How to Make Sleigh Bells With Preschoolers

Use jingle bells to make a sleigh bell craft with little ones.

Have preschoolers make sleigh bells as a project for school or at home. The children can create their own decorations for the Christmas holiday with very little help from adults. Make the bells with miniature flowerpots and jingle bells and decorate them with a variety of embellishments in Christmas colors for added twinkle. Hang the sleigh bells on a Christmas tree or use them for decorating around the home, or have the children make them as gifts to give to friends, family and teachers.

Things You'll Need

• 2-inch mini terracotta pots
• Metallic silver or gold acrylic paint
• Paintbrushes
• Flat-backed gemstones (optional)
• Beads (optional)
• Sequins (optional)
• White glue
• Gold or silver cording
• Small jingle bells

Instructions

1. Paint the inside and outside of the mini terracotta pots with metallic silver or gold acrylic craft paint. Paint the inside first; allow drying for about 15 minutes, and then paint the outside and allow drying.

2. Decorate the pots with embellishments such as flat-backed gemstones in Christmas colors, beads or sequins for sparkle. Glue the embellishments onto the outside of the pot with white glue and allow drying for about 15 minutes.

3. Cut a piece of thin gold or silver cording 5 inches long. Thread the cording through a jingle bell and bend the cord in half. Tie a few knots an inch above the jingle bell, large enough to prevent slipping through the hole in the pot. Then press the two ends of the cording into the top opening of the pot and through the hole in the bottom of the pot. The pot will hang upside down with the jingle bell inside.

4. Tie a knot in the string flush against the pot. Then tie the two ends of string together in a double knot to create a loop for hanging. An adult will need to help create knots in the cording.

Tips & Warnings

• Miniature terracotta pots and jingle bells are available at craft stores.

• Group five or six bells together, tying all of the hangers together with a knot, to create a bunch of sleigh bells to hang from a doorknob.

• Make a sleigh bell collar for decorating by attaching the flowerpot bells to a 15-by-3-inch strip of brown or red felt or faux leather.

• As an alternative to painting with metallic paint, paint the bells with red and green acrylic paints.

• Embellish the bell with a small bow on top made with thin decorative ribbon in a Christmas color or pattern.

References

• Kaboose: Pretty Bell Ornaments