12 Days of Conscientious Christmas, Day 12

Christmas Stocking Place Cards Craft

Budget-friendly fun activity for crazed pre-Christmas kidz of all ages.

Supplies needed: 

felt stockings (found @ Michael's, .79 each)

individual sheets of felt in white, red, and orange

mini pompoms 

black pipe cleaners

"googly eyes"

mini jingle bells

craft glue

scissors

glittery stick-on letters 

any ribbon you have around for the scarf

My 9 year old and I were trying to come up with either place mat or place card ideas for our family Christmas dinner, which will include 13 of us, 5 of them kidz.  Since school's out now and every day we get closer to Christmas seems to mean less sleep and more energy, I thought having lots of crafts planned would be a good idea.  While shopping at Michael's we found the mini-stockings pictured above.  We already had a box of glittery letters at home from another craft (making holiday hats for a "fancy dress, crazy hat" party), so we decided we'd purchase 13 of these and decorate them and add an initial for each person at Christmas dinner.  The cool/practical/earth friendly part is that these mini stockings can be reused many different ways: as Christmas ornaments or holiday decor for the future; sticky letter can be removed and stocking makes great "giftwrap" for small items like gift cards; or they can be reused each year as place cards.

Now, don't tell my family, but I am hoping, if I have time, to buy 13 scratch lottery tickets.  I'll place one in each stocking, and who knows?  Maybe someone will win $5!

Here are the directions:

Gather the items in the supply list, above.

1. Momz can make this process go easier by pre-cutting the shapes: Santa hat (red and white felt), snowman (white felt), carrot nose (orange felt), pipe-cleaner arms, ribbon pieces.  I used a number 8 cookie cutter for my snowman template, but you can do your own pattern. Older kidz might not need this help at all and can create their own ideas.
2. I set out all the small supplies in little bowls for small hands to easily pick up.  I poured glue onto plates and gave them wooden skewers (sharp end cut off) to dip in the glue.
3. Glue the pipe cleaner arms to the back of the snowman.  Then glue the snowman to the stocking.
4. Glue the white band to the santa cap.  Glue the santa cap to the top of the snowman's head.
5. Glue jingle bell to santa hat
6. Add features: googly eyes, carrot nose, pompom mouth and buttons.
7. tie small piece of ribbon in a knot and glue on for a scarf.
8. Add sticky letter to personalize.

What's really cool about this is that there are endless possbilities! You can put the initial on the snowman's body, or do penguins or reindeer or santa instead.  You can add decorative ric-rac or make the stockings yourself from extra fabric you have lying around.  Enjoy!