Make Gifts and Decorations with Christmas Craft Ideas
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It can be hard to teach children what Christmas is really all about, the shops are full of decorations, sometimes from as early as September. The summer has barely finished and Christmas suddenly starts. Since you cannot deny the arrival of Christmas to your children you have to think of another way to slow down their bombardment of lists of toys which they think that father Christmas should supply.This is where a list of Christmas craft ideas is indispensable. Christmas crafts are more than just about making the odd paper chain, it is about learning about Christmas, learning that the best things are often home made and also turning what can be a very stressful time of year into productive family time.
First of all, to get into the Christmas mood you will need some decorations around the home and for the tree.Remember, that if you are visiting people before Christmas Day a nice gift to give to thank them for their hospitality is a home made Christmas decoration. Christmas decorations are the best place to start with you Christmas craft ideas, partly because they are easy, but also because your children will see instant results.
If you want to get your Christmas craft ideas started quickly it may be worth visiting a craft shop to pick up some materials, however, you will be amazed how many useful items are already in your home and can be used. If you are going to collect the materials for your Christmas craft ideas then you will need a large box, preferably in the kitchen, in which to store your materials. Before you put anything in the bin think about whether you can use it. The inside of a crisp packed is silver and shiny, great for sticking onto things. Your egg boxes can be cut to make Christmas bell shapes to hang on your Christmas tree. If you want them to make a noise simply attach a couple of metal objects hanging inside which ill create a tinkling sound when tapped.
Remember that at the end of the twelve days of Christmas you will need to pack away the Christmas decorations.Since you will have plenty more Christmas craft ideas for next year you may not want to keep everything which the children have made, but it's nice for the each to choose a couple of items to keep. Make sure that the items they choose to keep have their names on them and the year. After a couple of years you will be able to see how well they have progressed and you will have a memento from each year.You will also be able to see how over the years your Christmas craft ideas have got increasingly inspired.
Christmas is a great time of year for the family, and you can have lots of fun with Christmas craft ideas, while still saving money, so happy sticking and gluing.
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Time To Get The Home Ready For Christmas
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It is always fun when the time of year comes around to start decorating for Christmas time. Years ago it seems that time did not roll around until right after Thanksgiving, but over the last several years it seems to have started even earlier. It is very noticeable in all the stores right after Halloween ends. Seems the very next time all the Christmas decorations are out lining the shelf’s.
Though most people probably start the actually decoration process until after Thanksgiving ends, there is more to it then that. Depending on how much effort you will put into the decorating of your house you may need to start months before mapping everything out.
Part of that is getting a list of all the indoor and outdoor decorations you would like to display. To get some ideas you can browse websites to look a products or view pictures of homes decorated for Christmas from years past. There are many unique thing people do to decorate for the holidays, but most people follow a similar theme.
They all typically put lights on the house and maybe some outdoor decorations get put out, and then there are those that go to the extreme with their holiday cheer and end up doing so much that people drive to their house from all over the place just to see it. Those people must really do some serious planning.
Where the average person falls is usually somewhere in between either doing nothing or going to the extreme. If you plan to do things outside in your front yard and want to go somewhat beyond doing nothing you may want to make sure to buy some commercial grade Christmas lights for the house. In addition if you do not want wires hanging out everywhere another good idea may be to look into using Mr. Christmas Wireless Lights and Sounds of Christmas as part of your display. Just make sure to have lots of fun and make it great for the kids and adults alike to enjoy your hard work and efforts.
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Urban Rebellion: Tips for a Rustic Christmas
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An old fashioned country Christmas has a timeless appeal. No one knows that better than the folks at rustic-lodge-lifestyle.com so they’ve put together a few tips and ideas to share with you. Whether you live in the country or not, you can still put some rustic in your Christmas.
“Here are some ideas for a rustic Christmas that can be enjoyed by all ages,” says Sandra Thornton. “And you just might create some family traditions that you can enjoy for years.”
Do-it yourself table centerpiece
A simple but elegant way to dress up your dining room table is to create a striking rustic Christmas centerpiece using readily available, natural materials. It’s not difficult and can be done quite quickly.
If you have coniferous trees close by, cut a few boughs (pine, silver fir, and cypress retain their needles especially well), gather up some pine cones, and if you can find them, a couple of branches with red berries. I made a quick trip into the woods to find my supplies. Add a shiny Christmas ornament, perhaps some ribbon, and definitely some candles to round out your centerpiece. By artfully arranging these items you can create a visually appealing, fragrant, and very rustic looking centerpiece.
Note: be very cautious with candles. Make sure the flame is not close to the evergreen boughs or any other flammable materials. Never leave candles burning when everyone leaves the room! Your natural centerpiece should only be kept in the house for a few days…as the boughs dry out they will become very flammable and will start to lose their needles.
Pomander
Literally, apple of amber in French, a pomander is generally thought of as a mixture of aromatic substances. We use an orange and cloves to make our rustic Christmas ornament.
Children will enjoy this project. I made my first one when I was 12. Now I’m making them with my grandchildren. It’s an easy project and you’ll love the results.
All you do is stick whole cloves into an orange until it is evenly covered all over. Use a push pin to pierce the skin of the orange. At minimum there should be an equal amount of clove cover with orange showing through. As it dries, the cloves preserves the orange so it doesn’t rot and the aroma of the cloves and orange is wonderful! Garnish it with ribbon and you’re ready to hang it on the tree, over a window, or above a doorway. It even makes a nice gift. The pomander will last for years.
(Pomander photo courtesy of nickyfern)
Chistmas garlands
We love the look and feel of natural garlands. You can use a variety of natural materials – evergreen boughs, crab apples, dried flowers, cinnamon sticks, and pine cones.
Make a simple and rustic Christmas garland with popcorn and fresh cranberries. Again, this is a geat project for children!
Use a heavy thread. You can also use nylon line - it offers more durability - although that’s not really an issue as it’s only meant to last over the holidays. You’ll need a needle that can accommodate your thread or line. Then make your popcorn and let it cool. You might want to set aside a bowlful to snack on too! Young children will be able to thread the popcorn onto the line, but may have difficulty with the cranberries.
You may want to create a repeating pattern - such as three berries and one piece of popcom - or you can choose to create a random string.
Harvest your own tree
Cutting down your own Christmas tree is the stuff of romance and memories! If you have land with coniferous trees, you can harvest a tree from your own property. If not, you may know a landowner who will allow you to cut a tree on their property. You’ll need a small, but sharp, buck saw.
When heading out to get your tree, remember you have to come back the same distance, only you’ll be dragging a tree!
The first time we cut down our own Christmas tree was at a newly acquired family hobby farm. Our kids were about 5, 8, and 10 years old. It was a crisp winter day and the snow was knee-deep. We found our tree, cut it and hauled it back. It’s a mystery how much a tree can change size from when you first cut it to when you bring it into your home! So be sure to size up the tree carefully before you cut it. Our tree was perfect - once we took the top off so we could stand it in the house! Do you know we all still laugh and reminisce about that tree!
Real or artificial – which is better? Despite the convenience of an artificial tree, it may surprise you that a real tree is the “greener” choice. Fake trees are manufactured from non renewable petroleum products. It’s the impact on the environment caused by the manufacturing and ultimate disposal of the artificial tree that makes a real tree the better choice. Next spring, plant at least one tree (maybe more!) to replace the one you cut down.
Ready for your rustic Christmas? Maybe you aren’t the do-it-yourself type - or perhaps you just don’t have the time. If you find yourself running out of time, with just too much to do at this time of year, check out the rustic Christmas selection and ideas at Rustic-Lodge-Lifestyle.com.
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Edible and Easy Christmas Crafts
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For many people, Christmas is about the family, the festivities, and of course, the food! There are different kinds of treats you can make during the holiday season. Candy canes, cookies, and apples are some easy Christmas crafts that you can make and give away as presents. You can also combine various food items and create lovely gift baskets to give to your family and friends.
The great thing about Christmas food is that it is not merely limited to being served on the dining table and consumed. Food can also be used to make other easy Christmas crafts that you can adorn your homes with. Edible ornaments are quite popular during the Christmas season.
An example of a food idea used as an easy Christmas craft is a miniature Christmas tree that you can make out of an ice cream cone. Just turn the cone upside down and place it on a paper plate. Next, use green frosting to color the cone. Spice up your mini Christmas tree with an assortment of candies, chocolates and sprinkles. Finally, shower the tree with confectioner’s sugar to make it appear covered in snow.
Aside from using an ice cream cone, you can also use green jell-o to shape anything into a Christmas tree. Just cook the jell-o until it dissolves, and shape it into a cone before you freeze it.
You can also make ornaments for your regular Christmas tree using food. Cookies are great for this purpose. Once you have the dough ready, use cookie cutters to shape the cookies into the design you want. Cookie cutters are available in various shapes, such as Christmas trees, balls, and angels. Don’t forget to make a hole at the top of the ornament before baking it. This is where you will pass the string or ribbon so that you can hang the ornament on the tree. After baking the cookies, you can design the ornaments with paint, stickers or glitters. To make the ornaments last longer, coat them with acrylic varnish once they are completely dry.
Another food idea that you can make into a Christmas craft is a Christmas ginger bread house. Once you have the basic ginger bread house, you can embellish it with candies and cookies. You can also add a mini cookie version of Santa Clause and his sleigh, and candy cane reindeer outside the house.
Food ideas are definitely easy Christmas crafts to make. With some effort, you can create amazing ornaments and gifts, and a great snack to boost!
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Make Your Tree “Antique” with Victorian Christmas Tree Ornaments
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Many people enjoy antiquing - searching out rare treasures often at bargain basement prices. At an antique store, you can find lots of different items in various states of repair. In antiquing, the old adage, one man’s junk is another man’s treasure, is definitely true. Christmas tree ornaments, especially Victorian Christmas tree ornaments, are becoming increasingly popular among antiquers.
Christmas Tree ornaments from the Victorian Era
The Victorian era - the long period from 1837 to 1901 when Queen Victoria ruled England - is normally associated only with the UK, but the US was also affected by Victorian tastes and values. Victoria was famously rigid, yet her era also saw extremely fine decorations, and Victorian Christmas tree ornaments often reflect this.
Throughout most of the Victorian era, very few if any people had electricity available. So instead of strings of Christmas lights, candles were used to light up the tree. While very few candles survive from that time, the candles themselves were set in brass candle holders, and those candle holders are now prized as classic Victorian Christmas tree ornaments.
Those depicting Father Christmas are another example of classic Victorian Christmas tree ornaments. While Father Christmas and Santa Claus are essentially the same person (based on the real Saint Nicholas), they do not have similar appearances. Instead of the familiar red suit, Victorian era “Father Christmas” ornaments show a man with a long white beard and long robes, resulting in an appearance that people today might associate more with a philosopher or a wizard. And a decent number of Victorian Christmas tree ornaments based on this image of Father Christmas still survive and can be found by the determined antiquer.
One type of Victorian Christmas tree ornaments that are rather hard to come by these days are velvet ribbons. Crimson colored velvet ribbons were prized tree ornaments, and were placed decoratively throughout the Christmas tree. Velvet does not last well over time, so if you are lucky enough to find any examples of these antique Christmas tree ornaments in a shop, chances are they will need some restoration.
Thus, it might be easier just to visit a fabric supply shop and get some new velvet for your Christmas decorations and ornaments. In fact, if you or someone you know can sew, you can purchase a piece of velvet, cut some strips out of it, then just sew the sides, and you’ve just made your own velvet ribbons. Whichever method you choose, the key is to have fun decorating your Christmas tree! Remember the Internet always has websites available that can help you with any and all of your holiday decorating ideas.
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Christmas Crafts to Make as Gifts That People Will Actually Love!
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Want to give your friends and family something unique and special this Christmas? Try making your own Christmas crafts as gifts! Yes, some homemade gifts can seem cheesy more than anything else, but these well chosen and even practical crafts are personal AND functional—and who doesn’t like that?
CLOTHING
Clothing remains to be a popular gift during Christmas. If you have a lot of time on your hands, you can choose to make various kinds of Christmas clothing to give to your relatives and to your friends. Christmas crafts to make can range from mittens, to ties, to vests, and even to sweaters. For those who like to crochet or to knit, scarves are actually a good gift idea. There are many scarf patterns available in craft stores or online, and knitting a scarf only takes a few hours. You can also change the colors of the patterns to suit the personality of the person you’re giving the gift to. You can also make matching outfits or Christmas-themed attire that your family can wear at gatherings.
If you’re adept at sewing, you don’t have to limit yourself to making clothes. Another nice Christmas craft to make is a quilt. You can put together different patterns or materials and sew them together. You can also make quilted ornaments or pillow cases, and spice them up with scrap materials, such as ribbons or beads.
ornaments are quite easy Christmas crafts to make. For flat ornaments, you can trace designs on some simple construction paper and coat it with wax paper. If you want to make 3-dimensional ornaments, you can use Styrofoam in different shapes and sizes. Once you have the desired shape, cover the surface with glue and sprinkle it with glitter or other materials. Pin or tape a small ribbon or thread at the top of the ornament, so that it can be hanged on the Christmas tree. It’s that simple!
FOOD
Food is definitely a staple during Christmastime. There are numerous food Christmas crafts to make during this holiday season. Small treats are common, such as cookies and chocolates. You can shape these treats into different forms or place them into attractive, re-usable containers. Cakes are also very popular, and when designed meticulously, can appear professional. Another good thing about making food Christmas crafts is that you can sell them to other people. This way, you will be able to earn money during the holiday season!
CALENDAR
Since Christmas is celebrated at the end of the year, it is quite practical to give a calendar as a Christmas gift. You can use crayons and colored pens to design and bring life to the calendar. For techies, you can also design the calendar using your computer and have it printed afterwards. You can include the calendar in a notebook, or even print it on a bookmark. It is not only an easy Christmas craft to make, but it is also quite useful!
See, with a little guidance and a lot of love and imagination; you can easily create gifts that people will really love and appreciate.
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