Buttons and craft sticks are some of the easiest and most practical items for crafting with kids. Preschool and elementary teachers, homeschool moms, and even Sunday school teachers usually have plenty of craft supplies, and buttons and craft sticks are at the top of the list! Cotton balls, mini brads, and colored yarn rank high on the list too, but this Christmas tree ornament craft doesn’t call for those supplies!
The Christmas season brings with it so many beautiful and bright colors, and crafting with little ones gives them the opportunity to enjoy the season as they create colorful, festive crafts. There’s just a special kind of excitement that goes along with creating and displaying handmade Christmas ornaments.
I remember making handmade Christmas ornaments in elementary school, and my parents still have many of them to this day! One of my favorites was a Rudolph reindeer with a little red pom-pom for the nose, and the head of the reindeer was made with… you guessed it… craft sticks!
Some details of the ornament escape me, but I’m pretty sure the reindeer had a little red bow with a gold bell glued to the center as decoration for the reindeer’s neck. I need to take a good look at the ornament on my parent’s tree because it would be a fabulous craft to recreate with my own children!
Kids love Christmas crafting and decorating, and once the Christmas tree is all decorated, Christmas crafts are perfect for keeping those little hands busy crafting and decorating their own little projects instead of rearranging the family Christmas tree!
Each year I host a Christmas piano recital and party for my piano and voice students. After the recital, we have light refreshments and usually make a Christmas ornament. It’s always a fun time, and all the kids appreciate taking home a keepsake from the Christmas recital.
Last year we played a Christmas musical game, and while it was fun, it just wasn’t the same without the ornament craft. This year, the Christmas ornament craft is back in the plans, and just yesterday I finally figured out the design for the featured ornament! I’m so excited to buy the supplies and get my Christmas crafting underway!
A couple years ago, I gathered a lot of colored buttons and craft sticks and my piano students made today’s featured craft.
These DIY Christmas Tree Ornament Crafts are super easy for kids to make and they hold up really well. They are a hit with kids of all ages, adults included!
My three-year-old son made the craft along with my students at the party, and we are still hanging that sweet little ornament on the tree a couple years later. Since we used hot glue to create the ornament, it should last for many Christmases to come!
My children and I made a couple ornaments last year with salt dough, and they didn’t hold up as well. When we unpacked our Christmas ornaments this year, the salt dough ornaments were cracking. Unfortunately, we had to pitch them in the trash. Since craft sticks and buttons are non-perishable supplies, our craft stick Christmas trees should stick around for quite a while!
Get ready to add the supplies for this DIY Easy Christmas Tree Ornament Craft for Kids to your Christmas list. You may even have the supplies around your house!
Don’t forget to check out my Wood Slice Christmas Ornaments for even more Christmas crafting fun. Both of these colorful ornament crafts will look gorgeous on the tree, and mom and child can be proud of these charming little craft stick Christmas trees with buttons!
Supplies for DIY Easy Christmas Tree Ornament Craft for Kids
Hot Glue or Craft Glue
Oversized Craft Sticks
Foam Paint Brushes
Green Paint
Buttons
Foam Star Stickers
Ribbon
Brown Cardstock or Brown Felt
Cardboard
Let’s Craft with Buttons and Craft Sticks! | DIY Easy Christmas Tree Ornament for Kids
1. Using a foam paint brush, paint the craft sticks with green paint. Allow to air dry. If you choose to paint both sides of the craft sticks, you will want to plan for an extended drying time. To speed up the drying time, use a hair dryer to dry the paint.
2. Use craft glue or hot glue to form a triangular tree shape with the craft sticks. Adult supervision is required with use of hot glue.
3. Decorate the tree by gluing buttons in desired positions. Colored pom-poms would also be super cute in the place of buttons. You can purchase buttons of various colors, shapes, and sizes. Children may want to choose a color pattern or just use various colors as they create their artistic masterpieces!
4. Attach a foam star sticker to decorate the top of the tree. Secure it with glue. I purchased star stickers with sparkles in various colors, and they really added a touch of pizazz to the top of the tree!
5. Cut ribbon to desired length and loop to form an ornament hanger. Glue to the top of the ornament on the back side of the tree. Decorative ribbon adds a special touch. I used red ribbon with white stitching, and I love the way the white thread stands out against the bright red.
6. Cut a rectangular piece of cardboard and brown cardstock of equal size to create the Christmas tree trunk. Glue them together. The cardboard reinforces the cardstock for a more secure tree trunk.
7. Glue the trunk to the bottom of the tree on the back side of the ornament with the brown cardstock side facing the same direction as the buttons. Felt can also be used in place of the cardstock and would be a soft texture for preschoolers to feel as they craft and learn.
8. Write the child’s name and date on the back of the ornament to remember special memories of Christmases past. I used a medium-tipped permanent marker, but a paint pen would also be a nice option.
And that’s it! Easy peasy DIY Christmas Tree Ornament Craft for Kids with buttons and craft sticks! I hope you have found some creative inspiration with this Christmas tree ornament craft so you can spend time creating and making memories with those you love.
As the years pass, all the little ornaments become treasured keepsakes. Inexpensive Christmas crafts that look great on the tree are a win-win because they are fun for the kids and make nice décor for the tree!
More Christmas posts for Families…
Let's Keep Christ in Christmas! (...ideas for families)
Christmas Traditions for Children
Taking Down the Christmas Decorations and a Post-Christmas Tradition
