to implement.

Everyone is happy about homemade Christmas gifts – whether Grandparents, uncles, aunts, siblings or friends.

The important thing is not that the gift is perfect afterwards, but that it was made by your children with lots of love and dedication. The recipients will surely appreciate the effort and meaning behind the Christmas gift, because after all the little ones thought carefully beforehand about what would be best and lovingly carried out this idea.As parents, you should make sure that you choose a tutorial, which matches your child's age and fine motor skills

. It should not be too difficult or too lengthy – young children in particular quickly lose interest in crafting if the individual steps take too long. Of course you can actively support your child while crafting and help with difficult steps.

What makes homemade Christmas gifts special?Anyone can buy Christmas gifts for children – making Christmas gifts has the advantage that you can give a truly personal gift that there is no other like it. Homemade gifts show the recipient not only that you put thought into it, but also that you yourself have made something with lots of love

.But not only the recipients will be pleased with the little crafts; your children will surely be eager to participate when it comes to making the individual Christmas gifts/magazine/family-everyday-life/family-togetherness/enjoy-family-timeFamily time/magazine/celebrations-occasions/christmas/christmas-with-childrenjoint Christmas celebration

./magazine/child-rearing-psychology/physical-development/promoting-fine-motor-skillsyour children's fine motor skills are promoted

, which has a positive effect on development. So let's get started—grab your craft supplies and create the most beautiful gift ideas together.

Choosing the right Christmas giftBefore you look up a craft tutorial, first think together

, about which Christmas gift will bring the person the most joy. Ask yourselves what they would like best. Do they perhaps have a favorite animal that you want to craft? Or do they love certain Christmas motifs like angels or reindeer that you want to give?/magazine/leisure-creativity/painting-and-crafting-with-children/make-christmas-decorationsChristmas decorations/magazine/leisure-creativity/painting-and-crafting-with-children/christmas-starsChristmas stars /magazine/leisure-creativity/painting-and-crafting-with-children/make-advent-calendarmake an Advent calendar/magazine/leisure-creativity/painting-and-crafting-with-children/christmas-cardsChristmas cards

that you send by post or include with the Christmas gift.Once you're clear about which direction the Christmas gift should go, you can get to work. If you want to make the gifts with young children to craft, choose a simple tutorial that the little ones can actively help with. Older children can usually handle somewhat more complex ideas

Craft instructions for Christmas gifts – creative ideas for children

So get going, collect lots of toilet paper rolls to craft many lovely Christmas figures.

HABA shows you great craft ideas that can be made by toddlers and older children.

Craft Christmas gifts from natural materials/magazine/leisure-creativity/painting-and-crafting-with-children/christmas-crafts-with-childrenChristmas crafting with your children you don't have to rely solely on purchased craft materials – in nature you'll find in this special time of year all kinds of material from which great Christmas gifts can be made. Just look outside, you'll be surprised what things you can transform into the perfect gift

for your loved ones.

• Natural materials for crafting Christmas gifts

• Pine cones

• Leaves

• dried flowers or fruits

• Nuts

• Stones

• Branches

• Moss

Beeswax sheets

Make reindeer from pine cones/magazine/leisure-creativity/sport-movement/forest-walk-with-childrenforest walk with your children, to collect great natural materials for crafting for the Christmas gifts. Pine cones are great for making funny reindeer. You can either give them away directly or as ornaments

attach to a larger gift.

• Required materials

• Pine cones in various shapes & sizes

• Pine twigs for antlers

• Craft glue

• Craft scissors

• Beads or buttons

Googly eyes (optional)

1. Here's how it's done!

2. Lay out all craft materials and choose the nicest pine cone that you would like to turn into a friendly reindeer.

3. Take the pine twigs and remove the needles – this will help the reindeer last longer. Alternatively, you can leave the needles on. From the twigs form the reindeer antlers and glue them to the pine cone on the left and right. Let the whole thing dry well.

Now your reindeer gets its face. Your little friend looks funniest with googly eyes, which you simply attach with a drop of craft glue. Now all that's missing is the big bulbous nose, just like Rudolph's. Glue a red bead right in the middle of the reindeer's face. Your beautiful Christmas gift is finished and will surely make everyone very happy.

Make ornaments from beeswax sheetsOrnaments made from beeswax sheets not only look beautiful, they are also quick and easy to make. Here even toddlers can pitch in actively and use the cookie cutters themselves. The little ornaments will surely find a nice spot with the recipients later on the Christmas tree

attach to a larger gift.

• Moss

• , as decoration on the Christmas wreath or in the window.

• Craft glue

• Cookie cutters

• Needle & cord or ribbon

Googly eyes (optional)

1. sturdy crafting surface

2. First cut the beeswax sheets so that your children can work with a handy sheet.

3. Choose the nicest cookie cutter shapes for Christmas cookies – whether trees, stars, Santa boots or polar bears – you're in charge of the design.

4. Now press the cookie cutters through the beeswax sheet – a firm surface helps protect the table.

Once you've cut out all the shapes, use the needle to poke a small hole at the top of each ornament, thread a cord or ribbon through it and tie it securely. Your ornaments are now finished and just waiting to be given away.

Christmas baking: lovely gifts from the kitchenHmm, how that smells. Christmas time is baking time. These little treats are not only for you and your family to eat: cookies, gingerbread or other homemade delicacies are also the perfect Christmas gifts for your loved ones. When baking with children at Christmas

you can turn nice recipes into gift ideas that bring a smile to friends' or other family members' faces.

Giving away homemade cookiesCookies taste delicious. But almost as much fun as eating them is little bakers the making of the tasty baked goods. From spritz cookies to speculoos to cinnamon stars – there's a suitable recipe for every taste at Christmas. Best bake as a tasty gift exactly the kind the person likes best

attach to a larger gift.

• . So grab the rolling pin, mixing bowl and baking ingredients and let the big baking begin.

• 500 g flour

• 250 g butter

• 1 medium egg

• 125 g sugar

• 1 pkg. vanilla sugar

• 1 tsp grated lemon zest

• Mixing bowl & hand mixer

• Rolling pin

Googly eyes (optional)

1. Cookie cutters

2. Put all ingredients into a large mixing bowl and mix everything properly. Then take a hand mixer and knead the mixture into a firm dough.

3. The finished dough must rest in the refrigerator for an hour. It's best to wrap it in some cling film. Now relax a little and listen to some Christmas music or drink a hot chocolate.

4. Next: Roll the cookie dough thinly on a floured work surface with the rolling pin.

5. Cut the cookies using Christmas cookie cutters and place them on a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Once you've processed all the dough, the cookies go into the oven for about 10 minutes at 175 degrees Celsius (convection).

6. When the Christmas cookies are golden yellow, they can come out of the oven. Let your Christmas gifts cool a bit before you decorate them with icing, cake sprinkles or chocolate.

Give away your baked goods best in a colorful cookie tin, which you can also make from a shoebox or a tin can.

Make candle holders from salt doughChildren love crafting with salt dough. It is not only quick and inexpensive to make, the materials you probably even already have at home. Once the dough is made, many craft ideas for beautiful Christmas gifts can be implemented. The salt dough can be further processed as desired and is durable

attach to a larger gift.

• , so the recipients can enjoy their little gifts for a long time.

• 2 cups flour

• 1 cup water

• 1 cup salt

• Mixing bowl & hand mixer

• small bowl

• shaping cutters

• crafting surface

• colored acrylic paints & brushes

• paint smock or apron (optional)

Googly eyes (optional)

1. candles

2. First make the salt dough for crafting. Mix all the ingredients in a bowl and knead the mixture thoroughly until the dough is smooth and free of lumps.

3. Now the salt dough is ready to be kneaded, shaped and rolled out by your children. Choose a design you like. How about a nice snail-shaped candle holder? Other variants are also possible – craft the gift however you wish. Don't forget to make small depressions for the candles with your fingers.

4. Once you are satisfied with the shape, it's time to harden the dough. It's faster in the oven – but the salt dough can also dry on the radiator for several days until it is firm and can be further processed.

5. For drying in the oven: place your Christmas gifts on a baking tray lined with parchment paper. At 100 degrees Celsius the candle holders bake for several hours before they are ready to be decorated.

Let the salt dough cool completely before you paint it, insert candles and later give it away.

DIY ideas: Craft Christmas gifts from different materials

In addition to natural materials or ingredients from the kitchen, you can also craft beautiful Christmas gifts for your loved ones out of everyday items. HABA shows you some ideas for great surprises that can be easily implemented together with your children.

• Materials for crafting Christmas gifts

• colored construction paper

• water- or acrylic paints

• Craft glue

• Pine twigs for antlers

• brushes

• Decorative & embellishment materials (such as googly eyes, glitter, etc.)

• craft beads

• Christmas craft templates

• felt

• textile decoration accessories

porcelain paints

Christmas figures made from toilet paper rollsDIY gift ideas from everyday objects have the advantage that when crafting the Christmas gifts you save materials from the trash bin and thus not only create beautiful crafts, but also do something good for the environment

attach to a larger gift.

• many toilet paper rolls

• Materials for crafting Christmas gifts

• Pine twigs for antlers

• Craft glue

• pipe cleaners

• googly eyes

• colored or felt-tip pens

• scraps of fabric or felt

• decorative & embellishment materials

Googly eyes (optional)

1. Here's how to make a great Santa-reindeer duo: you need a whole and a half toilet paper roll. The whole roll forms the body of Santa. Cover it with red construction paper. If you want it a bit sparkly, use effect paper. Spread craft glue over the entire roll, wrap the red paper around it and press everything firmly together. Simply cut off any protruding ends.

2. Now Santa needs a face. Cut a circle from cardboard and glue it to the toilet paper roll. With white cardboard make a stylish beard, which you also attach to the body. If you want to give your Christmas gift an even more real fluffy beard, use cotton wool.

3. Draw in the eyes and glue a red cardboard nose in the middle of the face. You can also use a button or a bead to achieve a nice 3D effect.

4. Finally, make Santa's hat from red fabric and a pipe cleaner, and attach it to the top of the roll.

5. The reindeer is even quicker to make: the brown toilet paper roll already forms the body of the little animal. Cut antlers from brown cardboard and glue them inside the roll. A pipe cleaner, placed at the top and bottom of the roll, forms a nice finishing touch.

6. Now only the reindeer's friendly googly eyes are missing. Glue them on and draw the face with colored or felt-tip pens. You can glue a red nose made from beads, a small pompom or cardboard.

7. If you like, fill the small Christmas gifts with tasty treats or nice messages before you give them away.

Make angels from feathers

A little guardian angel, who protects your friends and sweetens the Christmas season – wouldn't that be a lovely Christmas gift? Angels are not only a popular symbol of Christmas, but also serve many people as good luck charms. What could be more fitting than crafting cute angels for your friends and giving them away at Christmas?

attach to a larger gift.

• several feathers

• wooden beads

• Pine twigs for antlers

• needle & thread

• felt-tip pen (permanent marker)

• angel hair (optional)

Googly eyes (optional)

1. Take a wooden bead and thread the feathers through the opening from below. It's best to glue the feathers with a drop of glue that you first drop into the hole of the bead.

2. Now draw a face on the wooden bead with a permanent marker. If you like, you can decorate the angel's head with angel hair.

3. If you are satisfied with your Christmas gift, only a ribbon remains for hanging the guardian angel later. Use a needle to pull a thread through the bead and tie the loop tightly.

Image credits

Two children wearing pointed hats sit at the kitchen table © Halfpoint - stock.adobe.com

Top view of a child painting a picture with watercolors © Halfpoint - stock.adobe.com

Boy preparing Christmas cards for grandparents © sweetlaniko - stock.adobe.com

Craft materials for an Advent wreath © Stefan Körber - stock.adobe.com

Elk made from cord and pine cones © ischoenrock - stock.adobe.com

Beeswax sheet with cut-out shooting star and fir tree © ischoenrock - stock.adobe.com

Two children bake cookies and play with flour on their hands © gpointstudio - stock.adobe.com

Child's hand holding heart-shaped cookie dough © Marina Andrejchenko - stock.adobe.com

Child paints a handmade shell © sp4764 - stock.adobe.com

Elk and Santa made from a toilet paper roll © Stefan - stock.adobe.com

Angel tree ornament made of white feathers © Andreas Ardler - stock.adobe.com