It is that time of year again. The children are getting restless with excitement and you probably have a long list of names to find presents for still. Where to begin? You have to think of things to send to distant relatives, that is, relatives who are both distant in relation and live far away. Finding the perfect gift for them is tricky not only because shipping can be so expensive. Small handmade ornaments offer the best solution. They can be small, light-weight and non-breakable, perfect for shipping to every corner of the world. Yet, handmade ornaments, for all their practicality are still heart-felt gifts that have the added bonus of being fun to make. And excited and restless children need projects to keep them busy. So, if you have a ton of people to make ornaments for, here are a few ideas for setting up your own crafting workshop and getting to work as a busy little Christmas elf. 
Photo Credit: Robyn Wilson
First choose the perfect location. Santa has a workshop for his work and so should you. If your children are going to help and get involved then you will need to think of the easiest space to clean up mess. If you have a spare room, a tidy garden shed, or an out of the way corner, you can set up your workshop there. The best thing about having a space designated for crafting is that you can leave your projects there half done and they won’t be in the way on the kitchen table at dinner time. Nobody wants to eat glitter or have their plate stick to some leftover glue.
Once you have selected your corner you should decorate it. It’s Christmas! Everything should be decorated, of course! A few ornaments hung from lamps, every crafting space needs light, a bit of garland, some twinkly lights and a sign saying Santa’s workshop could add a lot of charm to your workspace. Now you can sit down and get to work with your little elf helpers, I mean Children, by your side.
Crafting with children does involve its own hazards, which is why a workshop will help contain the mess and creative chaos. Exuberant use of glitter and glue is always encouraged in crafting but best kept in one area for cleaning purposes. As far as what to craft you can do anything you like but felt is often easiest to work with. Your children can cut it into any shape they wish and it will not fray or require stitching. You can then glue glitter, and sequins and anything you like onto it, just like paper, but it has a fun fuzzy texture and can come in any color you like. If you are stuck for felt crafting ideas here are a few to think about.
Depending on the age and dexterity of your children you can obviously help them cut out felt gingerbread men and Christmas trees to decorate, or you can leave them to create whatever they desire. If they are happy crafting on their own, you can make or write in Christmas cards while they create, or you can all jump into ornament making. Decorations can be simple or complex with sequins, glitter glue, ribbons, pom poms and paint all fair game. The important thing is that they have fun. You can be the head inspector of elves, finished works come to you to have ribbon added to the top for the ornament to be complete. It is your duty to declare every work of art more beautiful than the last. 
Photo Credit: Robyn Wilson
You can very easily create little Christmas gnomes or elves out of felt. Simply cut out a triangular little gnome hat. You can make a tiny beard out of faux fur. A small piece can make a lot of gnomes. You only need a tiny piece for your little gnome and you can glue it to the back of your hat. If you want to, you can sew two bits of felt together for the hat and glue the beard inside, but it’s not necessary. The last little detail is a nose just peeking out of the end of the hat. A little wooden bead, or a pom pom, will do this nicely.
Do you have some extra paper clips and a few bits of red felt? If so, you can create some adorable red ice skates. Simply cut out little shoe shapes and glue paper clips to their backs. If you like you can also double the felt here and have one edge of the paper clip in between your layers of felt. For laces you can sew some yarn ones up the fronts, or use some glitter glue to paint laces on. Add a yarn bow and little pom pom at the toe of each boot for extra charm. A bit of red ribbon or yarn to connect your pair of ice skates will make them ornament ready and extra cute for draping over a tree branch.
Felt is cheap, and comes in every colour imaginable. It is easy to work with and can be made into some cute little Christmas ornaments. Let your children try to create their own ornaments ideas and revel in the beauty of creating. Even imperfect ornaments will be appreciated as hand-crafted gifts made with time, effort, and love. Besides, Christmas is about the spirit of giving and a few smudges of glue and glitter shouldn’t get in the way of that.
You can also use these crafting sessions as an opportunity to talk about how fortunate you are and how important it is to give to others. There is joy in giving, not only to friends and family, but also to those in need. This Christmas if you choose to support a cause like Angel Tree, you can throw in a few of your hand-made ornaments too. It will help teach your children important lessons about giving and that no gift or talent is too small to be used and shared with others.
If working with felt is not your style you can do some other Christmas crafts. The collective Christmas effort will be fun no matter what crafts or activities you choose to do. If you couldn’t resist a bargain on candy-canes in bulk and now have no idea what to do with them you can turn them into ornaments too. Just a bit of pipe cleaner can turn your candy-cane into Rudolf. Wrap the middle of the pipe-cleaner around the candy-cane’s crook and then shape the two ends into twisty antlers. Add a couple of googly eyes and a red pom pom to the end for a nose and you have a cute Rudolf ornament in no time.
Of course, you should encourage a few candy-canes be enjoyed as snacks. Nothing brightens the smiles of busy little elves like Christmas treats. Make sure to serve cookies and hot chocolate for warm hands and hearts. 
Photo Credit: Robyn Wilson
Now, after you have finished all your crafts you can admire the colors as you look at your pile of cute felt ornaments. All that is left is to lovingly wrap your creations and mail them off. As sit back with some Christmas cocoa and recover from the chaos that is Christmas crafting you can smile with the knowledge that your ornaments have helped keep restless children busy as they eagerly and not so patiently await the arrival of Christmas. And all across the world, wherever you have sent them, your ornaments are putting smiles on the faces of your loved ones.
Start crafting and have a Merry Christmas!
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