Bring some beauty to your holidays.
Holiday season provides the perfect and special opportunity for families to bond with each other, focus on connecting and celebrating the season in a meaningful way with mindful special moments. With the festive and joyous winter holidays and season upon us, it’s time for a little extra family connection and celebration. We can do this through fun holiday arts and crafts and special creative activities.
This time of year can tend to be a busy time, so it is especially important to pause for some self-care and time with loved ones. Art-making provides an opportunity to gather together with family and friends, and connect through creativity. It’s also an opportunity to celebrate what we are thankful for, the seasons, the holidays, and old and new family traditions, and to create sweet and thoughtful gifts that you can make together as a family and for each other. Not only does it bring out the creative side of every family member, but you also get to usher in the holiday spirit with a personal touch and decorations for your home. Winter holidays are always a wonderful time to spend with family to pause, reflect, and focus mindfully on gratitude, togetherness, and joy. Whether you are starting new traditions or simply looking to entertain the kids, activities can make these holiday seasons especially wonderful.
With so much free time during Winter break, holiday themed crafts for kids are a great way to keep kids entertained, as well as teach them important lessons. Kids love having the opportunity to get creative and working with them to create something strengthens bonds and encourages communication. Here are some ideas and inspiration for things you can create alongside your kids, family friends, and relatives. I hope this gives you inspiration to spend more lovely (and creative) quality time with your loved ones. Remember to slow down and give each other the chance to have fun and get creative with some collaborative art projects. (Note: see images of these activity examples)
1. A lovely keepsake that kids and families enjoy making and utilizing over the holidays are festive hand painted Hanukkah cookie/treat plates and winter/holiday mugs. You would simply use enamel paints (which come with baking instructions) on a plain ceramic dish, menorah, candlestick holders, or a mug/wine glass to paint your festive holiday design on. This can be cherished, holding special memories, and used over the years. They also make fantastic unique gifts!
2. Create a Nature Collage or Nature Mandala: Nature is so healing and inspiring. Try going on a fun, explorative, and peaceful family nature walk together after or before your holiday meal and treats, to gather colorful leaves and nature elements to use for your creative crafty activities. These activities can include painting something you saw in nature (ex:trees/flowers), gluing some elements you found on a canvas/paper, laying out your circular mandala (meditative pattern design) using nature elements such as leaves/branches/flowers/feathers,etc, or making a decorative nature collage (with nature elements and stickers/decorations to add from home). You may even include painting, drawing or writing on your crafty decoration, as well.
3. Clay Family Handprint, Hamsa Mosaics, Menorahs, dreidels, and keepsakes: Clay is always a fun medium for both kids and adults to try and both of these creative examples include paint and decorative embellishments, as well. Sculpting with clay and mosaic making are relaxing, meditative, soothing and fun sensory activities. For example, the kids can make a special gift of their handprints painted in clay (air dry clay works great) and while the clay is still wet, they can decorate around the handprints by sticking in gems/mosaic pieces to make a pattern and design. Pets can participate with their paw print as well because they are part of the family, too! Cookie cutters can be used to cut ornament shapes to paint, as well. Poke one or two holes at the top of the handmade ornaments, to tie a ribbon into, once it has dried, to hang/gift. Adults, as well as the family of all ages can also participate by sculpting a shape they would like to mosaic, such as a leaf, holiday symbol, or even a little pinch pot. And there are always plain ready-made ornaments at local craft stores you can hand-paint/decorate, as well.
4. Make a fun festive family mural together, collaborative painting on canvas, personalized wrapping paper, or a tablecloth at the kids table this year. You may use clear sheet paper roll of any light color, or tape together clear sheets of paper, markers/crayons/paint, and stickers. This can be a fun interactive and collaborative tradition to start by having everyone put their special touch of creativity on any of these choices. Maybe focusing on gratitude, family, a festive winter wonderland scene, Hanukkah, or holiday symbols, and happy memories.
5. Create family vision board, or as I like to call it, crafty collaborative collage: This is one of my favorite, personal and special, activities to do with families towards and in the New Year. Come together over the holidays to create this “crafty collaborative collage” where you can craft (with the younger kids) decorating the canvas with special symbols, keepsakes/mementos (as shown in the image), or go deeper by sharing family goals and dreams, and create this powerful tool for manifesting, motivation, and goal setting with each other. This beneficial fun activity can help a family communicate (in a creative healthy way), stay inspired, and build a strong bond. It can include using almost any medium and embellishments you like and that are representative to you and yours (mementos, cut-outs-poems, affirmations, paint/markers/decorations, etc. ). A vision for the New Year!
We wish you and yours the absolute best in great health and happiness in this upcoming winter and holiday season and hope you enjoy creating fun, festive, beneficial, self-care holiday art together! We are grateful to share these activities with you and hope to inspire some holiday creativity in your homes. Keep Creating!
Diana Shabtai “MissDee, Psy.D., ATR-BC is a board certified art therapist who obtained a masters degree in clinical art therapy, ma in marriage & family therapy & a doctorate degree in MFT. She is passionate advocate for bringing awareness to the therapeutic benefits of art. Experience studying, working, & educating in the field of psychology & the therapeutic arts for nearly 20 years. she is a contributing writer to Jlife magazine.
