5 fun and easy Christmas crafts

Are you ready to deck the halls with boughs of holly? It’s time to get well and truly into the Christmas spirit, and what better way to do that than get crafting! Whether you’re looking for fun ways of keeping the kids entertained over the school holidays, or to add to your decorations, then you’ve come to the right place.

We’ve put together our favourite arts and craft activities for all the family , so that there’s something for everyone to get stuck into. Here’s our top five favourite festive arts and crafts activities to help you have a holly jolly Christmas.

Countdown to Christmas!

This DIY Santa Advent Calendar can include as much or as little drawing as you desire. You can always use a template like the one pictured, or do the full DIY with the following:

red paper

white paper

white paper plate

cotton wool balls 

felt tip pens

glue and scissors

Begin by drawing Father Christmas’ face on to the paper plate – don’t forget his rosy cheeks! Then create Father Christmas’ hat out of the red paper and white paper and stick that on to the paper plate. For the beard, cut out your shape from white paper and, write the numbers 1 to 25 on it. Glue the beard on to the paper plate.

Each day in December, stick a cotton wool ball on to Santa’s beard. By 25th December, his beard should be appropriately bushy!

Garlands galore!

Did you know that dried citrus slices can be transformed into gorgeous garlands and decorations? And by experimenting with lemon, lime, satsuma and grapefruit you can create different colours and shapes, which will all come together to make a gorgeous garland.

Simply cut your slices into 1cm thick rounds, wash and pat dry, and arrange on a wire rack on a baking tray. Place is a preheated oven on a low temperature, around 140°C or Gas Mark 1. Bake for 3 hours, turning occasionally. You’ll know they’re done once they’re dry and not sticky.

Then, you can use strings and ribbons to make garlands and hanging decorations using your citrus creations! Just poke a hole through your fruit pieces and arrange them in patterns as you please.

Get twiggy with it!

Another nature-inspired Christmas decoration now, which you can combine with a winter walk or excursion. Next time you take your tribe out into the great outdoors, collect as many little twigs as possible.

Once you’re back at home in the warm, simply take your twigs and secure into patterns and shapes, like stars and trees. You can use whatever you have on hand, such as glue, glitter, thread, ribbons, buttons, paper, you name it! It’s super simple, but effective, and requires very few supplies.

Delicious decor!

Candy canes can be used for a wide range of Christmas decorations. Whether tying one on to a label on a Christmas present or hanging them on your Christmas tree, the pop of red and white immediately adds Christmas cheer!

Our favourite use of candy canes is as place card holders. This is another activity that can keep your little ones occupied whilst you get on with some other important Christmas prep. Take three candy canes and turn them upside down, so that the hooks are at the bottom. Arrange them so that they create a mini stand. Tie them together tightly with a small piece of festive ribbon. They should stand up in place, once you let go.

Place the candy cane grouping on to the table, then put the name card into the middle of the hooks.

You could also add a blob of glue to keep the candy canes together, but make sure you don’t eat them after if you do this! Otherwise, without glue, you can enjoy them as a tasty treat after Christmas dinner.

Roll on the holidays!

Reusing and recycling items you have at home is a low-cost way to make your home merry this Christmas.

Toilet or kitchen roll tubes are a very versatile household item that most people have lying around at home. Before you throw your toilet roll tubes into the recycling this month, save them for some December crafts! You can turn them into snowmen, Christmas trees, snowflakes and even Santa Claus himself!

For snowflakes, all you need to do is flatten your toilet roll tube and cut it into strips. We recommend cutting 10 strips, around 1cm wide. Then, paint the sections white or blue. Once they’re dry, glue five together, side by side, to create a flower shape. Leave them to dry again.

Next, take the remaining sections and glue these around the first shape, in between the strips to create the snowflake shape. Once it’s dry, you can add all the glitter and extra decoration you like!

And, when you’re done, a loop of ribbon or string on the top means you can hang them on your tree, or simply place them around your home.

We can’t wait to see the fruits of your labour – share snaps of your Christmas crafts on our Facebook, Instagram and X (Twitter) pages.

Our branches are also hosting hamper giveaways, Christmas canapes, and family portraits or pet pawtraits, plus a range of charity donation points this December, to celebrate the festive season with your community.

PLUS, take part in our Christmas On Us campaign, where you could win a 50” TV, Salter air fryer, Nintendo Switch OLED and Mario game, a board game plus supermarket vouchers – just pop along to your local branch and scan the poster to win!

We’ll also be giving away daily prizes ​on our social media, including heated throws, a hamper, children’s bike, board games, a Kindle, Lego, Prosecco and so much more!

We’ll also be giving away daily prizes ​on our social media, including Oodies, a children’s bike, board games, a Kindle, Lego, Prosecco and so much more! Make sure to follow our Facebook, Instagram, and X accounts for updates and tag us using #HowdenGives.