C is for Christmas Cookie Cutter Crafts

We seem to have a lot of Christmas themed cookie cutters in our house.  How about yours?  More than any other theme our collection of trees, reindeer, stars and gingerbread people seems to grow all by itself.

So it seems a waste not to make use of this overload of festive cutters.  Here are 5 ways you and your kids can use your Christmas cookie cutters these holidays.  And they are not all cookie recipes!

Idea no. 1. For easy melted bead ornaments.  No need to carefully place the beads on the design trays before ironing to make a new ornament for the tree.  Follow these step by step instructions for Cookie Cutter Melty Bead Ornaments and make some really colourful, and sometimes interesting, designs like we did.

 
My favourite is the colourful star.  I love how it turned out.  I also like the tree.  The way the green beads curled when melted is pretty cool.

Just remember to keep these cookie cutters for ornament making from now on.  Best to be safe and not use them for food again.

Idea no. 2. For homemade wrapping paper.  Dip the thicker edge of the cutters in some paint on a tray and stamp it all over large pieces of craft or butchers paper.  Cheaper and more personal than store bought gift wrap.  For ideas on how to make your own wrapping paper The Imagination Tree has this post on Cookie Cutter Wrapping Paper and Gift Tags while over at Nurture Store you can read about their Homemade Gift Wrap with Christmas Scented Paint.



Idea no. 3. Salt dough ornaments/gift tags.  If you don't have any more room on your Christmas tree, turn salt dough ornaments into one of a kind gift tags.    Once baked and decorated you can write names and the year on the back of the ornaments and then use ribbon or string to tie them to the gifts.

An easy to follow post for making these ornaments is this one on Salt Dough Christmas Decorations from Be A Fun Mum. 

Red Ted Art used their Easy Salt Dough Recipe to make a gorgeous star garland.

Idea no. 4. Treats for your furry friends.  Make sure your pet dogs are in on the festive treats with these homemade dog biscuits.

Idea no. 5.  For Christmas Cookies.  Of course I had to include one regular cooking activity.  This is a great way to keep the kids busy in the lead up to the Christmas break.  Get them to help make a big batch of sugar cookies and then let them loose with the icing and sprinkles.  These would make lovely packages for neighbours or elderly relatives. We used our recipe for a basic biscuit dough but you could use your own favourite sugar cookie recipe too.

For more ideas on crafts using cookie cutters have a look at our Pinterest board.



Wishing you a safe and happy Christmas from the three foot cooks!