Easy at Home Christmas Crafts

Make pretty Christmas crafts

Make a variety of homemade Christmas crafts with a few materials. Children and adults can spend an enjoyable hour or two expressing their creative skills with projects to keep for themselves or to give as gifts to friends and family. Keep a box handy to collect supplies throughout the year to use on these types of holiday craft ideas especially when they go on sale or clearance or purchase with a discount coupon.

Button Picture Frame

Transform a plain wood frame into a beautiful work of art with buttons. Attach flat plastic buttons, in different sizes, side by side to the front of a frame with hot glue. Make one layer. Spray the entire frame with gold or silver paint and let dry. If preferred, you can also spray the frame with red or green paint. With hot glue, attach a few elegant and decorative buttons in a random fashion on the frame. If the craft is being given as a gift, insert a Christmas picture such as a wreath, Santa Claus or candy cane. The recipient can change the picture with a favorite photo.

Painted & Stamped Clay Pot

Paint the rim of a small clay pot with white acrylic paint with a 1-inch foam brush. Iit may require two applications. Paint the bottom portion in dark blue acrylic paint. Let dry. Stamp the bottom part of the pot with a medium size snowflake rubber stamp and silver ink pad in a random fashion. Stamp the rim with a smaller size rubber snowflake stamp and dark blue ink pad. Spray the entire outside of the pot with clear sealant. Use the pot as a Christmas candy dish or insert a red pillar candle for a centerpiece on a table.

Beaded Wreath Ornament

String alternating large or assorted size red, green and white plastic beads on an 10-inch long piece of 20-gauge jewelry wire. Cut with wire cutters. When you have 6-inches of beads, use needle nose pliers near one end to bend the wire and make a loop, twisting the wire two times. Holding the other end of the wire with the pliers, bend the wire to make a wreath with the beads. Secure the wire ends together by twisting. Make sure there is little or no wire showing between the beads and the loop. Cut off excess wire with wire cutters and hide any sharp ends inside a bead. Tie a pretty red satin ribbon around the loop to make a bow. Add a few drops of hot glue behind the bow to a bead to keep it aligned on the wreath. Also tie on a little bell at the bottom of the wreath with a bit of red ribbon.

Holiday Cards

Make three-dimensional holiday cards. Cut a long triangle Christmas tree out of heavy themed scrapbook paper. Use double sided tape to attach it to the front of a blank white 5-by 7-inch card, a folded 10-inch by 7-inch card stock. Decorate the tree with gold, red and green glitter glue with garlands. Add sequins on the garlands as ornaments and a glittery peel-and-stick foam star on the top. Other designs can include cut-wreath or presents with fancy scissors, decorated with satin ribbon strips and stickers.

References

• Better Homes & Gardens: "Button Up" Picture Frame
• All Free Crafts: Tri-Bead Wreath