Christmas Craft Ideas for Kids

Heres a few quick and fun ideas for crafts you could work on with your whole family. 

~Cutting Snowflakes: A classic that gets your kids imagination flowing. When you finish cutting them maybe add some color or even glitter to make them sparkle and hang them in the kids room. 

~Handprints: Theres many recipes out there for making molds. You could press the hands of your kids into these molds to make an adorable momentum for your tree. Again painting them after they've baked is fun too. :)

~Decorating Stockings: Make the stockings you hang above the fireplace more personal by adding some fabric paint or anything else the kids think of adding. 

How To: Spread Christmas Cheer

As Buddy the Elf taught us: the best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear. This is certainly true, but there's many other creative ways to integrate the holiday season's joy to others who may feel a bit pessimistic about this time of year. Here's a list of a few things you could put forth in your community to inspire everyone to have positive moods this season. :)

~Have a spirit week in your local school: A lot similar to March Madness or Homecoming Week, you can start a Christmas spirit week with a theme day for each day of the week before vacation starts. Christmas Pjs day, winter hat day, white out day, Christmas character day and ugly sweater day are the few themes our local school chose to use for the week. This is perfect for work as well to get everyone in the spirit. :)

~Make a unique holiday playlist: Sometimes listening to the Christmas songs on the radio can be a bit repetitive. Make up your own playlist that combines the classics with a few new favorites of yours. It doesn't even have to be Christmas themed; it could just remind you of winter. Hearing new songs will brighten your mind and connect it to new memories.

~Help the community: There's no doubt that helping out in your community will make you feel good as well as everyone around you. This is pretty much already a given, find what services your community needs and do what interests you most - remember, you'll want to do something you'll be happy doing because helping out with a negative outlook does no good.



~I know these posts may have become more about quantity than quality so please...leave a comment below telling me what you think about this Christmas series of posts; it really does help a lot!~

A Tip for Last Minute Gifts

We all have those times when we totally forget a gift we were supposed to get someone and it happens at many other times than just the holidays. When there's no time to go out and buy something what do you do? There's the simple and honest way to just tell the person you ran out of time to get the ideal gift you had in mind and you'd like to give it to them later or there's always the opportunity to whip up something quick. But throwing something together can be disastrous. A simple solution to this is to simply make the person a card and write a message inviting them to an event of which there you can give your present, or actually write on the card to expect their wonderful gift in the mail. As soon as you buy their gift wrap it nicely and send it in the mail; it would be as though the shipping for your present was on the slow side.



~Sorry about the quick and short (and late..) post...hope it was of usage anyway!~

Handmade Christmas Card Ideas

Handmade Christmas cards are a ton better than store bought cards. They're unique and can say whatever you want. If you're stuck on what you want your holiday cards to look like here are a few ideas that I used for mine. Some basic supplies you might want are: white paper, red, green, black sharpies (skinny are best for detail), scissors (pattern perhaps?) buttons and ribbon. :D

Idea 1: Ribbon as a bow to a gift. Draw a box with a skinny sharpie and decorate the 'wrapping paper' however you'd like. Tie a bow with ribbon and add it to the top of your box. Voila!

Idea 2: Simply doodle whatever you'd like with some red and green sharpies. For mine I did a candy cane, but there are many more options; a tree, snowman, Santa - anything festive. :)

Idea 3: Glue buttons as part of a larger picture. Think about the different things you can incorporate buttons with - a snowman, a wreath a Christmas tree - there's many possibilities.

Idea 4: Include in your card one of the interests of the person you're giving it to. Such as my Doctor Who themed card below. Don't forget to add some references to the inside of your card. 

Festive Holiday Party Nails

These nails combine deep wine colors with festive gold to make a design perfect for a holiday party!

Nail polish bottles used were NYC plaza plumberry, NYC extra shiny top coat, and Art Club fine gold (NA26) as well as a set of nail jewels from Icing's.

How To: Staying Sane When Times Are Busy

The holidays can be a really busy time, as well as on many other occasions as well. Take myself for instance, I was so busy today I did not have the time to create an actual craft for today's 25 Days of Christmas Crafts post. However, I thought this would be just as good to share. How I stay sane when I'm super busy.

First thing's first. Prioritize. I had an oral presentation to do tomorrow. Instead of writing my post, I practiced my presentation instead. Future me will thank me a lot; though I sincerely regret not having enough time for a new post, my presentation was much more important.

Second. Whatever you do, do not multitask. Sure, you may think you're a master of answering emails or texts while working on a big project or your homework but you really can't. It's much more distracting than you think to have that phone next to you or your laptop turned on. You'll save much more time if you're solely focused on one activity at a time.

Third. Give yourself some breaks. Of course, this you have to moderate a lot; however, don't set a scheduled timer. Having a set time for a break will distract you from focusing on your work and you'll just want to think about that break coming up. Take a quick break when you feel it's appropriate. For example, if your laptop suddenly runs out of battery don't scramble for the charger just take a short break to do something else and then get back to it (on this note, I suggest using Google Docs so that if your laptop does suddenly run out of battery whatever you're working on is automatically saved).

I hope these tips helped you in balancing everything around the busy holidays and don't forget to stay positive when times are rough and busy. :)

DIY Chalkboard Serving Plate

Here's a wonderful idea for a holiday decoration in your home or a gift for a friend. First, you simply use chalkboard paint and paint the inner part of a serving plate. Make it holiday themed with a fun Christmas or winter scene drawn with chalk. To add black detail wet a q-tip and draw over the chalk design. This is what I did:

DIY Photo Collage

As you've probably noticed in many other posts, I have a tendency to create photo collages with pictures. I thought that this would also be a perfect gift idea. Just follow the instructions below on how to make your own photo collage with Picasa, print out your masterpiece and fit it with a frame. 

Step 1:

~Import your photos. Click on 'Import' in the top left corner of Picasa. You can either import from a folder on your computer or from a camera plugged into your computer. At the bottom be sure to create a folder for your new imported photos to go. When you're done click 'Import All'.

 Step 2: Go to the folder you created. Under the title of the folder there should a 'Create Photo Collage' button. Click on that and a new collage will be created with all of the photos.

Step 3: Change the layout of the photos, add clips or take away some clips and mess around with the final touches. When you're done click 'Create Collage' and your collage is finished! Print it out and frame it for a close friend or family member for the holidays. 

No Money Gift Ideas

Many of these ideas will probably go without saying, but I hope some of these will be helpful to you. These gift ideas are perfect for your significant other or a close friend. The time and effort you put forth is worth much more than the amount of money you spend. Here's 3 no fail gift ideas that cost very little to nothing at all!

1. The Classic Card: There's nothing like a handmade card with a funny inside joke or an inspiring quote. Make it as personal as possible - the more thought put into this the better!
2. Invite Him/Her to Hang Out: Plan a fun event the two of you could do together over Christmas break. Cheap things could be window shopping in the mall, taking a walk, watching a movie at home, or just a simple get together with dinner at your place.
3. Create Something: Take your talent and put it into something that you can give to someone. For example, if you're good with drawing you could create a portrait of that person or if you're a wonderful singer write them a song. Add in an instrument of your choosing. :) 

Chocolate Chip Cookie Hot Chocolate Recipe

What You'll Need:

~Hot chocolate and your favorite mug

~Chocolate chip cookie(s)

~Nutella

~Whipped Cream

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What To Do:

Put a chocolate chip cookie in a sandwich bag and carefully crush it with your mug. Next, line your mug with nutella and pour the cookie crumbs on a plate. Press the top of your mug into the cookie crumbs and cover the nutella. Pour in your hot chocolate and add whipped cream and more cookie crumbs if you wish. Enjoy with some extra chocolate chip cookies on the side. :)

Winter Inspired Nails

Here's one of many inspired nail art looks for the winter season. Although it's very simple I think it looks adorable with whatever you're wearing. 

I used these colors for the design. Sparkles are another cute touch also :)

DIY Bold Ribbon Bracelet

Just a quick DIY for Day 6 of 25 Days of Christmas Crafts! This bracelet is a perfect gift to give away or a wonderful piece to a holiday party outfit! :)

What you need:
~Solid colored bangle
~Ribbons

What to do:
Without cutting the ribbon, wrap it around your bracelet and tie a bow; don't worry, it doesn't have to be perfect. Cut off the excess and then untie your bow. You can now use this length of ribbon to measure out the other ribbons. You can have as many as you want; for mine I chose to do three. Simply tie your lengths of ribbon in a bow around your bracelet and pull it tightly. Get creative with other colors combinations like red and white or different hues of blue. :D

Holiday Decoration Inspiration

Need some new ideas for your holiday decorating? Here's 4 new things you can do with your decorations.

1. Display a Scene: This doesn't have to be a nativity scene, there are many more possibilities! Try a winter theme with fake snow and snowmen and possibly some snow covered trees. This scene can be displayed on a shelf, on top of tables or cabinets, in a shadow box or below your Christmas tree. 

2. Focus on the Dinning Table - Your table in your dinning room is one of the main places that you should focus on decorating. Try making a center piece, the options are endless for what you could do. Candles, golden accents and festive trinkets are a must for the holiday season. Chose some colors you really love that you can use on your table setting as well as the rest of the room to pull the area together.

3. Add Your Own Artwork - You don't necessarily have to know how to paint to add a cute photo to the wall of your house, thrift stores are a great way to find unique paintings. You can re-purpose the painting and add a new matte with an intricate frame. In this picture I have two newly matted pictures as well as some cute wall stickers. Though you may not have painted the pictures yourself, the display of them is artwork on it's own.

4. Lights - Think of some different places you can use your extra Christmas lights or maybe even change up the lights you normally use on your tree. Putting white lights on your tree give it a gold like color and a classic feel while multicolored lights add a festive feel and is obviously much more colorful; blue lights are also a wonderful way to create a wintry essence. The best part about the holiday season is that you can pretty much get away with putting lights anywhere and everywhere. Don't be afraid to add a string around a mirror, doorway or window.

The Classic (Extra Sweet) Hot Chocolate

What better way to spend your time lounging by the fire than with a cup of hot chocolate? This is my classic recipe for hot chocolate - probably the most simple but definitely delicious. The best part is it's very flexible, you can add or take away anything you want from this recipe to make it your own. 

Here's what you need:

~Your favorite mug

~Milk/Water - whatever you prefer. 

~Hot Cocoa Mix - mine also had mini marshmallows :D

~Whipped Cream

~Cinnamon Sugar

~A Candy Cane

What to do:

Heat up your milk or water, whatever you chose, and add in your cocoa mix till it satisfies your chocolate desires. Next, mix up some cinnamon sugar by combining 3 spoons of sugar and 1 spoon of cinnamon. Top your hot chocolate with whipped cream and sprinkle the cinnamon sugar on top. I also add a bit of extra cocoa powder. Finish it off by adding a candy cane on the side. This hot chocolate is both minty and super sweet. :) 

Christmas Playlist

The best gift to give (well one of the best) is the gift of music. Here I collected a list of my favorite seasonal songs. You can burn these songs on as a mixed CD and give it to a friend in a cute decorated CD case. Here I've also included a tutorial to burning CD's with iTunes as well as ways to decorate your CD case and things you must inclued.

Top 10 Favorite Seasonal Songs:

1. Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays by Chicago
2. Peppermint Winter by Owl City
3. Jingle Bell Rock by Brian Setzer 
4. I'll Be Home for Christmas by Dean Martin ft. Scarlett Johansson (2011)
5. Miracles by Kenny G
6. Last Christmas by Metro Station
7. Winter Moon by Mindy Gledhill
8. I Don't Want to Spend Another Christmas Without You by The Ready Set
9. O Holy Night by He is We
10. Meet Me Under The Mistletoe by Never Shout Never

How to Burn a CD with iTunes:

Step 1: Go to the top left corner of iTunes and click on the tiny black and white box. Select new and then new Playlist. Or just press Crl + N for a shortcut.

Step 2: Add the songs or albums you would like to your playlist by dragging them over to the side. If you add too many your CD may not be able to burn all of them so don't go overboard. Name the playlist if you would like and then click done when you're finished. 

Step 3: Go to playlists in your iTunes library. Right click on your playlist and select 'Burn Playlist to Disc.' 

Step 4: This message will pop up. Select the amount of gap time you would like between each song and click burn. Your CD drive will pop open and you can insert a blank CD. 

Step 5: Wait for iTunes to do it's thing and enjoy your newly burned CD! 

CD Case Decorating Ideas/Must Haves:

• Include a list of the songs ~ Make sure to let the receiver of your gift know what songs are included on the CD so that they can continue to share the songs to more people. You can type or hand write the list out in order cut a cute border and paste on the back of your case with ribbon or buttons. 

• Add another surprise inside ~ Like movie tickets or a gift card; you can fit them on the inside of the case as an extra surprise gift. 

• Write a message on the cover slip ~ After decorating a cute front for your case on some paper, fold it and add a letter or message on the inside. Slip it into the front of your case and add a small arrow in the corner to let them know it's there. 

• Decorate with fun items ~ Use things like stickers, buttons, ribbons, little doodles, fabric, fun patterned paper and music notes. Anything goes!

Homemade Beauty Products

We all need some time to relax during the holidays. Here's a few good homemade beauty products that you can use to pamper yourself when the hustle and bustle of the season gets too rough or you could whip up these products and give it to a friend as a gift.

Avocado Deep Conditioner:
Lasts: Use as soon as you make it.
Ingredients: Avocado, extra virgin olive oil and honey.
Steps: Cut your avocado (use 1/2 with short hair and a whole with longer hair) and mix with a tablespoon of honey and a tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil in a bowl. Apply a small amount to top of hair and a larger amount to the lower section of your hair; secure away from face and clothing. Leave the mask in for about 15-20 minutes and then take a shower.
Great For: People with dry hair. This mask will help strengthen, soften and moisturize your hair as well as reduce frizz and help your hair grow.

Homemade Lip Scrub:
Lasts: About 2 weeks (placed in fridge)
Ingredients: Olive oil, honey, coconut oil, brown sugar.
Steps: Mix about a spoonful of each ingredient in a bowl and pour into a container. Take off of your lips whenever you deem is the right time.
Great For: Gets rid of dry skin and softens your lips by exfoliating. This product is also edible :)

Easy Facial Toner:
Lasts: About 1 week
Ingredients: Water and chamomile tea
Steps: Heat up the water and add your tea bag. Once brewed for about 1-2 minutes pour into a container. Apply with a cotton pad in the morning or right before bed.
Great For: All skin types. This product will soothe and cleanse the skin.

Cute Candy Cane Jar

What you'll need:

~ Stuffing
~ Red and green buttons
~ Red and green ribbons of your choosing
~ Glass jar
~ Candy canes

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Tie your ribbons together in a bow around the top of your jar and arrange it to your liking. Next fill the jar half way with stuffing. Add in some red and green buttons of various sizes. Fill the rest of the jar with stuffing and buttons; this helps the buttons to be spread out evenly. Add candy canes and place wherever you want! You can use this jar for pretty much anything you like to add a cute little Christmas decoration to your home. <3

25 Days of Christmas Crafts

To get into the holiday spirit I thought it would be a good idea to make a new post everyday for the month of December until Christmas. What better way to prepare for the holidays than to share a new crafty DIY each day? You can use these ideas as gifts or simply for a cute way to decorate your house. Craft idea for day 1 will be up shortly so be on the look out! ~ Happy Holidays ~