December and the Christmas season are traditionally times of the year when gifts are given and well wishes exchanged in the form of cards and letters. With so many people on your Christmas list this year, you may not have the budget to go out and buy each person their own special gift. So when money is tight or you are looking to add a personal touch to a gift, it is time to start thinking of some Christmas craft gift ideas. There is typically a negative stereotype associated with gifts that you make yourself, but there are plenty of crafts that you can easily make and be proud to give to your friends. Below are just a few suggestions for great Christmas craft ideas that can help to start your creative juices flowing.
Family Photo Book
The perfect gift for those close relatives who happen to live far away is a photo book. You can be as extravagant or simple as you like when you are making your book. You can take the time to create unique pages, or you may choose to purchase an album and simply slide in a variety of pages. You can involve your children by having them draw pictures of the year in review. A display of their skills at a certain age is also a fun way of showing how your family is growing. All of these ideas incorporate the same concept of sharing memories with your loved ones.
Gingerbread House or Decorated Sugar Cookies
The Christmas season just wouldn’t be the same were it not for all the treats that are exchanged. Christmas goodies are excellent homemade gifts. To make your goodies even more special you can add a craft flare to them by making such things as a gingerbread house or decorated and shaped sugar cookies. Children love to help in the kitchen and can play an integral part in this tasty Christmas craft.
Joy in a Jar
A very simple yet very cute idea for a Christmas craft is to simply fill a jar with holiday cheer. All that you need is a mason jar and some fabric if you would like to dress up the lid of the jar. Then you can fill the jar with such things as dry ingredients for cookies, bath salts, your recipient’s favorite candies, hot cocoa or soup mix to keep warm, etc. This craft takes only a few minutes to make and can easily be stored and re-used.
Light Bulb Figures
If you are the kind of person who likes crafts that involve turning trash into treasure this craft is for you. You can make jewelry out of small Christmas lights and ornaments out of traditional size light bulbs. It is very simple. All that you do is drill a hole through the metal part of the bulb. For a necklace, simply sting some ribbon through the hole. You can paint the bulb any way that you wish. Glue-on eyes really give this craft a neat effect. The same instructions apply for a traditional bulb that you can use for an ornament. The ribbon that you string through the hole can be used to hang the bulb on the tree. Be creative with your decorating. Use the shape of the bulb as the shape of Santa’s head and add appropriate details. When you are done you will be left with a unique gift that hardly cost you a thing.
Christmas crafts do not always have to be complicated to be enjoyable. For example a child’s handprint art, a frame made out of popsicle sticks, drawings of Santa and his reindeer, etc. can be some of the most meaningful gifts that you can give. By being creative you can make gifts that reflect you and your family.