Five Thanksgiving Crafts To Do This November

Thanksgiving is a time for family, friends and spending time with all of your loved ones. Often this includes time with children and keeping them entertained enough to stay out the kitchen can sometimes be a trying task.

If you are looking for ways to keep the kids out of the way and end up with some amazing keepsakes, see below for some great craft ideas that you can do right at home.

A Thankfulness tree. This one requires little more than some colorful construction paper, scissors, glue and a marker. Have the kids take turns tracing each other's hands on different colors of construction paper. After each hand has been traced four or five times, have them cut out the hands and glue them on a brown construction paper tree trunk cut out. After they’ve created their “tree” of hands, ask each of the children to write one thing they are thankful for on each hand, and hang them in the dining room for the main course.

Make a beautiful door hanging from Decorative Corn. If you are looking for something that can be used for years to come, a Decorative Corn wreath looks gorgeous hanging indoors or outdoors and is relatively simple to make. Get something sturdy for the base, such as an old round picture frame. Buy several different colors of decorative corn, with the husks attached. If they become detached, you can always glue them back on, but the “wow” factor really comes with the whole corn. Then simply glue your corn around your round frame with the husk at the top. Vary the sizes and colors, but trim the husks to be even across the edges. This look is stunning and different and is sure to impress holiday guests.

Painted pumpkins. With Halloween over, there are plenty of pumpkins still around for the holiday season. One easy craft that kids can do on their own is to paint pumpkins. Set up various size pumpkins in an area that they can really be free, such as a porch or an outdoor space. You can choose to do metallic spray paints on colorful paints with brushes for more intricate designs. Then include stickers, stencils and permanent markers for them to really make them their own.

Thanksgiving Tag Picture Frame. For this craft, you need to cut out several pieces of paper in a price tag shape and spray paint them with metallic gold paint. After they have dried, use a black marker or paint and stencil to create a phrase such as “Give Thanks” or “Family and Friends” with each letter on one tag. Then glue them onto a matte backing before sticking them in your favorite antique picture frame for a simple yet stunning decor piece.

Cotton swab fall tree painting. Using a bundle of cotton swabs tied together with a rubber band, have the children dip the ends in different fall color paints such as reds, oranges and yellows. You can mix the colors or keep them individual. Then have the kids make different “leaf” bunches on each branch of a tree made from brown construction paper glued on a white matte background. This makes a beautiful leaf picture that is frame worthy for years to come.