Christmas Crafts for Kids - Page 3

How to Make Christmas Crafts Including: Reindeer Christmas Gift Bag, The Grinch Milk Jug,
Christmas Tree for the Wild Animals, Charlie Brown Christmas Tree and Snoopy Sock
Doll, Wooden Christmas Peace Banner, Christmas Ornaments, Christmas Earrings , Christmas Card Refrigerator Magnets

Sock Reindeer Christmas Craft

These east-to-make sock reindeer make great inexpensive stocking stuffers.

Go to the Cow Craft Page for directions to this craft.

Use the directions for the Cow Beanbag Craft and then cut antler shapes from brown or tan craft foam and glue them behind the ears.

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Reindeer Christmas Gift Bag Craft for Kids

What you will need:

Brown paper lunch bag, card stock (heavy paper), crayons, markers, or colored pencils, a red pompom for the nose, and tape or glue and stapler.

How to make:

1. Draw a picture of the head of a reindeer with antlers, and four legs. (A pattern for this craft is available to members.)

2. Color the pictures and cut them out.

3. Place your Christmas gift in the paper lunch bag and then fold down the top about two inches. Fold in the sides about two inches at the top and staple the bag closed.

4. Glue the head and legs onto the lunch bag as shown. Glue a red pompom on the face for the nose, and write "to:" and "from:" on the back of the bag.

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The Grinch Milk Jug Christmas Craft

What you will need: Plastic milk jug, green spray paint, yellow acrylic paint, green craft foam, black Sharpie (permanent marker) and a Santa hat.

How to make:

1. Spray paint the entire milk jug with green paint.

2. Use a Sharpie to draw in the mouth, eyes, and nose. Paint the eyes yellow.

3. Cut hand and arm shapes from green craft foam. Trace your own hands but make the fingers longer and pointier.

4. Display your Grinch. If you have snow in your area, you can make the Grinch look like he is covered with snow with only his hands and head sticking out. Just pile up a bunch of snow where the body would be. If you don't have snow, you can place the Grinch on a wall so that it looks like he is peeking over. Or make him look like he is coming out of a Christmas present as pictured above.

Don't forget to read Dr. Seuss's classic book "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" and watch Jim Carrey's movie "The Grinch".

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Christmas Tree for the Wild Animals

Eve Bunting - "Night Tree"

Start a new Christmas tradition this year! Children love making and giving gifts to their friends and family, but will also treasure the times they spend showing their appreciation for God's creatures decorating a tree with gifts for the wildlife in their area. Eve Bunting wrote a beautiful book called "Night Tree" in which a young boys tells about a memorable family tradition they do the night before Christmas. He describes how they go to the edge of town and find their special tree, decorate it with popcorn chains, apples, and popcorn balls, share in hot chocolate, and sing their favorite Christmas songs.

If you have a tree you can see from your window, decorate it so that your children can actually see the birds and other wildlife enjoying their gifts.

Below are some ideas for some things you can use to decorate your own wildlife Christmas tree.

Angel Bird Food Ornament Tie three dried wheat heads together with ribbon or yarn. Make flour and water paste by mixing a small amount or water with a tablespoon of flour. Cut Ritz crackers in half and glue them to the back of the wheat heads. Glue part of a millet sprig to the wheat heads and a piece of popcorn on top of the millet. I also glue some baby's breath to the wheat heads on the skirt area. (You can buy dried wheat at your local craft store and millet sprigs at a pet store.)
Cut Slices of Apples and Oranges Cut apples and oranges into slices so that the core of the fruit is in the center of each slice. Tie them with string or thread to hang them up.
Peanut Butter Pinecones Spread peanut butter in between the cracks of a pinecone and sick cereal to the peanut butter. You can also sprinkle bird over the peanut butter. Tie string on the pinecone to hang it up.
Popcorn, Dried Fruit, and Cereal Chains String popped popcorn, pieces of dried fruit, and cereal onto a string using a needle and heavy-duty thread.
Bread Ornaments Use a cookie cutter to cut bread into star shapes. Punch a hole on one side and let them dry out. When they are dry tie string or thread through the holes and then spread them with peanut butter or jam. Sprinkle bird seed on top.
Natural Star Ornaments Use dried grasses and flowers to make ornaments. Buy dried flowers and grasses from your local craft store. This ornament was made from dried wheat, a Ritz cracker, and half a dried cranberry. Glue the wheat, yarn cord, and cranberry to the cracker using flour and water paste. Mix a small amount of water into a tablespoon of flour until it is a paste consistency
Popcorn - Peanut Ball Ornament Tie a ribbon or yarn around a peanut in a shell. Coat the outside of the peanut with peanut butter and then stick popcorn and other things to the peanut butter. You can use cereal, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds (raw), dried fruit, etc.
Millet Bird Ornament Buy sprigs of millet at your local pet store. Cut the pieces into smaller pieces and tie the tops with yarn or ribbon. Use red raffia to make a bow.
Natural Christmas Ornament - Acorn Cap Fill acorn caps with peanut butter and stick wild berries, seeds, or dried food into the peanut butter. Tie or glue a red ribbon or yarn on the top to hang it on the tree.
Cereal Christmas Wreath Ornament for the Birds String cereal onto a piece of yarn and then tie it into a loop. You can also use small donuts. Spread peanut butter on the top and then sprinkle with bird seed.

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Charlie Brown Christmas Tree and Snoopy Sock Doll

What you will need:

1. Green Craft Foam, brown Chenille stems, wood craft sticks, scissors and low temp glue gun, and a small Christmas ornament

How to make:

1. Wind two brown Chenille stems together to form the main branch of the Christmas tree.

2. Wind two more Chenille stems together about half way. Connect these two Chenille stems to the main branch about one-third of the way down from the top by winding the bottom half of the stems (the part that isn't wound) around the main branch.

3. To make the lower branch do the same thing except connect it to the main branch about two-thirds of the way from the top. Wind the extra lengths around the bottom to make it thicker.

4. To make the Christmas tree needles cut green craft foam into 6" x 2 1/2" lengths. Mark off 1/2" on one of the long sides with a pen. Cut small slits, 1/4" wide, down the whole length, cutting up to the 1/2" line.

5. Wind the foam strip around the branches starting at the ends. Glue the end of the branch to the foam piece on the uncut edge so that the foam piece is at a slight slant. (See picture above.) Wind the foam around the branch adding small amounts of glue to secure it to the Chenille stem.

6. To make the Christmas tree stand, cut craft sticks in half or use small craft sticks. Make the bottom rails of the tree stand by gluing three half craft sticks on top of each other for each rail. To make the top rails glue four halves together. Glue the top rails onto the bottom rails leaving just enough room between the top rails to glue in the tree. (See diagram to the left.)

7. To finish add some small Christmas directions.

For directions on how to make the Snoopy Sock Doll go to the Sock Doll Page and follow the Two-sock, No-sew Sock Doll directions and the Snoopy directions. Follow the directions at the top of the page. To make the ears cut ear shapes from black felt and use a red ribbon for his collar.

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Wooden Christmas Peace Banner Craft

What you will need:

1. 6" Wood Letters (I bought them from Jo-Ann Fabrics)

2. Gold Paint Patio Paint

3. Gold Glitter or glitter glue

4. 3 3/4" Gold wired-edge ribbon

5. Wire for hanging

How to make:

1. Paint the letters with gold paint and let dry.

2. When the paint is dry add the glitter.

3. Make a large bow about 9" wide with the wire-edge ribbon leaving a 3-foot tail. (For directions on how to make a large bow watch the video below.) Use thin wire to secure the bow and form a hook with the wire for hanging.

4. Glue the finished letters to the tail of the bow.

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Wire Wrapped Tile Christmas Ornaments or Earrings

What you will need:

1. One-inch wooden blocks from Jo-Ann Fabrics

2. Twenty gauge wire, wire clippers, and round needle nose pliers

3. Small pictures from old Christmas Cards

4. Clear glue

5. Scissors

6. Glossy Accents - clear dimensional glue

How to make:

1. Cut small Christmas pictures from old Christmas cards and glue them to the wooden block.

2. When the glue is dry wind wire around the block to form a frame. Start by making a loop and then winding the end of the wire all the way around the block. To finish wrap the end of the wire around the bottom of the loop. (To see a demonstration on how to make a wire wrapped loop view the video below.)

3. Cover the entire top of the picture with Glossy Accents to make the picture stand out.

4. Make a fancy bended-wire hook or add some earring hooks to make them into Christmas earrings.

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Christmas Card Refrigerator Magnets

What you will need: Old Christmas Card, Sticky-backed Magnetic Sheets, and Scissors

How to make:

1. Look for small Christmas pictures from last years Christmas cards. Cut them out and stick them to magnetic sheets.

2. Cut the pictures from the magnetic sheets and stick them to your refrigerator.

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