Christmas crafts for adults
Good Christmas crafts for adults include scented candles in tins, painted wooden ornaments, a fresh greenery wreath, punch needle coasters, melt and pour soap and air dry clay decorations. Most take one evening and work as presents. Pick one that suits your space: candles and soap need a hob, painting needs a clear table, and punch needle can be done on the sofa.
What are good Christmas crafts for adults?
The makes that work for grown-ups have two things in common: the result looks good enough to keep or give, and you can finish one in an evening. Here are eight that pass both tests, with what each one asks of you.
| Craft | Time for a first go | Mess | Makes a good present? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scented candles in tins | An evening, then a few days to cure | Wax spills, needs a hob | Yes |
| Painted wooden ornaments | An hour or two for a batch | Paint on the table | Yes, in a set |
| Fresh greenery wreath | Two hours or so | Needles everywhere | For your own door |
| Punch needle coasters | An evening per coaster or two | Very little | Yes, as a set |
| Melt and pour soap | An hour, then setting time | Some, needs heat | Yes |
| Air dry clay decorations | An hour, then a day or two to dry | Clay crumbs | Yes |
| Handmade cards | An evening for a batch | Glue and offcuts | Yes |
| Paint by numbers or diamond painting | Several evenings | Very little | For yourself |
1. Scented Christmas candles
Candles are the craft most people mean when they say they want to make Christmas presents. You melt wax in a pouring pot over a pan of simmering water, stir in a fragrance oil, and pour it into tins around a centred wick. The Christmas candle making bundle puts a soy wax kit with 8 tins together with six Christmas fragrance oils (candy cane, Christmas tree, Christmas pudding, apple cinnamon, gingerbread and mistletoe) and a 1 kg bag of soy wax flakes for more candles once the kit's wax runs out.
Follow the safety label and instructions with the wax and oils, and never leave hot wax unattended. Our guide to making candles at home covers the method in full, including how to stop the dips and white bloom that catch out first-timers. If you would rather skip the wicks, wax melts use the same wax and scents.
2. Painted wooden ornaments
Plain wooden shapes are the most relaxed make on this list and the easiest to do with friends round a table. The HBell wooden ornament set has 60 unfinished ornaments in 12 shapes, including a tree, bell, snowman and Santa, each about 3.5 by 3 inches with a hole for hanging, plus 60 small bells, 12 colour pens and 20m of red and white rope. Sixty pieces is enough to do a full tree and still have some to put in cards.
- Plan the setChoose three or four colours and stick to them. A set of ornaments in a limited palette looks deliberate; one in every colour looks like a sample card.
- Wipe off the dustThe wood comes sanded on both sides, so a wipe with a dry cloth is enough. Dust under paint shows as grit.
- Pencil the designDraw stripes, faces or lettering lightly in pencil first. It rubs out from bare wood and disappears under paint.
- Paint thin base coatsUse acrylic paint and lay on two thin coats rather than one thick one, letting each dry. Thick coats pool at the edges and show brush marks.
- Add the detail with pensOnce the base is fully dry, add outlines, dots and lettering with the pens. Pens on wet paint smear and clog.
- Thread and finishThread a length of rope through the hole, add a bell if you like, and tie it off. If you want a sheen, a clear acrylic varnish over the top protects the paint.
Christmas makes for an evening in
Wooden Christmas ornament set, 60 pieces
£14.99
6-coaster Christmas punch needle kit
£24.99
Christmas candle making bundle
£47.99 £51.97 separately
Acrylic paint set, 36 colours, 10 brushes
£23.99
3. A fresh Christmas wreath
A wreath made from real greenery smells of Christmas the moment you start cutting. You bind short bunches of fir, pine or eucalyptus onto a ring with reel wire, then wire on cones, berries and dried orange slices. It is messier than it sounds, so work on newspaper or outside. Our step-by-step guide to making a Christmas wreath shows how to bind it so no frame shows through.
4. Punch needle Christmas coasters
Punch needle is the craft to try if you like something to do with your hands while the television is on. You push yarn through a printed cloth with a punch needle tool to make loops, following the pattern like a colouring sheet. The yuegool Christmas kit makes six coasters, each 4 inches across, and comes with six patterned cloths, six punch needle tools, an embroidery hoop, adhesive felt, a coaster holder and yarn, with instructions and step-by-step videos. The finished pieces can also hang on a wall.
5. Melt and pour Christmas soap
Melt and pour soap takes the chemistry out of soap making: the base is already soap, so you melt it, add colour and scent, and pour it into a mould. A clear base shows off a swirl of mica powder, and the Christmas fragrance oil set is listed for soap making as well as candles. Melt the base exactly as its instructions say, read the safety labels on the oils and powders, and keep the moulds for soap only. Moulds are not included with the base, so use silicone ones you already have.
6. Air dry clay decorations
Roll the clay out to an even thickness, cut stars and hearts with biscuit cutters, and push a straw through the top for the ribbon before it dries. Once they are dry, paint them with acrylics. Our air dry clay ideas go into drying, sealing and stopping cracks.
7. Handmade Christmas cards
Cards are a good make if you are crafting with children over the holidays. The Talking Tables kit makes 12 cards with envelopes, using foam stickers and pre-cut Santa, reindeer and snowman shapes. The maker lists it for ages three and above, and it contains small parts, so younger children need an adult with them.
8. A longer project for the quiet days
The days between Christmas and New Year suit something slower: a paint by numbers canvas or a diamond painting you can come back to each evening. Our guide to paint by numbers for adults has tips on getting a clean finish.
Soap and slower projects
Clear soap base, 1 kg
£15.99
Christmas fragrance oil set, 6 x 10ml
£13.99
Mica powder, 12 colours x 5g
£15.99
Paint by numbers bundle, 3 canvases
£34.99 £37.97 separately
How to plan a Christmas craft night with friends
Choose one craft, not three. Everyone working on the same thing means one set of instructions, one lot of mess and plenty of chat about whose is coming out nicest. Painted ornaments and punch needle suit a group because nothing is hot and everyone can work at their own pace. Candle and soap making work better with two or three people, as they need a hob and someone keeping an eye on the wax the whole time.
Order early in December: our orders usually arrive within 5 working days, and a bundle can come in more than one parcel. For more ideas for grown-ups at any time of year, the craft kits for adults page gathers every kit whose listing says it is made for adults.
Questions
What is the easiest Christmas craft for an adult beginner?
Painted wooden ornaments. There is no heat, no special skill and no way to ruin the batch, because a mistake on one shape only costs you that shape. Pencil the design first and paint two thin coats rather than one thick one.
What Christmas crafts can I make as presents?
Scented candles in tins, melt and pour soap, painted wooden ornaments in a matching set, and punch needle coasters all make presents people use. Make them at least a week before you give them, so candles have time to cure and paint is fully dry.
Which Christmas craft needs the least mess?
Punch needle. You work on a cloth held in a hoop, so the only mess is a few yarn ends, and you can do it on the sofa. Candles, soap and wreaths all need a cleared work area.
Can I use the Christmas fragrance oils in soap and candles?
The Christmas fragrance oil set is listed for candle making, soap making and diffusers. Read the safety label on the oils before you use them, and follow the instructions with your wax or soap base for how much to add.
When should I order craft supplies for Christmas?
By early December. Our orders usually arrive within 5 working days, and a bundle made of several products can come in more than one parcel, so leave a little room before you plan to make.
