Santa Claus Cranberry Punch

Ingredients

6 cups lemon-lime soda, such as 7UP (48 ounces)

2 cups cranberry juice (16 ounces)

1 lime, quartered

Whipped cream, for topping

4 maraschino cherries

Confectioners' sugar, for sprinkling, optional

Special equipment:

a hot-glue gun and glue sticks; black and white felt; a ruler; scissors; 4 plain-sided pint-size (16-ounce) mason jars; 4 paper straws

Heat a hot-glue gun.

To make Santa belts, cut four 1 1/4-by-7-inch strips of black felt and round off one end of each strip. To make belt buckles, cut four 1 3/4-inch squares of aluminum foil. Snip 2 slits into either side of each square. Slide the rounded edge of a felt strip through the slits of one foil square, leaving a little overhang. Wrap the felt strip around the middle of a pint-size (16-ounce) mason jar and attach it to itself using a dot of hot glue. Repeat with the remaining 3 felt strips, foil squares and mason jars.

To make Santa's face, make stencils from the attached templates and cut out 4 beards and 4 mustaches from white felt. Alternatively, cut 4 teardrops from white felt, each 3 1/2 inches wide by 5 inches tall. Cut a 2 3/4-inch hole in the end of each teardrop, leaving a narrow border. Cut out four 4 1/2-inch-wide Santa mustaches. Attach the mustaches with a dot of glue to the top of the beards. Set aside.

Pour 1 1/2 cups of the lemon-lime soda and 1/2 cup of the cranberry juice into each decorated jar, then squeeze the juice from a lime quarter into each. Slip a beard over the mouth of each jar. Mound whipped cream on top of each drink and add a cherry. Insert a straw and sprinkle with confectioners' sugar snow if desired.