Kid Created Christmas Ornaments Week 2: Pretty Packages

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Welcome to kid created Christmas ornaments week 2: pretty packages. This is our second week creating ornaments for our Christmas tree. This week, we thought we’d teach our children how to wrap presents while creating some pretty ornaments for our tree.

We had our children take turns wrapping and decorating the cardboard boxes. One child would wrap, and once that child was done, then we’d invite another child to come and wrap. Daddy helped teach them how to wrap a gift. It was good to see how well the children responded to Daddy’s lessons. And although Daddy wraps differently than Mommy, the packages still got wrapped. And they looked good, which just reinforces that there’s more than one way to do almost everything. Our Kindergartener really got into making the corners neat and the edges straight. Our preschooler got to stick all the tape down and hold the paper in place. Our second grader was careful to make sure his paper was folded properly. And our fourth grader learned how important it is to measure before cutting the paper.

Mommy helped them with the decoration of the wrapped gifts.  It was fun to watch them create their ideas of how the packages should look into an actual creation.  We discussed design concepts like color coordination and accent usage, size of the decoration versus size of box, and simplicity versus complex adornments. The whole activity was a great lesson on creating visually pleasing items – not to mention a super intensive, fine motor activity. (I’m always looking for ways to increase fine motor skills for our children.)

Supplies (for one ornament)
1 cardboard box (We used the soap boxes bar soap comes in.)
12 square inches of wrapping paper (The less pattern the better. We used plain red wrapping paper.)
Scissors
Tape
Wide Wired ribbon – Christmas themed
Narrow craft ribbon
Holiday themed beads and buttons
Holly berry floral pick
Twine
Jingle bells
Glitter
(other crafting items, as the mood directs.)

How to do it:

First, wrap the box.
Start by gathering cardboard boxes. They can be of varying sizes. Remember, this will hang on the tree, so anything much larger than 8 inches will be hard to hang.

After the boxes are gathered, it’s time to wrap them. I start by laying the box at the edge of the paper, and turning the package three times with the package moving down the paper vertically. Then I turn the package once horizontally. I add about two inches all the way around the edges of the measured paper, and then cut the edges.

I then fold the paper up to the midpoint of the box, turning ½ inch of the paper under to create a nice clean edge.  I secure that edge, and then repeat the process for the other edge.

Next, it’s time to fold down the ends of the package. I fold the top edge of the end of the package down, creating triangles on the side edges. Then I fold the triangles in from the sides, creating a triangle on the bottom edge.  Before securing with tape, I fold the paper down creating a clean, even edge. Repeat the process for the other end.

Now, I crease all the edges of the package. This cleans the edges up, and creates a visually finished look to the package.

Next add the Adornments
We used ribbon of varying sizes or textures, and then we tied a craft bow on the front of the package. Then we added holly berries, pearl beads, and holiday themed buttons to the bows. And finally, using craft glue, we added glitter to add shine to the ornaments. We had all sorts of holiday craft supplies out for the kids to choose from and just let them have at it.

This was another fun, and easy craft to do with our children, and a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon. I’d love to see pictures of any pretty packages your family makes. You can send them to mommycrusader@mommycrusader.com. Happy Crafting!