The following craft ideas provide affordable and sustainable joy on a college student budget
The holidays have begun and it’s time to start planning the crafts you want to complete over break or as a mental reset during finals. This guide is split into homemade decor, crafty gifts and activities to complete with a group.
Crafts as decor
Creating your own decorations can be an easy and affordable way to brighten up your apartment during the dark months, and they make cooking dinner or staying up late studying a little bit more cheerful.
1. Paper Chains
While you may remember making these for your elementary school classroom, paper chains remain a fun and easy way to get in the holiday spirit. You can use scraps of paper you already have, create designs on plain paper or buy colorful cardstock. Hanging the chains from the ceiling or around windows adds dimension and whimsy to your home.
2. Paper Stars
Keeping with the theme of whimsical paper crafts, making stars out of old grocery bags requires a bit more effort, but there are many easy to follow tutorials on TikTok and Pinterest. This craft is not overly holiday focused, so the stars can be left up into the new year.
3. Garland
Garland is a classic Christmas tree or window decor item, but it can be elevated as much as you wish. A simple string of dehydrated oranges is an easy way to make your kitchen smell festive, but adding cranberries, star cutouts from orange rinds and ribbon will elevate this fan favorite into a timeless decoration.
Crafts for gifts
This is where creativity can really shine during the holiday season. I love giving my friends and family a gift that is personalized for them. These ideas will be affordable without compromising on quality.
1. AIR DRY CLAY
This material became a popular way to make magnets, but it can be used in many ways to fit your loved ones’ personalities. Tic–Tac–Toe boards based on your friends’ interests and polaroid photo holders are some that have caught my eye this year.
2. PERSONALIZED GAME
Games can take on many different directions based on your relationships. Personalizing a deck of cards with photos or collages by hand is a popular gift that will be useful and commemorative. Other favorite board or card games could also be personalized such as painting a beautiful game of Jenga or customizing a monopoly board based on your shared experiences.
3. Artistic Gift Wrapping
Creating your own wrapping is an easy and fun way to reduce waste and personalize your gifts this year. I enjoy using bags and packaging from previous purchases and adding fun paper and marker designs. Your artistic wrapping might even become an additional gift itself!
Crafts for Gatherings
The holidays are a great time to plan a movie night or dinner party to celebrate your friendships, and these crafts can add a hands-on element that your friends can take home and use for years to come.
1. BEADED BOWS
While bows are a trendy item that may eventually fall from popularity, creating bow decor by hand is the best way to get your trend fix without contributing to overconsumption. This craft is a bit more complicated, but fun to work on while chatting with friends or with your favorite holiday movie in the background.
2. FRAMED FELT PICTURES
Using felt to commemorate a shared college house, favorite restaurant or any other location or item that is significant to the group is a fun way to capture a specific moment in time. This is a perfect craft for roommates who are graduating or hometown friends who go to different schools.
3. RECIPE BOOK
This is an easy group activity that could be especially fun for family gatherings with multiple generations. Each person brings their recipe on an index card, and the group can decorate binders that will become a family legacy cookbook. Adding stickers, colorful paper and photos will make the book a fun item to display in your kitchen as well.
These crafts will make gift giving more meaningful this year without over spending or dedicating days to learning a new skill. They provide fun opportunities to take a creative break from studying and feel festive despite a busy final exam schedule.