How to Make Place Mats for Christmas

Give an ordinary place mat a Christmas touch.

For many families, the highlight of their Christmas holiday is having friends and family over to their home for a large meal. Make the holiday table more festive this year by constructing place mats. Put these mats together with the assistance of your children in the matter of an afternoon. These mats are also a wonderful way to protect your holiday tablecloth from gravy spills and pumpkin pie mishaps.

Things You'll Need

• Pen
• Black construction paper
• Brown construction paper
• White construction paper
• Red construction paper
• Glue
• Scissors
• Contact paper
• Vinyl place mats
• Felt tip pen
• Fabric paint
• Paint brush

Instructions

Reindeer Head Place Mats

1. Trace both of a child's hands onto a piece of black construction paper. Cut out both hands with scissors.

2. Trace a child's right foot onto a piece of brown construction paper. Cut out the foot with scissors.

3. Cut out two circles from white construction paper. These will be the reindeer's eyes. Cut out two circles from black construction paper that are smaller than the white circles. These are the pupils of the eyes. Glue the pupils onto the white circles.

4. Cut out an oval from a piece of black construction paper. This will be the reindeer's nose.

5. Glue the foot onto a piece of red construction paper. The foot should be centered on the paper. Glue the hands on top of either side of the foot. These are the antlers.

6. Glue the eyes and nose onto the reindeer's face.

7. Cover both sides of the paper with clear contact paper. Trim the edges with scissors to a desired size.

Decorated Vinyl Placemats

1. Purchase a plain vinyl place mat in a Christmas color, such as red or green.

2. Draw a Christmas theme picture, such as a snowman or Santa Claus, onto the vinyl place mat with a felt tip pen. You can also ask a child to draw the picture.

3. Add dimension to the drawings by painting them with fabric paint. Make sure to use fabric paint because water-soluble paint will simply wipe off. Allow the paint to dry for 12 to 24 hours.

4. Wipe the place mats clean with a dry cloth and avoid using water on the place mats.

References

• Kaboose: Reindeer Place Mats
• Kaboose: Christmas Place Mats