I’ve been a busy elf learning how to make all sorts of easy homemade Christmas decorations! Here are three I made (go here to make homemade Christmas ornaments or find more holiday craft projects here). Many of these projects can be done with kids!

1. Christmas Centerpiece

I made this beautiful Christmas centerpiece (which can also be used as a decoration or hostess gift) in about 15 minutes. Supplies you need:

• Container (ceramic, opaque glass, clay, lots of options here!)
• Tree clippings or swag (I used about eight small branches)
• Pinecones (3+ depending on the size of your container)
• Holly twigs (ok if berries have fallen off!)
• Hot glue gun
• Newspaper or floral foam (I used two pieces from an Edible Arrangements basket that I saved)

Step by Step Directions

Step 1. Fold or scrunch newspaper until it fills almost the entire container, leaving just an inch below the rim empty. You can also use floral foam for this step. I used both because my foam was not high enough.

 

Step 2. Arrange your branches so that they form an nest that rests on the top of the container. Look at your nest from several angles so you can spot any holes and patch. I needed about eight branches to make mine.

 

Step 3. Set your pinecones on the nest and move then around until you are pleased with the arrangement. Dab hot glue on the bottom of your largest pinecone and hold in place until it sets. Repeat one at a time, working from the center of your arrangement outward. I put the biggest one in the center, then gathered smaller ones around it.

Step 4. Glue any stray holly berries back onto their original twigs. You may even want to glue berries that haven’t fallen off because they are very delicate and toxic to eat. Don’t want any little ones or four legged friends to come across holly berries on the floor! Tuck one branch at a time into your centerpiece, then glue in place when you are happy with the arrangement.

You’ve just made a beautiful Christmas centerpience that would have cost $40 or $50 in the store!

2. Card Tree

I love receiving holiday cards, but I hate the clutter they create. Plus, they inevitably fall over and the older ones get buried by the newer ones. A Christmas Card Tree solves all those pesky problems. What you’ll need:

• 6-12 feet of ribbon (preferably the thick kind)
• wooden dowels or other light, sturdy elements (like think metal rods or skewers
• Hot-glue gun
• clothes pins, small butterfly clips, or large paper clips

Step by Step Directions

Decide how many rungs you want on your Card Tree (mine has five, above). Cut the first wooden dowel so it is six inches. Add three inches to each successive rung. When you have all your rungs, lay them out on your ribbon. The ribbon should be folded in half so you have two loose ends at the bottom and a fold at the top of your tree. This makes the Card Tree more stable.

Set the top, shortest rung three inches from the ribbon fold. Place each lower rung six inches lower than the previous. When you are happy with the arrangement, slide the top, shortest rung between the ribbon and hot glue to the front and back of the ribbon. Repeat as you work down to the longest rung. Attach your holiday cards as they arrive!

3. Kissing Ball

Took me about 20 minutes start to finish. Cutting on the lines is important to creating a symmetrical finished project, so this one isn’t great for little ones still mastering their scissors skills. Supplies you’ll need:

• 1-12 sheets of paper depending on size of your kissing ball (I used my holiday-themed booklet from Michael’s – $.25 a sheet!)
• Printer (to print template)
• Pen or pencil
• Scissors
• Ribbon, string, or thread
• Tape

Step by Step Directions

I followed the directions on the design blog How About Orange, which were very good. The only thing I would mention about the directions is that the medium size ball is more like the size of an orange, not a grapefruit. Assembling the kissing ball looked harder than it was! I felt like I was doing a fun math puzzle.

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