Father Christmas craft with a cotton wool beard

Age: 2+ · Time: 25 min · For: Ages 3–5

Every child knows that Father Christmas has the biggest, whitest beard in the world. In this craft, your toddler gets to make it, tuft by fluffy tuft. Pulling cotton wool apart and pressing it on is calming and wonderful for small fingers.

What your child does, where you help

Your child: pulls the cotton wool apart, presses it on, and draws the face.
You: cut the shapes and spread the glue for the youngest children.

Variations

A card: make it on folded card for a Christmas card.
Big and small: make a big Father Christmas for the door and little ones as gift tags.
Glitter hat: brush a little glue on the red hat and sprinkle with glitter.

Safety

Keep cotton wool and glue out of reach when you are not crafting, and wash hands afterwards.

You need

a sheet of thick white paper or card
a piece of red paper for the hat (or red paint)
a piece of paper for the face, in the colour your child chooses
cotton wool or cotton wool balls
PVA glue or a glue stick
scissors, for the grown-up
felt tips

Steps

A grown-up cuts a circle for the face (about the size of a saucer) and a triangle for the hat.
Glue the face on the white card, with the hat on top of it.
Spread glue in a big U-shape around the bottom of the face. This is where the beard goes.
Let your child pull the cotton wool into fluffy tufts and press them onto the glue until the beard is thick and white.
Add a strip of cotton wool along the bottom of the hat and a fluffy ball on the tip.
Your child draws the eyes, the rosy cheeks and a smile. Add a little cotton wool moustache under the nose.