For many, crafting is as synonymous with the holidays as family, turkey dinner and eggnog. This is particularly true for those who have little ones around the house.

Christmas crafts are not only a great way to get into the spirit of the season, but they also provide hours of entertainment, look great on living room floating shelves and generally bring lots of smiles and laughter.

 

If you are looking for some fun, wholesome DIY activities for you or the kids this holiday season, look no further.

Grab the scissors and glue for these 11 holiday projects.

1. A Felt Wreath

Wreaths are classic Christmas décor and something that no home is complete without during the holidays.

Fortunately, making your own door wreath is a quick, easy and fun project. Simply tie cut strips of green felt (preferably two different shades) around a wreath form. If you don’t have one, that’s okay because you can make a wreath form as well.

From there, attach some small ornaments with hot glue and tie a length of wide ribbon around the wreath before hanging it on your door.

2. Pasta Christmas Trees

There are tons of different variations on DIY Christmas tree decorations, but the pasta Christmas tree is one of the prettiest and most fun to make.

Making a pasta noodle Christmas tree simply requires you to roll a bit of cardboard into a cone, glue it and then glue pasta shells around the outside. Once you finish that, spray paint it whatever color you would like!

3. Paper Plate Angels

This Christmas decoration is a great one to do with the kids as it’s super simple to make.

To build paper plate angels, simply paint or color a paper plate blue and cut it into three pieces to create the body and the wings. From there, glue some yellow construction paper onto a plastic spoon, draw on the face and glue on the plate pieces.

This is about one of the easiest holiday DIY projects you will find.

4. Waterless Snow Globes

Waterless snow globes are fun to make and look great on a shelf or table.

All you need to make these timeless pieces are some Mason jars (with lids), artificial snow, mini Christmas trees or snowmen (which you could also make yourself) and glue.

Simply glue the snowmen and Christmas trees to the underside of the lid, insert the snow into the jar and screw them together!

5. Jingle Bell Swag

Kids love noise-makers, meaning they will love making little jingle bell decorations for Christmas. Simply have them thread some jingle bells onto strips of ribbon, knot one end and tie the other end into a circle.

These are great to hang on different pieces of antique hardware around the house like door knobs, bed posts or even on the front door.

6. Jingle Bells Table Runner

While the kids are busy making little strips of jingle bells for around the house, you can go ahead and make a table runner with similar materials.

To create this decoration, use light and dark green cardstock to cut out holly leaves and a wooden skewer to indent veins into the leaves. From there, trace them with a green marker or colored pencil. Then, simply glue them together, lay them down the center of the table and place red jingle bells throughout the design.

7. Paper Chain Advent Calendar

In December, kids are constantly asking, “How many days until Christmas?” Fortunately, you can avoid this recurring question by making a paper chain advent calendar.

This simple little calendar will help the kids keep track of the days left until Christmas while also giving them an entertaining little craft that they can do on their own.

8. Christmas Light Napkin Rings

Outdoor Christmas lights always seem to have a burnt out bulb. So instead of throwing it away, turn it into a clever napkin ring.

To do this, attach a loop of red and white baker’s twine to the base of a bulb using hot glue. Then, completely wrap the bottom with string and tie them around rolled napkins for a festive table decoration.

9. Pine Cone Reindeer

Another fun and super simple little holiday craft are pine cone Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeers.

With this project, you simply need to glue some twigs, googly eyes, brown felt ears, a red pompom and a little ribbon to a pine cone.

Quick. Easy. Cute.

10. Marshmallow Snowmen

One of the most iconic symbols of winter and Christmas is the snowman, thereby making them a perfect holiday decoration.

For this one, you can get a bit creative by filling a Mason jar with marshmallows and gluing some buttons to the outside. Then, just tie a red ribbon around the top, and you have an inventive take on a classic symbol.

11. Circle Snowmen

If you don’t have any Mason jars or marshmallows lying around, that’s okay. You can still make up snowmen decorations using construction paper, scissors and glue.

Simply cut white circles of construction paper and decorate them with hats, carrot noses, buttons (all also made out of construction paper) and bows to get a few Frosties around your house this holiday season.

Craft Your Way to Christmas

In the days leading up to Christmas, spend some time with your little ones and make some memories that will long outlive the season by breaking out the craft supplies and enjoying these holiday-themed DIY projects.

Not only are the activities listed here sure to be lots of fun for you and the kids, but they are also a great way to get your house ready for the holiday season.