The days are long, and inspiration is running low. It’s winter break and you need something to keep your kiddos from climbing the walls. We’ve got you covered! Here are ten of our favorite things for the holiday season!

ARTIST INSPIRED ART PROJECTS

I love, love, love these Kandinsky Inspired Clay Circles! The project uses a DIY air dry clay recipe that seems to work well. We also have a favorite DIY Air Dry Clay recipe that also uses only two ingredients. You could make them a bit smaller and then they could be fabulous ornaments that you’ll want to display year-round! If you don’t feel like making or buying air dry clay but love Kandinsky, give these adorable Kandinsky Inspired Trees a try! If you don’t have paint or are concerned about the mess, you can do something similar with construction paper which would make a great holiday card!

And speaking of cards, these Van Gogh Inspired Trees would also make beautiful holiday cards. (Or even ornaments!) If you don’t have pastels handy, you could use crayons or even washable paint. And if you don’t feel like cleaning up glitter until February, your young artists never need to know that this project originally called for shiny stuff. (You could also use glitter glue instead.)

If you enjoy wintery trees, you’ll love this Yayoi Kusama Inspired Winter Trees tutorial. It’s a great collage project using construction paper, white paint, and cotton swabs. And since we’re still talking trees, this site shows you how to make 12 artist inspired tree ornaments, including ornaments inspired by Kusama, Van Gogh, and Kandinsky!

RECYCLED ART PROJECTS

Since we seem to be on a tree kick, how about combining a love of trees with the fallout from all of our online ordering? If you, like me, have a hard time throwing away bubble wrap, give these Bubble Wrap Trees a chance. This project calls for heavy paper (like paper grocery bags) but there’s no reason you couldn’t use your Amazon boxes as your canvas, destroying all evidence of your purchases! Your young artist may need you to cut out the tree shape, though. I deconstructed a bubble mailer for my sample, using both the bubble wrap and the envelope. The bubble wrap was not so bubbly in places but added an interesting texture as a result.  If you have extra holiday catalogues and magazines pilling up, consider this Magazine Collage Tree. This also calls for a brown paper bag but, as with the previous project, cardboard boxes would work as well.

This Recycled Christmas Card Wreath is a great way to hang on to the cards you just can’t part with while creating something you can enjoy year after year. It calls for a Styrofoam circle and toothpicks, but you could easily simplify the project and use a paper plate as a base. Either way, it’s a creative way to repurpose treasured holiday memories. Another way to recycled holiday cards is with this adorable Hand Sewn Bowl. The template link used in the article is no longer available, but I found a similar free template here.  Another fun way to preserve beautiful cards and teach your little ones to sew!

Lastly, as you’re cleaning out your drawers and closets, hang on to some of your more interesting fabrics and make a Scrap Fabric Wreath. This project leads you through the steps for making a rainbow wreath but you can use any color palette you choose. It’s another way to repurpose items that hold sentimental value!

That’s it! Ten festive projects to help you keep your little ones occupied during winter break.

Wishing you the warmest holiday wishes, friends. See you in the new year!

Artfully yours,

Brook