Then add any other embellishments you see fit to make your ballerina stand out from the crowd.

Set aside to let it dry completely before displaying and/or playing with proudly!!!