DIY Crafts for Operation Christmas Child Shoeboxes ~ How To's and Tutorials Index from Simply Shoeboxes

One of my favorite items to pack in an Operation Christmas Child shoebox is something I have made.  And because I enjoy designing my own patterns, I have written tutorials to share.  They include sewn, no-sew, crochet and upcycled.  Each crafting for OCC shoeboxes tutorial has step by step, illustrated instructions.

I also enjoy sending extra crafted items to the Operation Christmas Child processing centers as fillers.  If you are interested in donating handcrafted items directly to OCC click the banner on the right.

I've included some of my finished projects for shoeboxes at the bottom.

You can also find more inspiration and DIY tutorials thru the links on our Craft Linkies Page.  Many crafters share free instructions and

Mini Fleece Lovey Blankies ~ Great for 2 to 4 Year Old Operation Christmas Child Shoebox Gifts

I made a fleece pillowcase dress for a friend to give to a local little lady thru her church's Christmas outreach program and with the left over fabric I was able to make three mini blankies for Operation Christmas Child shoebox gifts.  I think a little cuddly can comfort a child.  After I finished the first one I read a story in Franklin Graham's new book, Operation Christmas Child: A Story of Simple Gifts, about a child in a war torn country who was left orphaned and was clinging to a blanket and singing to herself. That story certainly encouraged me to finish the

Guidelines for Submitting a "Behind the OCC Shoeboxes ~ Stories of Sharing" Guest Post

I would love to have you tell your shoebox sharing story here at Simply Shoe Boxes.  I love hearing how others are involved behind the Operation Christmas Child shoebox scenes.

If you would like to submit your story as a guest post here please follow these guidelines.  We will contact you to let you know when your story will be shared.

Write your Story

• Use an autobiographical form in 750 words or less.  
• First person.
• Keep paragraphs short.
• The use of bullets or numbered items helps break up a long post and keeps readers reading.  Use them if possible, if not it is no problem.
• Include items such as (you are not limited by this list, nor do you have to include these things):
• How long have you been involved?
• What got you interested?
• What keeps you going?
• Do you have a special memory from your involvement?
• Do you have a shoe box specialty?  Such as:
• Packing Parties.
• Crafting for fillers.
• Personally shopping for fillers.
• Personally packing shoe boxes.
• Are you a year round volunteer?
• Are you an OCC employee?
• Anything that details your story.
• How do you raise funds or gather supplies you need?
• Do you blog about it or keep a Facebook page?
• Include links to these if you do.
• Include images that illustrate your involvement.

Submit your Story

• Email your story in email form to simply blogs @ live . com
• Add Subject Line:  "Behind the Shoe Boxes Story"
• Attach your images to the email.

I have never done a series of quest posts and may run into problems I do not see, but as of now I plan to post every story I receive.  If I begin receiving too many I may not be able to post them all in a timely manner.  But we will deal that when it happens and I will let you know if I may not be able to post all that I receive.

You can read thru the stories already published here:  Why I Pack Operation Christmas Child Shoeboxes.

Pillow Case Style Dress Instructions ~ How To Sew A Pillowcase Dress from Fabric to Include in an Operation Christmas Child Shoebox

Like I shared in the earlier post, Basic Pillowcase Style Dress Instructions ~ And My Passion for Sewing Them, I have had a ball sewing hundreds of these simple pillowcase dresses for both Operation Christmas Child shoebox gifts and Dress A Girl Around the World.  When searching for illustrated how-to instructions to share

Basic Pillowcase Style Dress Instructions ~ And My Passion for Sewing Them for OCC Shoebox Packing

I have shared how my newest passion is making pillowcase dresses for girls in crisis.  It all began because I wanted to add more practical items in my Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes and chose to focus on including more clothing.

I had been introduced to the Pillowcase Dress idea a while back  but promptly put it out of my mind.  After our move last year and my new "laundry room/sewing room" combo got set up I was ready to sew for kids in need and remembered Jessica's post and went "Googling" for pillowcase dress tutorials.  That's when I stumbled upon my newest favorite blog:

No-Sew, Woven Heart Fleece Scarf Tutorial ~ Great Project for Children and OCC Shoeboxes

This fun scarf is perfect to brighten a child's day and keep a neck warm.  As I've shared in the past, I am not very good at repeating the same thing over and over again, so I am always looking for new ideas or designing my own to tuck into my Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes, and that is how I stumbled upon this blog