There’s something about the holiday season that makes me crafty… well craftier than usual. Over the years, we’ve tried a bunch of different crafts — some better than others, but these 12 are our favorites. You’ll find many of these DIYs around our house this time of year.

DIY Paper Stars

This is probably one of my favorite holiday DIYs and if I’m being completely honest… we left ours up from Christmas last year. I just love them so much.

What You Need:

• brown paper lunch bags

• scissors

• hot glue or glue stick

How To:

• Stack 6-8 brown paper bags on top of each other (& make sure they’re all facing the same way)

• Glue the bags together in an upside-down “T” shape

• Trim the top of bags

• Cut unique designs into bags

• Grab the top and bottom bag and pull them together, opening up the bags

• Glue points of the top and bottom bag together to secure the bags open in the star shape

• Use a double-sided table to secure to the wall or use a hole-punch and thread a string through the hole to hang the stars

Best & Easiest Christmas Cookies

We discovered these cookies on TikTok a few years ago and have added them to our annual tradition list. Even if you’re not a baker, you can make these.

What You Need:

• slice-and-bake holiday sugar cookies of choice

• slice-and-bake chocolate chip cookies

• non-stick baking sheet

How To:

• stack the sugar cookies on top of the chocolate chip cookies

• follow the instructions for baking

• that’s literally it.
  

Egg Nog Latte

As coffee lovers, we love switching up our morning drinks based on the season and Christmas is one of our favorites. Eggnog is a controversial holiday tradition, but we love it. This simple and delicious recipe is sure to put you in the Christmas spirit.

HOT

ICED

DIY Clothespin Snowflakes

These turned our way cuter than I anticipated. They’re so simple to make and could be used as ornaments, gift toppers, or just cute decor.

What You’ll Need:

• Wooden clothes pins

• Hot glue

How To:

• break apart the clothes pins

• glue the clothes pins together by pairing the back, flat sides

• glue the points of six clothes pins together to form a snowflake

Holiday Simmer

One of my favorite thing about the holidays is the scents. The warm, cozy, welcoming smells of Christmas. One of the ways to achieve that delicious aroma on command is by creating a holiday simmer. There are no rights or wrongs, per say, so feel free to experiment. Here’s what we did:

What You’ll Need:

• citrus of choice

• grapefruit

• oranges

• blood oranges

• lemons

• apples

• cranberries

• rosemary

• pine needles

• cinnamon sticks

• large simmer pot

How-To:

• slice all of the citrus, apples, and herbs

• bring a large pot of water to a boil

• drop the citrus, cinnamon sticks, apples, herbs, and cranberries into the pot

• reduce to a simmer and leave for as long as you want

Woodsy Ornament Wall Hanging

I’ll be honest, this one drove me a bit mad, but I was really happy with the results. I saw something similar on Pinterest that I am now convinced was photoshopped. But messing around with what looked right was a fun, creative exercise.

What You’ll Need:

• drift wood/branch

• fishing line/illusion cord

• ornaments

Yarn Mini Christmas Trees

This is an older DIY that I still use to decorate with each year. I love that you can customize them to match your decor colors.

What You’ll Need:

• foam cones

• hot glue

• yarn

• optional: tree decorations

How To:

• run a bead of hot glue down the vertical seam of the foam cone

• wrap the yard around the cone, securing it to the hot glue each time you wrap it around

• secure the end with hot glue

• decorate as you desire

Creative DIY Wreaths

There are so many cheap, plain wreaths that you can get almost anywhere. These plain jane wreaths give you the opportunity to customize your wreath each year, without having to buy a new one. Here are a few ideas for how you could decorate yours:

• baked citrus

• ornaments

• holiday florals

Scrap Wood Christmas Village

I love the look of Christmas villages, but frankly, the “in” style changes so often and they’re not the most affordable solution. I opted for a free Christmas village made out of scrap wood I found in our workshop. Just cut the wood to a desired size and shape and then have fun with paint and stain to create your dream village.

Wooden Bead Ornaments

I love the look of wooden beads. They’re so organic and clean. The minimalist look is also warm and inviting. I ordered a big case of differently-sized wooden beads for jewelry making. Make sure they have the holes already in them. Then I just fed them onto some twine to create a custom ornament.

Baked Citrus Garland

Like the holiday simmer, this DIY just smells good. Pick your favorite (looking) citrus and bake it until it’s dried. I usually use oranges, blood oranges, and grapefruit. The secret is to cook it low and slow — and when I say slow… I mean it.

How To:

• preheat oven to 200 degrees Fahrenheit

• thinly slice citrus and pat dry with a paper towel

• lay on non-stick baking sheet

• bake for 3-5 hours, flipping every 30 minutes-1 hour

• thread the dried citrus onto a garland to hang

Modern Fillable Ornaments

I discovered these modern transparent ornaments at the dollar store and my creative wheels started spinning. There are so many things you could fill these with to make your very own, ever-changing ornament design. Here are a few ideas for what to put inside:

• LED tea light

• dried citrus

• holiday florals or greenery

• fake snow scene

• notes, photos, paper

You could also paint the inside or add mod podge, glitter, or other crafts.

You’ll find many of these DIYs woven into our Christmas decorations this year. Our theme is classic cabin Christmas and we love it. Don’t miss our interior and exterior holiday decorations. Follow us on Instagram, TikTok, and Pinterest for more.