Christmas Crafts for a 1 1/2 Year Old

Ok, I admit it. I'm a craft addict. Besides my scrap booking supplies, I have acrylic paints, canvas paper, puffy paints, felt, foam, glue, buttons, ribbons,  and lots of other odds and ends. The real question is, how can I get my 18 month old involved in a Christmas craft to send to the grandparents, and to decorate my own home? It is a bit of a challenge at this age! And let's be honest, I'm the one doing most of the crafting, he's just lending me a hand print. It's still fun though, and still a memory to treasure as he grows. I found a few websites with ideas (here and here), and used what I already had in my supply stash. We made snowflakes, reindeer, and Christmas tree art, which could be framed or used as a card. We also made a Christmas tree ornament. As a bonus, I made a Christmas tree card from the leftover scraps of felt.

1) Snowflake art
On 5x7 card stock or canvas paper, use the end of a pencil or round sponge to create a snowflake. I made a large"t" with a small "x" in the middle. Make a rough frame around the end of the piece with the end of the pencil. Use glitter glue to add dimension. With an older child, you could make dots with pencil for them to follow to have more independence. With my 18 month old, I had to do hand-over-hand to help him create the snowflake.

You can tell which one Ansel did.... :)

2) Reindeer hand print art
Set up plate with brown paint. Carefully dip child's hand in the paint, covering their palm and fingers. On a 5x7 card stock or canvas paper in landscape orientation, carefully spread child's hand on one side of the paper. Flip the paper around 180 degrees, and spread child's hand touching the other print. Clean up quickly (my son might have tried to lick the paint!) Add googly eyes and a button nose to create a face. Cut a 4 inch piece of ribbon and tie at one end. Glue across the reindeer's neck. You can add some detail for the antler with a small paintbrush.

3) Christmas tree hand print art
Set up plate with green paint. Carefully dip child's hand in the paint, covering their palm and fingers. On a 5x7 card stock or canvas paper in portrait orientation, carefully spread child's hand in center of paper. Clean up quickly. Add a sticker star at the top, and brown paint for the trunk at the bottom. I also added yellow dots with the end of a pencil across the top and bottom of the print.

4) Felt Christmas tree ornament
Cut an 8x11 piece of felt into four pieces. Take one piece and fold it in half. Cut triangles out of the sides to create the tree, and a rectangle out of the bottom to create the trunk. Or, trace the outline and cut it that way. Using puffy paint, help child draw garland on the tree. Let dry. Cut a small slit and thread ribbon through to hang the ornament. Add buttons with glue.

Bonus: Felt Christmas tree card
I had a ton of small triangles left from the ornament, so I glued them to make a card and added buttons for a trunk and star.