Without a doubt, Christmas is a wonderful time of year. With beautiful decorations to admire, yummy treats to bake and festive music to sing along with, what’s not to love? It is also the perfect time of year to put on your creative hat and enjoy making Christmas crafts with your children. Here are some easy crafts that are fun to make and will create memories for years to come.
Cinnamon Stick Tree Ornaments
These adorable ornaments smell wonderful! To make these fragrant trees, you will need cinnamon sticks, green, red and white ribbon, about 1/4 inch in width, and a piece of twine to use as the hanger. For younger children, you may consider using pipe cleaners instead of ribbons. You will need seven pieces of ribbon or pipe cleaners, each about nine inches in length, for each tree. After selecting the color combination for your “tree” — you may want to make an all green tree or one with alternating colors — tie the ribbons or wrap the pipe cleaners around the cinnamon sticks (one full wrap should be sufficient), starting at the top and working your way down the stick to make the foliage. To create the tree shape, carefully cut the side of the ribbons or pipe cleaners at an angle, starting wide at the bottom and angling towards the cinnamon stick as you cut towards the top. Repeat on the other side. Tie the twine at the top and make extra secure with a drop of glue. For posterity, write your child’s name and date on a piece of masking tape and place on the back. Hang and enjoy!
Sock Snowman
Olaf, the snowman from Frozen, is an endearing character that captured the hearts of all who watched the movie. Make your own Olaf with this simple craft. You will need a youth-sized, white athletic sock, cotton balls, twine, black and orange felt, small, google eyes and glue. Fill the sock with loosened cotton balls and then close by tying a piece of twine at the top, leaving a little extra above the twine. To make each part of your snowman’s body, tie a piece of twine to distinguish the head, mid-section and lower part. Make sure to devote a smaller part of the sock to the middle portion and extend the head portion a little to create the taller look of Olaf’s head. Using the black felt, cut out a mouth, three circles for the buttons, arms, eyebrows, and sprigs of hair. Cut a “carrot” nose out of the orange felt. Using a glue gun or school glue, carefully secure each part on Olaf. Glue on google eyes and two cotton balls for his feet. You may want to split one cotton ball in half and gently round out make the feet a little smaller. Do not be surprised if your child decides to keep Olaf in his/her room instead of packing him up with other decorations when the holidays are over!
Reindeer Food
Everyone knows that Santa’s reindeer work up quite an appetite while traveling across the globe on Christmas Eve. Make a tasty snack for these hoofed helpers to enjoy out on the lawn while Santa is filling the stockings. Staple the magical poem (below), handwritten or typed, to the bag. You may want to make several bags of reindeer food so your children can share them with friends.
Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup uncooked oats
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1/4 to 1/2 cup red and green sugar crystals/sprinkles
- 5×7 clear, resealable bag
- Stapler
Directions:
- Stir all the ingredients together and add to a plastic bag.
- Staple poem to the bag at all four corners.
- On Christmas Eve, sprinkle the reindeer food outside on the lawn and recite the special poem!
Magical Poem:
“Sprinkle on the lawn at night,
The moon will make it sparkle bright,
Santa’s Reindeer fly and roam,
This will help them find your home!”
Holiday Garland
Prepare to see your children beam with pride when their holiday garland is used to decorate your home. Cut up one-inch by five-inch strips of red and green construction paper. For an extra festive look, add lines of glue on the strips and sprinkle with gold and silver glitter. Let all dry. Staple the ends of one strip of paper together, and then place the next strip of paper through the enclosed strip and staple the second strip. Continue interlocking each strip into the center of the previous strip and stapling to form a chain. When complete, hang the garland on the Christmas tree, fireplace mantle, around a prominent doorway or along a stairwell banister.
Paper Plate Santa
Make a simple, fun Santa using a paper plate, red and white construction paper, cotton balls, glue, washable markers and google eyes. Cut a large triangle out of the red construction paper — using as much of the piece of paper as possible. Next, cut the paper plate in half and glue, cut side on top, in the center of the red triangle. Cut a rectangular strip of white paper and glue at the top of the plate for the white band around Santa’s hat. Cut a circle out of the white paper and glue on the top of the triangle for the fuzzy ball on top of Santa’s hat. Draw or cut out and glue on Santa’s mouth, nose and mustache. Glue on google eyes to complete your masterpiece. Ho-Ho-Ho!Part of the magic of Christmas is spending quality time with family. Enjoy extra special time with your children this holiday season and make these fun, festive crafts while creating special memories that will be forever treasured.