5 Creative Holiday Crafts for Kids (and Ad­­­­­­ults)

‘Tis the season to get creative with your kids or students!

The holidays are the perfect time of year for teachers to provide opportunities for students to express their festive spirit—whether through arts and crafts, choir, performance recitals, or theater.

But the joy of crafting is not just for kids . . . adults can do it too! Here are 5 creative holiday crafts to try with your kids or enjoy on your own.

Snow Jars

For this creative craft you will need jars, plastic or ceramic figurines, distilled water, glitter, glue, and glycerin.

Glue the figurines to the inside of the jar lid and let dry. Be careful not to let the glue run to the outside edges. The lid needs to be able to screw on tightly to the jar.

Fill the jar with distilled water, glitter, and a drop or two of glycerin. Carefully place the figurine inside the jar and screw the lid down airtight.

Turn the globe over and let it snow! 

Advent Stocking Garland 

Count down the days until Christmas with a crafty advent calendar you create yourself. One fun and easy way to make an advent calendar is by using colorful, patterned socks in a variety of shapes and sizes.

Create numbers or find stickers that range from 1-24. Glue or stick these to each sock. Hang the socks above the fireplace along a festive holiday ribbon or garland using clothespins.

Fill the individual socks with a small treat or gift for each night prior to Christmas Day!

Tree Ornaments

Tree ornaments are a really fun and easy way to craft during the holidays—and there is so much you can do and so many places you can display them when you are done!

For this project you will need to purchase some clear, glass ornament balls. You can find a variety of these on Amazon. Many craft stores should supply these as well.

Additionally, you will want to purchase sequins, glitter, beads, Styrofoam, or whatever materials you imagine filling your ornaments with.

Once you have your supplies, it is as simple as filling the glass ornaments and hanging them on a tree or placing them on display around your house.

Window or Wall Streamers

You can apply this craft in a variety of ways—using different materials or paper cutouts, such as snowflakes.

For our example, you will need some heavy cardboard or cardstock paper, adhesive spray, wrapping paper, fishing line, and a circular die cutter.

Cut out a number of circles in a variety of sizes from the cardboard or cardstock using your die cutter. With your wrapping paper precut and set aside, spray your shapes and cover with wrapping paper.

Once your shapes are dried, poke or drill a small hole in the top and bottom of every circle, except the last one (which you only will poke a hole in the top).

String the circles together using the fishing line, yarn, or thread. Create a variety of lengths and hang together in the window or on a door.

A Different Spin on a Christmas Tree 

Start with a plain canvas. You can paint it all one color, a variety of colors, or just leave it plain. Once the paint has dried, lightly trace the shape of a Christmas tree (or other holiday shape of your choice) onto the canvas.

Using a hot glue gun, glue a piece of puffy, colorful yarn along the shape. If you haven’t already done so, gather a bag or bowl of sequins, buttons, glitter, and beads while you wait for the glue to dry.

Fill the center of the shape with tacky glue—spread with a paintbrush if needed. Place, spread, or pour your sparkly concoction into the tacky glue-filled center and cover completely.

Once your masterpiece is finished, shake off any excess particles that didn’t stick and hang with pride over the mantle.

Share your creations with your friends and family members or post your lesson plans to Bulletin Boards using Alexandria. For more information on how to do this, click here.

From all of us at Alexandria, Happy Holidays!