The most wonderful time of the year

Christmas Crafts for Kids

Love Christmas? Like crafts? Have kids? (Ideally your own, but you could always make a parents day and borrow theirs so they can have some much needed peace and quiet.) If you answered yes to any of those questions then this is the post for you. I have a 4 and 5 year old and there have non stop energy. I need activities for my own sanity. The simpler the better and these ones definitely promise good results as they have been tried and tested by myself and my daughter. Plus these finished crafts can double up as usable cards, gifts and wrapping paper. The best kind of activity is a useful one!

Cotton Wool Snowman Cards

For this activity you'll need card, glue, cotton wool, coloured pencils/paper/paints.

First, fold your card in half to make the standard portrait card shape. Next take some cotton wool and pull apart slightly to make nice and fluffy. Then to make the snowman, put three spots of glue down the card in a vertical line. Stick a large cotton wool ball on the bottom, a medium one on top of that and then a small ball for the head of the snowman. Then leave to dry.

Once dry, it's time to add the details. There are lots of different ways to do this. You can cut orange and black paper for a carrot nose and coal eyes/buttons. You can add details with coloured pens or add them with paint or with pom poms and googly eyes. Whatever way you choose to do this, make sure your snowman has a charming expression and a cosy hat and scarf.

Fill out the card with a night sky full of stars or add presents and a tree. Get creative with your scene or leave blank, so Mr. Snowman can take pride of place. What an easy craft and fun for all ages!

Christmas Tree Handprint Cards

This activity is a great keepsake gift or card decoration. You'll need card, green/red/yellow paint, a marker, paintbrush and stickers/pencils.

First, fold your card. This activity is a little messier due to the paint. (However, if that sounds like your idea of hell, you could draw around your child's hands with pencils and colour them in instead.) Then take some green paint. Roll up your child's sleeves and coat their hand in paint. Then take your card and get your child to do an upside down hand print with fingers splayed to make a nice triangle (ish) shape. Then leave the card to dry.

Once dry, takes some more colourful paint and use fingers to dip in the paint and make little round splodges over your green tree. You could also use stickers or draw little circles with coloured pens/pencils. Then wait for it to dry again. Next connect the splodges with a black pen to create fairy lights hanging over the tree. Draw a star at the top of the tree and some presents underneath and there you have it. A delightful handprint Christmas tree to remind you of how small your child's hand once were and it doubles up as a sentimental gift that didn't cost much. Just imagine the delight on all the grandparents faces when they behold this picture in a nice frame and you'll be sold.

Potato Stamp Wrapping Paper

My final suggestion is making your own hand stamped wrapping paper. You'll need a potato, paints, paper.

First you need to make your own potato stamp. First cut a medium sized baking potato in half. Then draw the desired shape of the stamp on the inside of the potato; a star or Christmas tree would be simple enough. This bit is for the grown ups - always take care using sharp knives and get a responsible adult to do this bit for you! Take a knife and carefully cut around your shape by tracing the design. Then cut horizontally into the potato to take away the excess and reveal your stamp shape. Finally pat it dry with a cloth.

Then dunk the stamp into some paint and get stamping. Repeat until you've covered the page. Make enough sheets to cover your gifts. Wait for it to dry and then wrap!

Instead of making your own stamp, you could use Christmas cookie cutter as a stencil to paint within or draw around.

Another idea is using all your children's old pictures and scribbled sheets of paper. This especially works for younger kids as it doesn't require lots of precision. No one can be upset by the look of the paper because your child is adorable. Tie with a bow to make it feel extra special and to add some sophistication to your child's scribbles. Using their old pictures is also a great way to recycle instead of simply throwing them away. You can pat yourself on the back for thinking about the environment and also clear off the fridge door, ready for new pictures to take pride of place.

I really hope you have a great time having a go at these crafts. If I can make these then then you certainly can too! Finally I wish you all Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.