Materials

• Child’s artwork (Make sure it is something that they are okay with being cut up or make something for this purpose.)
• Circle punch OR milk jug cap, pencil/eraser and scissors
• Cord, twine
• Beads
• Glue
• Bone folder (optional for folding)

Directions

• Punch four circles of your artwork. Or alternatively trace circles on the blank side of the artwork using your milk jug cap and a pencil and an eraser. Cut them out.

• Fold them in half with the good sides facing each other.  You may find using a bone folder helpful for making sharp creases.

• Glue your pieces together with cord going through the centre. Be sure to fold your cord in half and to leave a bit extending past the bottom to thread beads or a jingle bell and a bit of cord at the top to form a loop for hanging.  (As seen in the photos).

• Lace your beads on and secure them with a knot.

• Display it on your tree or form a garland, tying several on an additional piece of cord.

Use your extra paint for creations of your imagination!

Purpose

• Finding economical ways to celebrate with paper
• Thinking of others

Safety Notes

• Beads can be a choking hazard.  Please keep them out of reach from children 0-3 years of age or those that tend to put things in their mouths.
• Exercise care when using scissors.  Use with adult supervision.
• String, cord etc. can be a strangulation hazard, thus they are not meant for play and should be used with supervision.

Materials

• Green felt
• Fabric scissors
• Template leaf
• Scissors
• Pencil/ Eraser
• Paper
• Stick pins
• Wooden beads*
• Red paint
• BBQ skewer
• Paint brush
• Floral foam
• Craft tray
• Smock
• Acrylic gloss (optional)
• Glue gun (to be used by an adult) or fabric glue
• Paint brush
• Clothes pin
• Self-adhesive magnetic tape

* If you want to skip the step painting your beads, purchase red wooden beads.

Optional: (for your clip)

• Green paint
• Smock
• Paintbrush
• Container
• Craft tray

Directions

• Put your beads on your BBQ skewer.  Poke your skewer into your floral foam.  Place this on your craft tray.

• Don your smock.

• Carefully paint your beads.  Allow to dry overnight.

• Once your beads are dry, if you would like to add a bit of shine, paint them with a layer of acrylic gloss.  Allow to dry overnight.

• At the same time, if you would like, paint your clothes pin green.  Allow to dry.

• Once your pin is dry, add a magnetic strip to the back.

• Print out the provided leaf template or better yet, draw your own on paper!

• Cut out your leaves and pin them to your felt.

• Carefully cut out your leaves out using fabric scissors.

• If you like, sew a bit of detail on the edges and through the centre of your leaf.  Below are two examples.

• Have an adult glue your leaves down to your clothes pin with a glue gun followed by your berries. (You could also use fabric glue and do it yourself). Allow to dry.

• Give it to a friend!

Purpose

• Thinking of others
• Recognizing symbols associated with various holidays

Safety Notes

• Use BBQ skewers with care as they can be quite sharp.
• Be sure to use a smock and craft tray to protect surfaces and your clothing.
• Exercise caution and use scissors with adult supervision.

Materials

• Paint (we went with red, but green, blue or silver would be lovely too!)
• Painter’s tape
• Paint brush
• Craft tray
• Smock
• Piece of paper
• Shirt box *

*You could also use a mailing tube, kraft paper (purchased inexpensively at the post office) or the interior of a brown grocery bag.

Directions

• Don your smock.

• Lay a piece of paper into your craft tray to catch your glitter.

• Lay the lid portion of your shirt box on top (folded down flat.)  If you are using a brown grocery bag, cut up the side seam (have an adult help with this process), cut off the bottom and turn it inside out so you have a rectangular surface without print to paint on.  You could also use kraft paper from the post office.

• Have an adult help you make diagonal lines with the painter’s tape.  We went with alternating thin and think lines.  When the tape overlaps the edges this helps keep the lines clean and hold it in place for painting.  You could either rip the pieces off the roll or use scissors depending on what is easier for you.

• Paint the portions of the box not covered with tape.

• While the paint is wet, sprinkle some of the lines with glitter (we went with the thin ones).  One technique that our daughter likes with glitter is to hold the container with one hand and tap it with a finger from her other hand.  You could also use your pointer finger on your holding hand to do this.  It just allows more control than shaking the container.  Tip your box and tap off any excess glitter onto your sheet of paper to allow you to put it back into your container later (making the paper into a funnel shape).

• While the paint is wet (you don’t want the tape to stick too much or for too long as it may rip your surface), have an adult help you carefully remove the tape.  Allow to dry overnight.

• Fill your box, add a ribbon and give it to someone special!

* If you go with the craft tube option, stand it upright while painting and rotate it as you go.  Have a friend hold it over the tray while you sprinkle the glitter or vice versa and then allow it to dry upright.

Purpose

• Re-imagining items
• Discovering various ways to block paint (e.g., painter’s tape in this case)
• Recognizing various symbols, colours or patterns and their associations with certain holidays or celebrations

Safety Notes

• Wash your hands after using glitter.
• Be sure to wear a smock and use a craft tray when using paint so as not to damage surfaces or clothing.
• Wash your paint brushes immediately following an activity as some products will cause stiffness of the bristles.

Materials

• Felt scraps
• Embroidery floss
• Needle
• Wooden beads
• Threader/thimble (Optional)
• Scissors

Directions

• Cut a length of embroidery floss.  We found that approximately the length of one’s arm was manageable.

• Thread your needle.  For young children (and adults too!)  a threader may be helpful in this process. Make a knot at the other end of your embroidery floss.

• Sew through the larger portions of the felt, kind of folding it.  Repeat.  You could go with a pattern, should you like depending on your scraps.

• Add beads it between sections of felt.  This could lend to patterning if you went with a few colours or sizes.  We went through the beads several times to hold them in place.

• When you are near the end, make another knot to hold every thing in place.

• You may want to tie several lengths together to form a longer garland.

• We braided the ends and added a few beads to make it easier to hang.

• Enjoy!

Purpose

• Re-using materials.
• Patterning (you could use different attributes such as of the colour of your beads or fabric.)

Safety Notes

• Use scissors and needles with care and adult supervision.
• Beads can be a choking hazard.  Be sure to keep them out of reach from children 0-3 or those that tend to put things in their mouths.
• String type materials can be a strangulation hazard and are not meant for play.  Use with supervision.

Materials

• Beads (we went with metallics, pearlized, wooden, glittery types etc.)
• Craft wire
• Scissors

Directions

• Have an adult pre-cut lengths of wire.  We went with lengths that were approximately 20 cm or 8 inches.

• Lace your beads onto the wire.  You could explore patterns, different colour combinations etc.

• One trick our daughter employed while doing patterns was to line up her beads in her desired order in the groove of the work surface, planning before she put them on the wire.

• When you have reached a desired fullness (depending on the thickness of your napkins), twist the remaining wire together.

• Have an adult trim off any excess.

• We then took the twisted portion and tucked it inside a bead that it was beside (this is where the larger holes of a wooden bead come in handy!)

• Make a set and give them to someone special!

* If you want to paint your wood beads to match your holiday decor, we find that sticking them on a BBQ skewer (with a small bead at the bottom to hold them in place) works well. To hold it steady and to allow for upright drying, stick the skewer into floral foam.

Purpose

• Fine motor skill development (lacing).
• Exploring patterns.
• Creating gifts for giving (thinking of others).

Safety Notes

• Beads can be a choking hazard.  Therefore keep them out of reach from children 0-3 or those that tend to put things into their mouths.
• Wire should be cut by an adult.
• If you use a BBQ skewer to paint your beads, exercise caution- they can be sharp!

This activity was featured on The Crafty Crow.  Take a peek at this amazing craft collective for all sorts of holiday activities and creations:

http://www.thecraftycrow.net/2014/12/chenille-stem-candy-cane-garland.html

Materials

• Chenille Sticks
• Scissors
• Twine, cord, ribbon
• Wood beads (optional)

Directions

Candy Cane Garland

• Twist two chenille sticks together, wrapping one around the other.

• Bend into a candy cane shape and have an adult cut off any excess.  (You could use the extra ends for little present toppers.)

• Attach to twine, cord etc. Hang up and enjoy!

• Extras: Attach a little ribbon and wrap these around a gift card, jewellery box etc.

• You could use the chenille sticks to make any other shapes that you may like (e.g, stars, trees and Christmas balls) and intersperse wooden beads on the garland in between for a bit of interest.

• When you do an activity, be open to play/exploration with the materials- who knows what you may come up with- an angel or maybe something a bit more abstract for the tree!

Purpose

• Recognizing symbols of various holidays.

Safety Notes

• An adult should cut the chenille sticks, due to the metal content.

Materials

• Elastic headband (You can purchase these at dollar and drug stores)
• Fabric scissors
• Felt (we used reds, oranges, yellow & black)
• Buttons
• Fabric glue
• Embroidery floss/needle (optional)
• Cardboard
• Smock

Directions

• Prepare all of your items for gluing.

• Cut out felt circles to make a base for your flowers. (We used black.)

• Cut out yellow centres.

• Cut hearts out of felt. Snip off the bottom, pointy section.  Layer them on top of each other in a circular fashion without gluing them until you have a desired fullness of bloom.

• Stitch a simple line down the centre of the top petals with your embroidery floss and needle. (Optional).

• Don your smock.  Glue down your petals to the base, glue on your yellow centres and then add a black button on top with your fabric glue.

• Stretch your headband over a piece of cardboard so it is taut.  Carefully put glue your headband and attach your flowers.  Allow to dry overnight.

• Carefully remove your headband from the cardboard once it is dry.

• Enjoy!

Purpose

• Using small pieces of felt that might otherwise be discarded.

Safety Notes

• Be sure to wear a smock and exercise caution when using fabric glue.
• Use a needle and thread with care and adult supervision.
• Buttons can be a choking hazard so be sure to keep them out of the reach of children 0-3 or those that tend to put things into their mouths.