When your kids hit those teen years, it can be extremely hard to connect, especially during the holidays. While there always a lot of cheer in the days leading up to December 25, there is quite a bit of chaos too. Stress typically runs high with all the shopping, wrapping, and decorating in addition to your everyday life. It can be hard to find those moments to spend with your teen. This holiday season, take step back and try these Christmas crafts for teens.
Arts and crafts activities are a wonderful way to improve mood and relieve stress. The end results make some amazing holiday decorations you can have for years to come. It’s also an easy way to embrace the real spirit of the Christmas holidays while bonding with your teen.
Homemade gifts really come from the heart. With these simple DIY Christmas crafts for teens, they can create handcrafted gifts for the grandparents, friends, or teachers. You don’t have to be especially craft either. These crafty Christmas activities for teens are perfect to do solo or with the whole family.
Christmas activities for teens
Connecting with teens is not always easy and the holidays are the perfect time to carve out some one-on-one time. Doing a craft together is an effective way to bond with your teen. You may be surprised at how much teens open up and what they are willing to talk about while their hands are busy. It encourages them to put down those smartphones, too. Give one or more of these Christmas activities for teens a try this holiday season to add a new element to your family’s holiday traditions. You may just find it becomes an annual event.
Dried orange slices
This simple, fragrant German tradition makes for lovely tree ornaments. Orange slices can also be used to decorate candles, wreaths, or other holiday items. All you need is a few oranges, a knife, some ribbon, and an oven for these DIY ornaments.
- Preheat the oven to 250 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Slice oranges into 1-centimeter-thick slices.
- Arrange orange slices directly on a wire rack (use a pan on a rack below to catch any drippings).
- Keep slices in the oven for 2 to 3 hours, turning them several times, especially at the beginning, to prevent them from sticking to the rack.
- Add ribbon to hang from the tree or attach to other holiday decorations around the house.
DIY bird feeder
To make these simple, cute bird feeders, you will need the following ingredients:
- 4 cups of birdseed
- 2 1/4-ounce packets of unflavored gelatin, or 5 teaspoons
- 3 tablespoons of corn syrup
- 1/2 cup of water
- Cooking spray
- Parchment-lined baking sheet
- Skewer
- Thick-sided cookie cutter (star or another holiday shape)
Once you’ve collected the materials, follow these simple directions to make feeders the birds and squirrels will appreciate during those long winter days.
- Mix the dry ingredients in a large bowl.
- Add the wet ingredients and mix thoroughly, using your hands if necessary.
- Spray the thick-sided cookie cutter with cooking spray and press the birdseed mixture into the cookie cutter.
- Use a skewer to make a hole in the birdseed for your ribbon.
- Gently remove the cookie cutter and allow bird feeders to dry overnight. String a ribbon through the hole in order to hang the bird feeders outdoors.
Peppermint bath bombs
These fragrant bath bombs make another handmade and inexpensive holiday gift your teen can give to friends or teachers. These ingredients mix up peppermint bath bombs to soak away the holiday stress.
- 1 cup of baking soda
- 1/2 cup of citric acid
- 1/2 cup of cornstarch
- 3 tablespoons of Epsom salts
- 2 teaspoons of sweet almond oil
- 3/4 teaspoon of water
- 15-20 drops of peppermint oil
- Food coloring (optional)
- Baking molds or empty plastic ornament balls
Once you have your ingredients, you and your teen can get mixing.
- In a large bowl, mix together the dry ingredients: baking soda, citric acid, cornstarch, and Epsom salts.
- In a small bowl, mix wet ingredients: almond and peppermint oils, water, and food coloring (if using.)
- Whisk the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients.
- Pack the bath bomb mixture into the empty ornament balls (for round bath bombs) or baking molds of whatever shape you like.
- Let the ornament balls set for two hours, then remove them and place them on a towel to dry overnight.
If you’re using baking molds, simply let the bath bombs dry overnight. Drying times will vary based on the humidity in your area.
Rope tree basket
Want to cover up your Christmas tree stand with something a little sleeker? Grab an empty cardboard box big enough to contain the tree stand, wrap it neatly in coils of rope, and use a hot glue gun to stick the rope in place. Voilà! Your Christmas tree stand disappears, and you and your teen have created something cool together.
Paint chip wreath
There are hundreds of creative wreath ideas, but here’s one to appeal to a young artist interested in the study of color. Grab 40 or so sample paint chips. These are usually available for free at paint stores. Then, cut the sample paint chips into leaf shapes. Fold the leaves in half and use a hot glue gun to attach them to a wire wreath frame. Creating a paint chip wreath is a great opportunity for a teen to experiment with shades and color combinations. It also makes for an interesting decoration or a handmade gift for the grandparents.
Holiday card tree
Are the holiday cards starting to pile up on the mantle or the refrigerator? It can be difficult to find a functional and innovative way to display holiday cards. Here’s a fun craft designed to organize all those cheerful missives from friends and family. Arrange the cards on the wall, using tape or blue tacky, in the shape of a Christmas tree. Start with one card at the top, and two in the next row, working your way down the wall. For a twist, find some vintage holiday cards to add to the mix. Watch how many guests stop by to admire the holiday card tree and the fabulous cards you’ve received this season.
Twig ornaments
What is the holiday season without some ornament-making? To bring a bit of the outdoors to your tree, collect small twigs and hot glue gun them into creative shapes. Add some artistic blocks or stripes of color by wrapping embroidery thread around portions of the twigs for a final result that is both rustic and cheery. This is a wonderful Christmas craft for teens to do on a family fun night during the holiday season.
Fashioning bracelets for the holidays
A craft that is extremely popular with tweens and teens is bracelet making. Swifties aren’t the only ones who love to make and trade those friendship bracelets. It’s a big thing with tweens and teens and not just during summer camp. If you’re looking for a relaxing Christmas craft you and your teen can do together, try bracelet making. There are plenty of bracelet-making kits on Esty and Amazon to help get you started unless your teen is already a master and has a stash in the closet.
The holiday season opens the door for all sorts of Christmasy color combinations, but the bracelet designs don’t have to just feature holiday hues. Beaded bracelets are still all the rage, but string bracelets are trendy too. These handmade bracelets also make fabulous stocking stuffers.
More Christmas crafts for teens
Once you get started crafting during the holidays, you just may not want to stop. If you and your teen are having an awesome time creating Christmas crafts together, here are some more you may want to find time for this holiday season.
Popsicle stick snowflakes
There are so many cool things you can make with popsicle or craft sticks. Making Manzanita has simple, step-by-step directions to make amazing snowflakes from craft sticks. These popsicle stick snowflakes can be used to make holiday wall art that can stay up all winter long or even a fun wreath for the door. Since craft sticks don’t typically come in white, you will have to paint the crafts sticks beforehand. White chalk paint works great, and you’ll be amazed at home soothing painting the crafts sticks is.
Pine cone reindeer
If the backyard is littered with pinecones, you may want to turn them into adorable reindeer ornaments. One Little Project has an easy DIY reindeer ornament you can make from a pinecone. If the backyard pinecones are too sticky, you can find craft ones online. The pine cone reindeer will look awesome on your tree and make wonderful gifts, too.
Beaded snowflake ornaments
For Christmas crafts for teens with a bit of bling, try these beaded snowflake ornaments by Craftaholic Witch. You can also purchase a beaded snowflake ornament kit online. Like bracelets, you can get some holiday-colored beads, wire or pipe cleaners, and ribbon to let those creative juices flow and craft your own beaded ornaments for the tree.
It’s so easy to get caught up in the chaos of the holidays, especially when kids get older. Teens may be too old to sit on Santa’s lap, but they still enjoy doing Christmas activities. Engaging in crafts is a wonderful way to share some holiday spirit with your teen. It’s also an avenue to connect with them. You’re never too old for the feeling of satisfaction that comes from making something with your own two hands. Doing crafts is a great stress reliever, too, especially during the holiday season. The end result can be new decorations for the house, tree, and even gifts for family and friends. Those handmade ornaments you made together can make a treasured gift down the road when teens are grown and putting up their own tree.
