When I was little, my church sponsored a store where kids could shop on their own for Christmas gifts for their moms and dads. I thought it was the coolest thing ever, to get to pick out, with my “own” money, mommy and daddy’s presents.
So it occurred to me last year how much fun it would be to re-create that “store” for my own kids and their friends. I tucked the idea away until this December, and came up with this Christmas Crafting Party! The idea is to host your kids and their friends to make gifts for their parents or grandparents or teachers. Here’s how I did it. (And of course I don’t have any more spare time than you do, but you can pretty much order everything you need online and do as little — or as much — crafting as you like.)
Where to host your Christmas Crafting Party
I knew my crafts would be messy, so this was a kitchen table party for us. That way, I didn’t have to worry about spills on the basement carpet. When it comes to party crafts: think function over form. I protected the table with a table pad and fabric tablecloth. You could go with a plastic tablecloth, but they slip and slide and rip easily. I’d rather spend $8 on a fabric tablecloth from LinenTablecloths or TableclothFactory and hope to be able to use it again.
Here’s an extra tip: scrapbooking paper makes great party placemats, but if you want to give it some extra stability, take it to a school supply store and ask them to laminate both sides of the paper. Then, you can trim it to size with a razor knife and a straight edge.
Christmas is expensive. So, don’t go bust your budget with treats. I offered just two goodies — cake and Rice Krispies Treats. Not to mention, who has extra time in December? Not us! So did I do any baking? No m’am! I love to bake, but this party called for a bakery cake and Sparkling Sweets Boutique to do all the work.
I did make hot chocolate with Peeps Christmas tree marshmallows. Yum!
You can round out your dessert table with your craft supplies. Cute and functional!
Christmas Crafts for Kids
Crafting is relaxing to me and I love to stretch my creative brain after work. And I really love any craft I can make with my girls. For this party, I made:
- Tissue paper Christmas tree with ornaments backdrop (get the tutorial I shared on Design Dazzle).
- Christmas fabric bunting (you can buy it in my shop).
- Christmas tree cake toppers (come back tomorrow for the tutorial).
Choose kid-friendly Christmas crafts
Our guests ranged in age from 5 to 11, so everything had to be pretty easy. I planned three crafts and that was their max. They had fun, but after three crafts and cake — about two hours — they were ready to go outside and play and I was ready to release them to the wild.
Our crafted gifts included:
- Painting and decorating wood Christmas trees.
- Making peppermint sugar scrub.
- Stirring up a big batch of Mocha Coffee Mix.
I have lots more crafting ideas on my Christmas Crafting Party Pinterest board, so be sure to follow me over there.
Peppermint Sugar Scrub Recipe
Makes 1-1/4 cups.
- Granulated sugar – 1 cup
- Fractionated coconut oil – 1/4 cup (Amazon)
- Peppermint essential oil – 12 or so drops – it comes out fast! (Amazon)
Each child can make her/his own batch of the sugar scrub, then scoop it into jars and label them.
Mocha Coffee Mix Recipe
Makes 5-1/2 cups to divide however you like.
- Powdered sugar – 2 cups
- Unsweetened cocoa powder – 1 cup
- Instant dry milk – 2 cups
- Instant coffee – 1/3 cup to 1/2 cup, depending on how strong a coffee flavor you want
- Salt – 1/4 teaspoon
Mix 3 even tablespoons to 12 oz. boiling water (a mug-sized cup).
Have the kids take turns adding ingredients to a mixing bowl and stirring them together, then scoop into jars and label them.
If you toss together your own version of this party, I’d LOVE to see your pics! Please tell me all about your party in the comments below.
P.S. Come on back tomorrow, and I’ll show you how to make the Christmas tree cake toppers!
Vendor Credits
- Party styling and photography: The Party Teacher
- Christmas fabric bunting: The Party Teacher Shop
- Cake: Publix Bakery
- Rice Krispies Treat ornaments: Sparkling Sweets Boutique
- Green tissue fans: Amazon
- Gold glitter paper, gold pipe cleaners, Christmas scrapbooking paper, gold glitter letters, wood Christmas trees, paint, paint brushes, labels: Hobby Lobby
- Red “gem” stickers: Michael’s dollar aisle
- Tissue Christmas tree centerpieces: WalMart
- Peppermint essential oil: Amazon
- Fractionated coconut oil: Amazon
- Red bowls, red mugs, clear jars: Dollar Tree
- Green silverware: Five Below
- Christmas tree china: TJ Maxx
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