Christmas Ideas Features

How To: Decorate a poinsettia design Christmas cake

Show your Christmas spirit with an awesome decorative cake that will make anyone with any ounce of Martha Stewart in them, drool. In this two-part video, learn how to ice and decorate the cake to make a poinsettia flower Christmas design. Flaunt your creative skills with the best Christmas cake on the block!

How To: Draw a Christmas tree on MS Paint

The first step in drawing a Christmas tree in Microsoft Paint is to open up the program and click on the line button on the left hand side of the toolbar. Start with where you want the top of your tree to be. Click and pull down the cursor about an inch and a half on a 45 degree angle. Click again. Now take the cursor and go to the right about an inch. Click again. Repeat three more times making each 45 degree angle line a little bit longer than the last. It should zigzag angling towards the ...

How To: Make a Christmas card using Cricut Paper Pups

If you own the paper cutting craft device, the Cricut, you can make Happy Howlidays Christmas cards by using the Cricut Paper Pups cartridge. The Cricut machine is for crafters who want to cut out paper and graphics for scrapbooking and card making. The card shown will have a dog on the front and your choice of colors for paper. Red or green paper would work well since this is a Christmas card. You can also use the basic Christmas shapes with you Cricut machine and add those to the card as we...

How To: Make styrofoam and fabric Christmas ornaments

In this tutorial, we learn how to make Styrofoam and fabric Christmas ornaments. First, shape the Styrofoam into a ball and then grab the fabric you want to place around it. Place the ball into the fabric, then tie it at the top with a ribbon and some string. After this, you will be able to decorate the fabric with bows and glitter, whatever you want to use. You can attach a hook to the string in the middle if you would like to hang this on a string. Be as creative as you would like, just mak...

How To: Make Your Own Photo Snow Globe

As the holidays draw closer and closer, stores are getting more and more crowded, and of course, many have put off their Christmas shopping until the very last minute. Why not avoid the mall rush this holiday season and make a personalized do-it-yourself snow globe to gift to those closest to you? This is also a perfect opportunity to put of those cell phone photos that you've been snapping to use! What You'll Need

How To: Draw and color a beautiful Christmas tree

Here's a neat little demonstration video on how to draw a Christmas tree using a pencil, an eraser and pen. This tree will be drawn with a more realistic looking drawing style, compared to the simplified abstract stack of triangles that people normally draw Christmas trees with. British children's author Shoo Rayner, writer and illustrator of over 200 books, shows you how.

How To: Hang garlands and tinsel on a Christmas tree

Master the art—and it is an art—of hanging garlands and tinsel on your Christmas tree. You will need garlands and tinsel, craft wire, ribbon and a step ladder. Tip: Follow the six-six rule: Don't hang more than six strands per branch, and leave about six inches of space between tinsel decorated branches.

How To: Create a raffia angel christmas ornament

This learning how to make a raffia angel. Once completed they can be used for gifts or a decoration on a Christmas tree. Supplies needed are: pipe cleaner, glue sticks/glue gun, scissors, wire cutters, pliers and embellishments. Wrap raffia around twice. Tie off, and leave some string to hang the angel. Cut a small part of the bottom until the ends are even. Gather a few strands on either side and braid them to make the arms. Tie these off with a piece of raffia. Put a dot of hot glue in the ...

How To: Make christmas trees from a tomato plant cage

John White, Dona Ana County Extension Agent, Teddi Peters, Master Gardener, and Southwest Yard and Garden demonstrate how to make a Christmas tree from a tomato plant cage for the holidays. The cage will already have a tree like form. Attach electrical tape around the prongs. Then, starting at the top, twist green holiday garland around the cage. Soon you will have something that looks like a tree. Add ornaments and Christmas lights to decorate your tree. You can use your new tree inside or t...

How To: Hang a Christmas Wreath Without Damaging Your Door

Whether you choose to hang an authentic or artificial pine Christmas wreath on your door — or an entirely different type, like ones made of paper waste or even food — chances are you've spent a year or two struggling with how to keep your decor hanging. With one easy to apply, quick to remove trick, you can skip the shiny wreath holder and any further damage to your front door.

How To: Don't Throw Out Your Broken Bulbs—Turn Them into Better Christmas Tree Ornaments!

One of the most annoying things about the holiday season is that it's almost impossible to make it through without at least one ornament falling off the tree and shattering. Even if you give the cat its own "special room" for the whole month, something is bound to happen. Rather than throwing out broken ornaments, Steve Hoefer figured out a way to turn them into new ones using plain, clear glass ornaments and Modge Podge craft glue. And personally, I'd say the results look way better than the...

How To: Make Christmas ornaments from CDs

This video from Educational Art Institute shows us how to repurpose old CDs for use as Christmas ornaments. There are many different ways to do this. One idea is to use glue applied onto the CD in any pattern or design and add one or more colors of glitter. If you don't like the mess of glitter, then glitter glue is a great alternative. They come in many different colors and are easy to apply. In both of the above cases you can also add sequins for more decoration. If you are going to decorat...

How To: Make a Christmas table centerpiece from an antler

Danielle Proud shows you how to make a beautiful Christmas table centerpiece for your Christmas dinner! Your guests will be amazed at how incredible your table looks. This amazing display catches light and looks simply magical. All you need is an old pair of deer or elk antlers, some sticky-backed crystals, and a little time and creativity! First, take your antlers and sand them until they are smooth and the color you like. Then, take different sized crystals, even different colors if you pre...

How To: Make a gumpaste Santa Claus for a Christmas cake

With gumpaste, anything is possible in the cake world. Gumpaste allows a cakemaker to mold intricate parts and cake accessories of all shapes, sizes, and theme. In this two-part cake decorating tutorial, learn how to make an adorable little Santa Claus using gumpaste for the perfect Christmas themed cake. Impress your next Christmas party with a stylish cake that's both delicious & creative.

How To: Make a reindeer Christmas hat

When the weather outside is frightful, we have a holiday hat your kids will actually want to wear. This video shows how to make a beautiful reindeer hat. Your child will lead the pack in true Rudolph style with this cap whose fanciful antlers are made from a pair of basic knit gloves. This is a fun Christmas craft project! Make it with your kids at their holiday party.

How To: Make a festive Christmas garland from fresh greenery

In this tutorial, we learn how to make a festive Christmas garland from fresh greenery. You will need: fresh greenery, wire cutters, floral wire, pruning clippers, and gloves to do this. The base should be made of holly, and then you can use different firs that you can find. You can arrange this garland however you wish, placing them onto the wire and then cutting the wire when everything is hooked together. The great thing about this is that you can be creative and use whatever kind of green...

How To: Geekify Your Christmas Tree with This Dr. Who 'Weeping Angel' Tree Topper

So you've chosen the ideal Christmas tree for your place and decorated it so that it's mathematically perfect, but something's missing. It's not quite complete without a topper, but all of the traditional ones are soooo boring. What's a geek to do? If you're a fan of the newer Doctor Who show, Cynthia has the perfect solution for you with her DIY Weeping Angel tree topper, which you can make out of an old Barbie doll, some modeling clay, a plastic bottle, and spray paint. The first step in th...