This post was contributed by Jamie of Hand Made Kids Art.
Two Ways to Make a Homemade Christmas Card!
Making handmade Christmas crafts for kids is a great way to spread holiday cheer. And a homemade Christmas card always holds a special meaning as it requires extra thought and time. This homemade card craft can be done two different ways, depending on the skill level of your young artist. Many times if you are working with your own children you have different ages and skill levels. By slightly modifying the project, you can help each child develop their fine motor skills at their own appropriate developmental level and end up with beautiful homemade Christmas cards to give, too!
A Ribbon Woven Tree Homemade Christmas Card Craft
Materials:
Step 1: Fold your notecard in half. Turn the card vertical (standing tall) and cut a 1⁄8” vertical slit along the middle of the top edge.
Step 2: Cut 4 vertical slits each one 1⁄8” long along the bottom edge of the notecard.
Step 3: Tuck the green thread in the top slit and pull down to the bottom left slit. Wrap thread around the back of the card back to the top slit. Pull the thread through the top slit again and continue down to the bottom of the card and slide the thread through the next slit. Continue until you have run the green thread through each bottom slit. Cut and tie the loose thread at the end.
Step 4: Start with one piece of ribbon and weave it over the first thread and under the next. Continue this “over, under” pattern across the green threaded tree. Cut the ribbon once you have reached across the width of the tree. Start the next piece of ribbon the OPPOSITE way as the first piece of ribbon. So for example, if your first piece of ribbon starts under the green thread your next piece of ribbon should start over the thread.
Step 5: Continue with different scraps of ribbon going up the tree. Be sure to slide the ribbon down to fill in the tree. Trim any ribbon edges as needed. Our ribbon stayed in place but you may add a dot of glue on the ends of the ribbon to help secure it.
A Simple Sticker Homemade Christmas Card Craft for Younger Kids
For my three year old, I changed the project by skipping the ribbon and letting her place Christmas stickers on the embroidery thread to decorate the tree.
The peeling off of stickers and placing on the thread helps promote fine motor skills. She felt successful as she was able to create her own card along with her older brother.
Do your kids make homemade Christmas cards? Which of the above homemade Christmas card crafts do you think they’d like best?
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