Christmas

Crafts

Jingle Bell Rudolph: Paint a jingle bell brown and let dry. Glue googly eyes, small red pompom nose, fun foam antlers and a ribbon if you wish to the bell. You can thread the bell for hanging on the tree for an ornament or with ribbon for a necklace.

Little Angel Sweatshirts: Use fabric paint to print a footprint for the dress of the angel onto the center of the shirt. Print handprints for the wings and use transfer paper for the words and a head shot photograph for the face of the angel.

Coffee Filter Angels: Fold one filter in quarters - this will be the dress of the angel. Another filter is scrunched in the middle and tied at one end of 1/2 sparkly pipecleaner. Bend the other end of the pipecleaner into a halo. Take the quartered coffee filter (dress) and attach a wooden bead to the point with a glue gun. Attach the wings using a gluegun to the back of the dress and adjust halo. Add hair by gluing embroidery floss to the top of the bead; glue on googly eyes (or paint) and paint a nose and mouth onto the bead. We used fabric paint for our faces.

Pinecone Christmas Tree: Attach 3 pinecones together using a gluegun for the base of the tree. Glue one pinecone on top of the 3 in the center; paint the tree green and allow to dry; paint the tips of the cones white (for snow) and add silver glitter while paint is still wet. These are REALLY pretty.
Handprint Wreaths: Have children make handprints in a circle shape. When dry, berries can be added by dipping fingers in red paint and adding the prints. Cut out the wreath and add a string to the back for hanging. These are more sturdy if you make them on white bristleboard or funfoam.
Handprint trees: Start with 5 handprints on the bottom and working up pyramid style to one for treetop. Decorate with ornaments and a star for the top.
Pinecone Wreaths: Using a gluegun, attach pinecones to a wire coathanger that has been bent into a circle shape. Decorate with natural items.
Santa Candy Jars: Decorate baby food jars with a Santa face: cotton for the beard, googly eyes, felt nose and mouth. Add a felt hat with a pom pom on the lid of the jar and fill with red and green candies.
Photo Ornaments: Make clay and cut shapes with Christmas cookie cutters. Depending on the thickness of the ornaments, these will take 2 to 4 days to dry completely. Remember to flip them over several times a day during drying. Paint when dry then shellac. When shellac is dry, cut a photo of the child into the shape of the ornament and glue on the front. Use glitter to decorate the back of ornament if you wish.
Handprint Candles - Pour plaster of paris into a mold made of child's handprint in damp sand, when almost dry add a red or green candle into the center of the palm. When completely dry, carefully remove from the sand and use a toothbrush to brush away the sand. Paint.
Collage: Provide items that are red and green and let the children creat a red and green collage by pasting onto paper.
Fingerpaint with red and green.
Paper chains: Cut strips of paper and glue them into interlocking loops.
String popcorn - string stale popcorn and use as garland for the trees outside.
Candles: Paint a toilet paper tube and a small paper plate. When dry, glue the tube to the paper plate. Add a tissue paper flame.
3D Trees: Cut 2 tree shapes from green bristol board. Cut halfway down the centre from top on one and from bottom on the other; put slats together so tree will stand then decorate with homemade ornaments.
Stamp paint with Christmas shapes.
Mobiles: Cut Christmas shapes out of felt and decorate. Bend the top hook (hanging part) into a circle and then completely wrap ribbon around a wire coat hanger. Tie shapes to hanger with various lengths of ribbon.
Rudolph Candy Canes - add pipecleaner antlers, red pom pom, and googly eyes to a candy cane.
Little Drummer Boy Drums: Decorate large metal juice containers for drums.
Angels: Use a styrofoam ball for head. Add wool for hair, felt facial features. Make a cone from bristle board for the body and add wings. Attach a gold or silver sparkly pipecleaner for the halo. These are really cute for the top of the tree.

Rudolph Wall Hanging: String paint popsicle sticks with red and green paint. You will use these to make the frame. Paint each child's foot brown and use the foot print for Rudolph's face. Let dry completely. Remove child's shirt and paint arm 1/2 way up to the elbow and the hand (do one hand at a time!) and press print down for reindeer's antlers. Add sticker or googly eyes and red pompom for the nose. When dry, place the popsicle around the outside of the picture to frame it and glue in place then allow it to dry completely. Take a large piece of rope (or twine) - natural coloured looks best and feed through the popsicle stick frame on either side at the top for hanging and tie. These look beautiful and also make great presents for the parents.