What Are the Best Christmas Crafts for Kids to Make and Give as Gifts?

Shrink art kits are the best Christmas crafts for kids who want to make real gifts — children color and cut their designs, an adult bakes them for two minutes, and the plastic shrinks into sturdy, giftable charms and ornaments. The Christmas Shrink Art DIY Craft Kit is my top pick for holiday gifting because it's Christmas-themed from the start and turns finished art straight into tree ornaments and keychains.

The December I stopped buying gifts "from" my kids

Last December, my 7-year-old announced she was done with the usual arrangement. "I want to MAKE presents this year," she said, "for all four cousins and Grandma." I smiled, nodded, and quietly panicked.

Because here's the thing every parent knows: kid-made gifts are a beautiful idea until you're the one managing them. Salt-dough ornaments take two days to dry and crack by New Year's. Handprint canvases are sweet exactly once. And anything involving glitter ends with glitter in the carpet until approximately March.

I needed something fast, genuinely giftable, and doable by a 7-year-old in one afternoon. That's how we found shrink art — and I wish someone had told me years earlier.

Why shrink art wins for kid-made Christmas gifts

Shrink art (you might remember it as Shrinky Dinks) is almost suspiciously perfect for this job:

• It's quick. Color, cut, bake for 2–3 minutes, done. A kid can finish a whole batch of gifts in one sitting.
• It looks impressive. Flat drawings go into the oven and come out as thick, glossy, professional-looking charms. Kids are genuinely amazed the first time.
• It's actually durable. Unlike paper crafts, shrunk plastic becomes a hard little keepsake — it survives backpacks, key rings, and Christmas trees.
• It's cheap per gift. One kit makes a dozen or more individual gifts, which matters when your child has decided to make presents for "everyone."

The only catch: the oven step is an adult's job. Everything else — coloring, cutting, designing — is all kid.

Our pick: Christmas Shrink Art DIY Craft Kit

We used the Christmas Shrink Art DIY Craft Kit ($19.99) — Christmas-themed sheets (Santas, reindeer, snowmen, trees), plus the findings to turn every finished piece into a charm, keychain, or tree ornament.

My daughter made tree ornaments for both grandmothers (their names in her own wobbly handwriting — which is precisely what made them cry), keychains for the cousins, and a gift tag for the dog. One Saturday afternoon, under twenty dollars, seven gifts.

Pros: Christmas designs ready to go — no hunting for templates; finished pieces become ornaments and charms, not just flat art; one kit covers a whole gift list. Cons: You'll want colored pencils or permanent markers on hand if the kit's coloring supplies run short; the oven step means an adult has to stay in the loop. Ages: Best for 5+, with an adult handling the baking.

A few alternatives worth knowing

Esmorah 74-Piece Christmas Shrink Dink Kit (Amazon). A big Christmas-themed set with pre-printed shrink sheets, water-soluble colored pencils, ball chains, key rings, and jump rings — enough for about 30 charms. A solid choice if you want the largest piece count for classroom gifting.

Pros: Huge piece count for the price; instructions printed on the box; pre-printed designs mean zero drawing skill needed. Cons: Lots of tiny findings can overwhelm younger kids. Ages: 5+ with adult supervision for baking.

Hewolly 146-Piece Christmas Shrink Plastic Craft Kit (Amazon). Another Christmas-focused kit mixing six traceable Christmas designs (Santa, reindeer, snowmen) with blank sheets for original artwork, plus keychains, ball chains, and ear hooks.

Pros: Traceable sheets are great for kids who say "I can't draw"; blank sheets included for confident artists; ear hooks let older kids make earrings too. Cons: Traceable designs limit freehand drawing; 146 pieces goes fast with multiple kids. Ages: 5+ with adult supervision for baking.

NewFamily Shrink Art Kit — Unicorn & Magical (Amazon). Not Christmas-themed, but worth mentioning: 36 pre-cut designs (no scissors needed), so it's the easiest entry point for younger kids or anyone gifting outside the holidays.

Pros: Pre-cut shapes skip cutting entirely; unicorn theme is a hit with the 4–8 crowd. Cons: Not Christmas-specific, so ornaments need extra imagination; fewer pieces than the Christmas kits above. Ages: 4+ with adult supervision for baking.

How we did it in one afternoon

Here's the exact flow that worked for us:

1. Pick recipients first. My daughter wrote a list: 7 names. One design per person keeps it focused.
2. Draw big. Plastic shrinks to about 20% of its size and colors intensify — draw roughly five times bigger than the final charm, and color a shade lighter than you'd think.
3. Cut and punch before baking. Cut out each design and punch the hole for the keychain or ornament string now — you can't do it after shrinking.
4. Bake at 325°F (165°C) for 1–3 minutes. Watch through the oven window: the plastic wrinkles dramatically, then flattens back out. That's your cue.
5. Flatten immediately. Press it flat with a spatula or a book for a few seconds while it's still warm.
6. Assemble while the excitement is fresh. Thread the chains and rings right away, while your kid is still buzzing from the "it actually worked!" moment.

Tip: bake one test piece first — better to learn on a practice snowman than on Grandma's ornament.

What to watch out for

• The oven is non-negotiable adult territory. Shrink plastic needs a conventional oven at around 325°F — never a microwave. Kids color and cut; grown-ups bake.
• It curls before it flattens. The first time you see it wrinkle in the oven, you'll think you ruined it — give it another minute.
• Dark colors get darker. Shrink art intensifies color, so go lighter than your instinct says, especially with reds and blues.

FAQ

What age is shrink art good for? Most kits work well from about age 4–5 up, as long as an adult handles the oven step. Younger kids do best with pre-cut designs; older kids can draw and cut their own.

Can kids really make Christmas gifts with shrink art? Yes — that's its superpower. A single afternoon produces a dozen durable ornaments, keychains, or gift tags, each one genuinely handmade. Grandparents, in particular, treasure them.

Do you need a special oven for shrink art? No. A regular kitchen oven at about 325°F (165°C) works. Never use a microwave, and always bake with adult supervision since the plastic comes out hot.

How long does shrink art take? About 1–3 minutes of baking per batch, plus coloring and cutting time. Most kids finish a full set of gifts in one afternoon.

What can you make besides ornaments? Keychains, bag charms, gift tags, jewelry pendants, and even earrings with the right findings. Christmas kits lean toward ornaments and charms, which is exactly what gift-giving needs.

My daughter has already started this year's list — and honestly, so have I. Nothing store-bought touches a gift a kid actually made. The Christmas Shrink Art DIY Craft Kit is where we'd start again — and Grandma's ornament is still on her tree.