During Advent, some friends and I gathered weekly to make seasonal crafts via Zoom. Every part of it was fun, but an especially endearing part was how many people accepted the invitation saying “I stink at crafts, but I’m willing to try.” I love that spirit, and I love that friends were confident that we could do crafts together poorly and still have fun.
To be inclusive, our crafts had to: 1) require few pre-existing skills, 2) require few tools or materials since I bagged them up and delivered them to my friends, 3) be adaptive since our group included children through older adults and people with various abilities. And while most of my friends were from my church, not everyone was, so I chose mostly crafts that were wintertime-themed, not holiday themed, though this one is an elf. This elf much cuter and cheaper than a name-brand Elf on the Shelf, so if that’s a tradition you want to enjoy with your kids, consider this little cutie as an alternative.
Supplies:
- pine cone (with or without white tips, as you prefer)
- wooden ball for head
- black Sharpie or other marker or paint and paintbrush
- felt in 1-3 colors
- mini-jingle bell or pom-pom
- hot glue gun and glue stick
- scissors
Directions
- If the end of the pine cone is not flat, flatten by pulling off some scales.
- Choose a felt color for your elf’s shoes. Cut a double thickness of material into a heart shape. Glue the two pieces of fabric together, one on top of the other. Then glue to the bottom of the pine cone, so the point of the heart faces the elf’s back.
- Glue the wooden ball to the top of the pine cone. If it drips, don’t worry–you’ll cover it with Elfie’s scarf later.
- Cut a large isosceles triangle (2 sides the same length) from a piece of felt, with the third side (which will form the opening of the hat) cut with a slight curve. Roll into a cone shape so that the opening fits over the wooden ball. Hot glue the seam shut.
- Hot glue the jingle bell (or pom-pom, if you prefer) to the tip of the hat.
- Cut a long strip of felt to serve as a scarf. Cut small nips into the end to create fringe. Wrap around Elfie’s neck. Add a dollop of glue to the back of Elfie’s neck to hold in place. Knot in front, or layer the ends, holding in place with glue.
- Use a Sharpie to add a face, or paint on. Don’t forget the ears!
- Create more for an elf community, or add a decorative string loop to hang from a tree or add to a garland. If you used a mini pinecone, you can even thread the elf onto ribbon decorating a gift.
Family Foxhole 