We are already starting to think about Christmas in our house! This year, more than ever we want to make Christmas as special as possible.
We have already started explaining to our children that Christmas is going to be different this year. It is unlikely we will be able to visit family, or have days out like we usually would and money is a little tighter than previous years.
But we’re not going to let that stop us from having lots of fun! Instead we are trying to find ways to make Christmas last a little longer but without breaking the bank.
Whilst hunting around for ideas, we have collated some of our favorite make-your-own Christmas crafts that you may wish to try for yourself.
Design your own Christmas Bauble
Let your little one’s get creative and design their own Christmas bauble. These make great gifts for Grandparents, Aunts and Uncles, Neighbours and even Teachers, to hang on their Christmas tree.
Christmas Tree Cupcakes
These are so super easy to make, our children always have so much fun making them and they look really impressive! Find the full recipe here.
Fill your own Christmas Bauble
You can fill these Christmas Baubles with almost anything and they look great hanging on the Christmas tree. Some ideas are:
- Fill with your favorite chocolates or sweets
- Add the recipient’s photo and a small gift
- Coat the inside with PVA glue and glitter for a dazzling effect
- Write the recipient’s name and year on the outside and rehang on the Christmas tree every year.
Home-made mince pies
It doesn’t feel like Christmas unless we’ve made a batch of our own home-made mince pies. To keep it simple you can buy ready-rolled pastry and a jar of ready-made mince-meat. Use Christmas shaped cookie cutters to make them feel extra-special.
Homemade Christmas hamper
We are always overwhelmed when we receive a homemade hamper as a gift as it we know first-hand just how much thought, time and consideration it takes to make something yourself and give it as a gift.
You can make your hamper as easy or as complex as you like, and you can fill it with store-bought or homemade gifts. We find it’s the little touches that makes a hamper extra-special e.g. the hand-written gift tags, the homemade basket or even something simple like a set of twinkly lights.
Read our Christmas Hamper post for a full break-down of how we created our most special homemade Christmas Hamper last year.
Make your own Christmas crackers
These Christmas crackers are a firm family favorite in our household. Each year we pick names out of a hat and create a cracker for someone else in the family. It’s always a fun challenge to find something to fit inside the cracker and we write our own terrible jokes! My children always say the home-made crackers are one of the best things about the Christmas dinner!
Gingerbread house
There are two great things about a gingerbread house. They are great fun to make and you can eat it afterwards! Depending on how adventurous you are feeling, you can make your own gingerbread from scratch or use a pre-made kit.
- You can find our Christmas gingerbread recipe here.
- Or if you want a fool-proof option, buy a pre-made Gingerbread house kit.
Home-made Christmas pot-pourri
There is something magical about the warm, spicy smells that surround our home at Christmas. We love the smell of oranges, vanilla, cinnamon and ginger and we make pot-pourri from them so that we can retain the aroma for as long as possible.
You can buy the ingredients.
Or you can dry them at home yourself. We simply slice up apples, oranges and limes, leaving them on the radiator to dry out for a few days. Once all the moisture has been removed, we mix them with cinnamon sticks, vanilla pods, almonds and ground ginger. The smell is delicious and lasts for weeks!
