Christmas crafts for kids are more than a fun pastime—they’re an opportunity to bring families together during one of the busiest times of the year. The holiday season can feel like a whirlwind, with so much focus on shopping, baking, and decorating. Taking the time to sit down and create something together can ground everyone and remind us of what really matters.
Crafting also provides kids with an outlet for their creativity. Whether they’re gluing sequins or cutting shapes, kids love seeing their ideas come to life. It’s not about creating perfect pieces that could grace a magazine cover. It’s about the joy of trying something new and celebrating the process. Even if the glitter ends up on the table (or the floor), it’s all part of the experience.
Another benefit of crafting is how it helps kids develop fine motor skills. Cutting, gluing, and painting are activities that strengthen hand-eye coordination and focus. At the same time, crafting teaches patience. If the paint smudges or the glue takes time to dry, kids learn to wait—and maybe even laugh at a few happy accidents.
Christmas crafts are also a thoughtful way to create gifts. Handmade ornaments, cards, or decorations can be more meaningful than anything store-bought. Grandparents, aunts, and uncles treasure these personal touches. They’re keepsakes that capture the magic of the season and the personality of the child who made them.
For families, crafting becomes a memory-making tradition. Imagine opening a box of ornaments each year and seeing pieces from holidays past. Each one holds a story. That’s the beauty of Christmas crafts—they’re not just projects; they’re moments you’ll cherish long after the holidays have passed.
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DIY Christmas Ornament Crafts Kids Will Love
Christmas ornaments are a staple holiday craft for kids. They’re simple to make, versatile, and instantly bring the holiday spirit into your home. Plus, the process of creating them is as much fun as seeing them hung on the tree. Here are some easy and engaging ornament ideas for kids of all ages.
Salt Dough Ornaments
Salt dough ornaments are a timeless favorite. They’re made with a mix of flour, salt, and water. Roll out the dough, and let kids use cookie cutters to make festive shapes like stars, bells, or trees. After baking the ornaments, kids can paint and decorate them however they want. Add a loop of string, and they’re ready to hang.
Paper Plate Baubles
Transform paper plates into oversized ornaments. Kids can color or paint them, add stickers or glitter, and punch a hole to thread ribbon through. These lightweight decorations look festive and are budget-friendly.
Pinecone Crafts
A winter walk can turn into a craft supply hunt. Pinecones make great ornaments when decorated with paint, glitter, or tiny pom-poms. Add a string or ribbon, and they’re ready for the tree.
Popsicle Stick Creations
Popsicle sticks are incredibly versatile. Kids can glue them into star or tree shapes and decorate with markers, paint, or small embellishments.
Felt Ornaments
For a no-mess option, felt ornaments are perfect. Kids can cut out holiday shapes like stockings, snowmen, or angels. They can glue on buttons, sequins, or other decorations to make each piece unique.
Each of these ornaments becomes a keepsake that holds a memory of a specific Christmas. As years go by, pulling these out of storage feels like opening a time capsule of joy and creativity.
Creative Holiday Cards Kids Can Make
Homemade Christmas cards are a heartfelt way for kids to express their holiday spirit. Store-bought cards might look polished, but nothing beats the charm of a handmade card. These crafts let kids share their creativity while creating something meaningful for family and friends.
Handprint Cards
Trace kids’ hands on construction paper and let them turn the shapes into reindeer, Christmas trees, or Santa hats. Add some googly eyes and cotton balls for extra texture.
Fingerprint Lights
This simple craft uses fingerprints to create a string of colorful Christmas lights. Use paint to make fingerprints, then draw connecting lines with a marker to mimic a string of lights.
Pop-Up Cards
Help kids create pop-up cards by folding paper and cutting out shapes that stand up when opened. Stars, trees, and presents work perfectly for this idea.
Collage Cards
Let kids cut holiday-themed pictures from old magazines and glue them onto blank cardstock. This creates colorful and unique designs with minimal effort.
Stamped Cards
Use cookie cutters or small stamps to create patterns on plain paper. Kids can dip the stamps in paint or use ink pads to decorate.
These card ideas don’t require expensive supplies—just creativity and a little time. Kids can personalize each card with their own drawings or messages. The result? A thoughtful, one-of-a-kind holiday greeting.
Making holiday cards is a great way to teach kindness and giving. Creating Christmas crafts for kids like handmade cards helps them focus on spreading joy while adding a personal touch to the holidays.
Edible Crafts: When Treats Become Art
Kids love crafts, and they love snacks, so why not combine the two? Edible Christmas crafts let them create and enjoy a tasty treat afterward. These activities are perfect for holiday parties, lazy afternoons, or even gift-giving.
Decorate Sugar Cookies
Set out plain sugar cookies with bowls of icing, sprinkles, and candy. Kids can decorate each cookie however they like, creating snowmen, trees, or stars.
Candy Cane Reindeer
Wrap pipe cleaners around candy canes to make antlers. Add googly eyes and a pom-pom for a nose. These little reindeer are cute and fun to eat.
Gingerbread Houses
Mini gingerbread houses made from graham crackers are an easy alternative to traditional ones. Use frosting as glue and decorate with candy.
Marshmallow Snowmen
Stack marshmallows on skewers, then use icing or chocolate to draw faces and buttons. Add a pretzel stick for arms and a candy hat.
The candy hat on a marshmallow snowman could be made from:
- Mini peanut butter cups (turned upside down for a hat shape)
- Chocolate kisses (attached with a dab of frosting)
- Small gumdrops (secured on top with icing)
- Stacked chocolate wafers (for a layered hat effect)
These options are simple to attach with frosting or melted chocolate, adding a charming touch to the snowman!
Chocolate-Dipped Pretzels
Dip pretzel rods in melted chocolate, then roll them in sprinkles or crushed candy canes. These make great edible gifts.
These edible crafts bring together two of the best parts of the holidays: creativity and delicious treats. Creating Christmas crafts for kids like these keeps little hands busy and big imaginations active. Kids stay engaged, and the reward is a snack they made themselves. Plus, these crafts are simple enough for even the youngest helpers.
Recycled Christmas Crafts
Crafting doesn’t have to mean buying new supplies. Some of the best Christmas crafts for kids come from recycled materials. Using what you already have at home not only saves money but also teaches kids the value of reusing and repurposing.
Jar Lid Ornaments
Old jar lids can turn into beautiful ornaments. Paint them, glue fabric inside, or add small holiday decorations. Attach a string, and they’re ready to hang.
Toilet Paper Roll Characters
Toilet paper rolls make perfect bases for Santa, elves, or snowmen. Kids can paint or wrap them in colored paper to create holiday characters.
Cardboard Gingerbread Houses
Use leftover cardboard boxes to create house shapes. Decorate them with crayons, stickers, or paint for a mess-free twist on the traditional gingerbread house.
Bottle Cap Snowmen
Glue three bottle caps together and paint them white. Add details like faces, buttons, and scarves for an adorable snowman decoration.
Magazine Wreaths
Roll up pages from old magazines into cones and glue them into a circle. Add a ribbon, and you have a colorful holiday wreath.
Recycled Christmas crafts make kids think creatively about the materials around them. These projects aren’t just fun—they’re also lessons in sustainability and resourcefulness.
Kid-Made Decorations for the Home
Decorating for Christmas becomes even more special when your home is filled with creations made by your kids. Kids love seeing their decorations on display; it makes them feel proud of their work!
Homemade Garlands
Garlands are a classic decoration, and they’re so simple for kids to make. Paper chains are a timeless choice—kids can cut strips of colorful paper and glue or tape them into loops, linking them to form long chains. Another option is popcorn garlands. Threading popcorn onto string requires focus and patience, making it an engaging activity for older kids. If you want more color, mix in dried cranberries or pieces of felt cut into fun shapes like stars or trees.
Window Clings
Making holiday window clings is a fun, mess-free way to decorate your home. Start with wax paper, and let kids use puffy paint to draw holiday shapes like snowflakes, trees, or ornaments. Once the paint dries, peel off the designs and stick them to windows. They’ll add a pop of color to any room and are easy to reposition or remove after the holidays.
Christmas Lanterns
Paper lanterns are simple to make and look magical when lit with battery-operated tea lights. Have kids decorate paper bags with cut-out shapes or designs using markers, stickers, or hole punches. Place the tea lights inside and line them up along shelves, tables, or window sills.
Mason Jar Vases
Transform empty jars into festive vases or candle holders. Let kids paint the jars in holiday colors or cover them in glue and glitter. Fill them with pine branches, holly sprigs, or even candy canes to display around the house.
Personalized Stockings
Buy plain stockings and let kids personalize them with fabric markers, iron-on patches, or felt cutouts. They’ll love seeing their unique designs hanging by the fireplace.
Christmas Crafts with a Faith Focus
For many families, Christmas is a time to celebrate the birth of Jesus and reflect on faith. Crafts with a faith focus allow kids to connect with the deeper meaning of the season while enjoying creativity and hands-on fun.
Nativity Scene Crafts
Creating a Nativity scene helps bring the Christmas story to life. Use a shoebox for the stable and let kids cut out paper figures of Mary, Joseph, baby Jesus, and the animals. For a tactile option, a felt Nativity set allows kids to piece together the story on a felt board, decorating figures with fabric scraps, markers, and googly eyes.
Angel Ornaments
Making angel ornaments reminds kids of their special role in the Christmas story. Coffee filters or cupcake liners make perfect wings when attached to clothespins for the body. Add a bead or small ball for the head, and let kids decorate with glitter, ribbons, or markers.
“Happy Birthday Jesus” Cards
Encourage kids to celebrate Jesus’ birth by creating handmade cards. Use folded cardstock for a base and let them draw mangers, stars, or crosses. Inside, they can write prayers or messages of gratitude, adding a meaningful, personal touch.
Prayer Jar
Decorating a prayer jar combines faith and creativity. Kids can add ribbons, stickers, or paint to an empty jar, then write prayers or blessings on strips of paper. Families can pull out a slip each day to reflect on gratitude.
DIY Advent Wreath
Advent wreaths symbolize the weeks leading to Christmas. Kids can create their own using a paper plate base and tissue paper greenery. Add cardboard tubes for candles and discuss their meaning as you light them weekly.
Bethlehem Star Craft
The star of Bethlehem guided the Wise Men to Jesus. Kids can craft stars with pipe cleaners or foil, adding glitter for sparkle.
Faith-focused crafts like these help kids understand the spiritual meaning of Christmas while creating lasting memories.
Final Thoughts
Christmas crafts for kids are so much more than just a way to pass the time—they’re opportunities to make memories, teach valuable skills, and bring your family closer during a busy season. Whether you’re creating ornaments, homemade cards, or faith-based projects, each craft is a small but meaningful way to celebrate the joy and togetherness of Christmas.
These projects aren’t about perfection. They’re about the laughter, the messy hands, and the stories that come from working together. They’re about slowing down, enjoying each other’s company, and focusing on what really matters. Kids will treasure the time spent crafting with you, and those handmade decorations or gifts will hold sentimental value for years to come.
Crafting is also a wonderful way to include kids in the holiday preparations. Letting them see their work displayed throughout the house or gifted to loved ones boosts their confidence and teaches them the joy of contributing. Whether you use simple supplies from around the house or turn a craft into a faith-filled moment, the focus stays on the spirit of the season—love, gratitude, and giving.
As you navigate the holiday season, remember that it’s the little moments that leave the biggest impact. A string of popcorn, a hand-drawn card, or a homemade angel ornament can all remind us that Christmas is about connection. So, gather some paper, glitter, and glue, and start creating memories that will last a lifetime. Those moments of crafting together might just become your family’s favorite holiday tradition.