Bree here, from Home Zone Furniture.
The most wonderful time of the year is finally here! Invite the excitement and joy of the holidays into your home with a few simple Christmas crafts. Not only will these crafts help keep the kids busy while they’re on winter break, but you’ll be able to decorate the house with their finished products. From ornaments to popcorn garlands, these are our favorite crafts to get you—and the kiddos—into the holiday spirit!
Chalkboard Ornaments
Materials:
Wooden shapes, chalkboard paint, chalk, string, jingle bells, hot glue
Directions:
First, paint the small wooden shapes with chalkboard paint. Once the paint has dried, use chalk to write a line from your favorite Christmas carol or draw a few Christmas motifs. Next, cut 6 inches of string, tie it in a knot so it makes a loop, and hot glue it to the back of the ornament. Dress the ornament up by hot gluing a few jingle bells onto it!
Oversized Window Ornaments
Materials:
Poster board, scissors, scrapbooking paper, glue, string or ribbon, hole punch
Directions:
Oversized window ornaments are the answer for decorating both inside and out. First, cut several different ornament shapes out of the poster board. They can be as long and wide as you like. I tend to cut shapes that are between 8 and 12 inches tall so they make a visual impact. Next, cover the ornament cutouts front and back with scrapbooking paper. Metallic paper or foil works nicely, too! Lastly, hole punch the top of the ornaments and hang them using different lengths of string or ribbon. You can hang them in the window or even in a doorframe.
Christmas Corsage
Materials:
Ribbon, felt, pin, jingle bells, scissors, hot glue gun or needle and thread
Directions:
Everybody likes to get dressed up during the holidays, and a Christmas corsage is the ideal complement. First, cut out a shape (circle, star, Christmas tree, etc.) from felt that’s about 3 inches in diameter. Decorate the felt shape using ribbon, jingle bells and smaller felt shapes. When the decorations are either hot glued or sewn onto the base felt shape, use a pin and tack the corsage onto a jacket lapel, dress or sweater.
Popcorn Garland
Materials:
Bowl of plain popcorn and/or cranberries, waxed floss, needle
Directions:
Garlands of all types read Christmas time! My favorite trick for making a holiday garland is to use waxed floss as opposed to string. Not only will the floss easily glide through the popcorn, but it will hold well, too! To make a garland, you’ll begin by threading a needle with the floss and tying a thick knot at the other end. With a bowl of popcorn and/or cranberries at your side, you will thread pieces one by one until the entire length of floss is full. Fresh garlands can decorate the indoor tree, a mantle or the dining room for Christmas dinner. Keep in mind that a fresh garland serves as a temporary indoor decor. Popcorn, etc., can attract pests, so after a day of use, transfer the garland to an outdoor tree. The local birds and squirrels will be pleased!
Paper Snowflakes
Materials:
Cardstock or poster board, scissors, string, hole punch, markers or paints, loose glitter, template for star or snowflake shapes
Directions:
Paper stars or snowflakes are the quintessential Christmas craft! Not only are they fun for kids of all ages to make, but you’ll also find that you can decorate any room with them. The classic approach to making paper snowflakes is to fold a square piece of paper into four and cut out tiny shapes leaving the central binding corner intact. When you open it up, you have a unique snowflake.
Take this idea to the next level using a slightly stronger material. Since cardstock and poster board are too thick to fold into four, use a template and cut out a Christmas shape of your choice. You can stick with snowflakes or try stars or Christmas trees. When the shapes are cut out, you can either leave them blank or decorate them using markers, paints or glue and loose glitter. Once it’s dry, hole punch it at the top and loop it with a piece of string.
There are many uses for paper snowflakes. You can use them to decorate your mantle, personalize your gift wrapping or suspend them from the ceiling to create a winter wonderland.
What are your favorite Christmas crafts? Tell me about them in the comments below!
Bree