I swear Christmas seems to creep up on us earlier every year and with the recent warm weather, it really doesn’t feel like Christmas is just around the corner! 

Each year I try to do a bit of DIY Christmas Crafts with the kids and this year is no exception!

I let the kids choose one new decoration a year, but other than that, we tend to use what we have and craft the rest.  

However, I’ll be honest with you; DIY Christmas crafts normally make me shudder. I’ve always had Christmas tree OCD, there has to be a theme and I always try to keep to the same colour scheme.

I let the kids decorate the tree, but then I quietly rearrange it when no one is looking. Don’t tell me I’m the only one? 😉

How can I make cheap Christmas decorations? 

When my kids come home from school with a newly created craft paper star with glitter stuck on awkwardly or an angel made out of a loo roll, I smile sweetly and put it to one side.

In fact, it’s the main reason we got another Christmas tree for the kitchen. I have designated it for the kids only and it is where all their wonderful creations turn up.

Our old kitchen was extremely festive! We haven’t decorated our new kitchen yet as we were knee-deep in renovations this time last year…

DIY Christmas Crafts

I do like having a few homemade craft decorations dotted about the house though, so I thought I’d write a quick blog post on 4 of my favourite easy DIY Christmas crafts.

They are so cheap to make and perfect if you are looking for quick crafts for kids. 

At this time of year, our social media feeds are full of easy DIY Christmas decorations and it can sometimes feel a little overwhelming.

However, if you are looking to keep costs down and fill your house with sustainable Christmas decorations, creating your own is both fulfilling, cheap and fun!

Christmas Wreath

We have seen an explosion of people making their own Christmas wreaths in the last few years and these days, anything goes.

I have seen kitsch plastic toy wreaths, wreaths made out of feathers and colourful bauble creations.

As I am going with a red, gold and green theme in my living room this year, I decided to make a wreath out of ribbon and flowers that I already had in my craft box!

Here’s what you need –

• Natural rattan Wreath frame
• Your choice of Ribbon
• Hot Glue gun
• Red Poinsettia Clip on flowers
• Foliage
• Scissors
• Green pipe cleaners

Method – 

1. Start by securing the end of the ribbon to the wreath with a hot glue gun

2. Start wrapping the ribbon around the wreath making sure you overlap the ribbon

3. Once you are a quarter of the way, if you have any foliage, wrap the ribbon around the stalk to secure it in place.

4. Keep wrapping the ribbon until it meets the beginning and then secure the end with the hot glue gun

5. Use a green (or colour-matched) pipe cleaner to secure the foliage to the wreath

6. Clip the poinsettia onto the foliage

7. Either use string or red/green ribbon to tie around the top of the wreath to hang

Quick and Easy Snowflake

If you want some quick crafts for kids at Christmas, look no further than creating your own paper snowflake.

I wrote a dedicated blog post on how to create these snowflakes after people went crazy for them on my Instagram stories.

Read more >>>

How to Create a Quick and Easy DIY Snowflake Star for Christmas

The beauty of making these snowflakes is that you can use any colour and create them at any size.

You can make larger ones and hang them from your windows and ceiling, or make smaller ones and hang them from your Christmas tree.

I normally make large snowflakes, but I wanted to attach some to a hanging wreath I’m making so I followed the same instructions on this blog post, but created smaller snowflakes.

I also used different colours, including burgundy and gold to create a Christmas colour theme.

I love these paper snowflakes, they are the perfect sustainable Christmas decoration!

To create, all you need is a square piece of paper, some scissors, a stapler and some string or Sellotape from which to hang the snowflake.

As I am making smaller snowflakes this time, I needed to use Sellotape to fasten them together, but if you are making larger snowflakes, a stapler is easier. 

Method – 

1. Cut the paper so you have a square shape. Fold it in half to create a triangle and then fold it in half again.

2. Make sure you have the right angle of the triangle at the bottom with the folded edge of the triangle vertically, cut 4 x 1cm strips at 90 degrees angles leaving 1cm away from the folded edge. 

3. Open up the triangle so that it is a square shape and starting from the middle, secure the two sides in the middle with sellotape. Do this for each strip, making sure they alternate from left to right. 

4. You need to repeat this six times so that you have six “flakes” to create the snowflake. Secure them together with a stapler and you’re done!

Christmas Craft Citrus decoration

Did anyone else get an apple and orange in the bottom of their stocking every Christmas?

According to the story, St Nicholas learnt of a father who couldn’t afford a dowry for his 3 daughters, so he threw three sacks of gold down the chimney and they landed in the daughters’ stockings that were hanging by the fire to dry.

The oranges we put in stockings today are supposed to represent the gold that St Nicholas gifted.

I also remember making Christingles as a kid which consists of an orange, a candle stuck in the middle, a red ribbon wrapped around the outside of the orange and dried fruits or sweets stuck on cocktail sticks representing the “fruits” of the earth.

Oranges play a big part in the whole Christmas season so I made some citrus decorations to hang on a Christmas Chandelier wreath.

As DIY Christmas crafts go, they are extremely simple to do and provide a lovely natural/biophilic addition to your tree, wreath or garland.

What you will need –

• Orange! Or any type of citrus fruit
• A sharp knife
• Baking sheet
• An oven
• Some string

Method

1. Cut the citrus fruit into slices of about 1cm thickness with a sharp knife and remove all seeds

2. Lay them out separately on a baking sheet and place them in a preheated oven set to around 160F.

3. Bake them for around 3-4 hours, making sure you turn them over every hour to bake both sides.

4. Keep checking the slices as you do not want them to completely shrivel up or get burnt.

5. Once you are happy they are baked, leave them to cool in the kitchen and then thread some string or craft wire through the slice so you can hang it from the tree.

If you are looking at creating more easy DIY Christmas decorations, you could get creative with the orange slices and use them as single decorations, stack them together to make citrus baubles or create garlands. 

Christmas Twig Tree

Another DIY Christmas craft I have done in the past is creating a Christmas twig tree. 

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How To Create an Eco Friendly Christmas Twig Tree Decoration

This is so simple and easy to do and looks fabulous with very little effort. It is also a great idea if you are looking for quick crafts for kids.

You can forage for the twigs and let them choose their own sustainable Christmas decorations to decorate the tree.

My two young children (who often moan when I task them with anything!), enjoyed looking for different lengths of twigs and branches and choosing the little baubles to attach to the tree.

What you will need –

• Small branches or twigs
• Command hooks
• Jute string or twine
• Scissors
• Wire string lights
• Small baubles

Method – 

1. Make sure you collect around 6/7 branches all descending in size by about 2 inches. Arrange them on a table and starting at the bottom left branch, wrap twine around the end of the branch and work your way upwards, leaving about 2 inches between each branch.

It is probably better to drill a hole through the middle of the branch and feed the twine through.

I think this works better as I found that, by just wrapping it around the end, the branches kept moving and dropping when I lifted it up. 

2. When you get to the top branch, make a triangle at the top so you have enough room to hang it and then work your way back down the right-hand side of the branches.

3. Once you are happy that the branches hang equally when lifted by the twine from the top, you can fasten it with a hook to a wall. I found it easier to hang it first and then add the décor.

4. Wrap the wire lights around the branches and then to finish off, add mini decorations, bird baubles or whatever takes your fancy.

I’ve had fun creating these DIY Christmas crafts and they shouldn’t take you any more than half hour to complete (excluding things like foraging for branches and baking oranges in the oven!).

They are a great idea if you want some quick crafts for kids and make beautiful sustainable Christmas decorations which will last you for years. 

Keeeeeep crafting!  

Mel x

More on Christmas >>>

7 Cheerful and Colourful Christmas Tree Themes you Need to Try

Cooking at Christmas – 4 of the Best Kitchen Appliances and Recipes