Christmas Don't Be Late

This guest post on holiday crafting with your kids is from Jamie Long.  She has three quick and easy projects that you can do with your kids to decorate  your home and/or your tree for the holidays.

When I was a child my mom would let me help trim the Christmas tree and wrap all the presents.  This always made me feel so special and made Christmas last all month long instead of just one day.  I knew I wanted the holidays to be like that for my family too.  My boys are 7 and 4 and we started our own traditions 5 years ago.  My designs are grounded in simplicity and practicality, but they are also FUN!  I want creating with my kids to be stress free and to produce something they can safely play with, and if something gets destroyed then we can always make more next year!

Project 1: Paper Garland

My first project is a paper loop garland, and my four-year-old, Josh, will doing most of the work just to show you how easy it really is. 

First things first, your supply list includes a big stack of paper (I have a 6ft tree and I am using 25 sheets of 12x12 paper), a trimmer, staples and stapler and I am using punches this year but they are optional and the garland is perfectly beautiful without them.

Trim your paper into strips at 2 inches wide for stability and leave the length at 12in. 

Now lets try our punches!  I decided to allow Josh decide which strips to punch and where to place the punches. 

The third and last step is creating the loops.  I used staples because they are the easiest for my kids to use.  If you want a more finished look you can use micro glue dots.  Or for an even more handmade look the loops can be stitched!  See the three looks below:

As you assemble your circles don’t forget to loop them together to create a long paper garland. 

A great way to use up leftover paper and get your kids involved in creating!  I told you it was easy!

Project 2: Paper Banner

This next project is a banner.  I know banners are all the rage right now so everybody should be on board for this one! 

The first decision to make about your banner is your title. Choosing a title is very personal and may require some quiet reflection.  I chose the chipmunks Christmas song “Christmas Don’t Be Late” because it is Josh’s favorite Christmas song this year.  The banner we are making is going to be in this style:

Your supply list for this project includes a hole punch, trimmer, ribbon or twine, adhesive (I am using roll on adhesive because it is cleaner), paper (the longer your title the more paper you will need) and letters (You have to decide on a product type for your lettering.  Possible types include hand cut, stenciled, die cut, or prefab -- i.e. letter stickers.  I am going to use prefabricated letters because they seem to be the most fun for the kiddos.)

To determine the size of your banner flags measure your tallest and widest letters and add one 1 inch.  My flags are going to be 5x6 inches.  If your title is more than one word you will also want to cut spacer flags to put between the words so it is easy to read. 

Once again Josh will be my lovely assistant.  He's cutting the flags using a paper trimmer.

The next step is to punch your holes in the tops of your flags that you will lace your string through.  They don’t need to be measured or uniform, you (or your child) can just eyeball it.

Your next decision is how to lace your flags.  You can go "under and over" or "over and under" (see below for examples):

I chose to start under because that is what was most pleasing to my eye.

Now all you have to is to attach your letters and voila, you are done!

Project 3: Circle Fan Ornament

My last project is a circle fan ornament.  The supply list for your ornament is paper (a 12x12 sheet makes 2 ornaments for me), circle punch, paper piercer, glue, and ribbon/twine. 

Joshua will be assisting me again. (I suggested we take a break after the last project but he cried and said he didn’t want a break!) 

The first step is to punch out your circles, for a nice full fan I suggest at least 8 circles per ornament.

Once all of your circles are punched you need to fold them in half, don’t worry about being perfect!

Now you need to glue one side of each circle to the next.  Josh is using the roller glue because it is the simplest.

Put together at least eight of the circles to create a nice full circle fan.

Next I used the paper piercer to make a hole for our twine.  I suggest parents complete this step because we all really like our kids with as few holes in them as possible and the paper piercer is quite sharp! 

There you have it as easy as one, two, three… literally!

Thanks for looking and sharing a little of your time with me.  I hope you get to enjoy some stress free quality time with your loved ones this holiday season.  Don’t forget the most important step in all of these projects… HAVE FUN!

My name is Jamie Long and I am a 34 year old former art history major and stay at home mom.  I live in the beautiful Appalachian mountains of eastern Kentucky with my husband of over 14 years and our two sons.  I have been playing with paper, scissors and glue for as long as I can remember and when I was introduced to my local scrapbook store it was love at first sight.  I definitely see art in the everyday and I inspired by everything from food packaging to a blade of grass.

Blog: October Sky