How to Make Christmas Napkin Rings Using Foam Sheets and Recycled Christmas Cards

Need an after school or rainy day project for the children to do during the holiday season? Need a new idea to recycle Christmas cards from years past? Would you like to give your family members and friends a special greeting when you entertain? Here is a fun, easy craft that children can make and take pride in when they use them on the Christmas dinner table.

Items Needed to Make Christmas Napkin Rings

-Assorted colors of foam sheets
-Old Christmas cards measuring at least five inches tall (fronts only)
-Craft glue for form sheets
-Scissors

Optional Items

-Googly eyes
-Sequences
-Glitter
-Ric-rac
-Fine-tipped black marker
-Christmas cookie cutters
-Photos of family members

Assembly Instruction for Christmas Napkins Rings

Cut a strip of a foam sheet measuring one inch by five-inches. Cut one for each napkin ring you plan to make. Glue the ends of this strip together to form a ring. Cut a three inch by three inch square from a different colored foam sheet. Be sure to use bright festive Christmas colors like red and green, silver and red, silver and gold, or silver and blue.

Let the children look through the Christmas cards and pick out the ones they would like to use. Explain that they should be looking for pictures on the cards that can be displayed in an area measuring two and one-half inches by two and one-half inches.

When the children have picked out their cards and have decided on the picture area they want to use, on the backside of the card front, draw a section measuring two and one-half inches by five inches. If there is writing on the back, glue a piece of construction paper measuring the same size over it. Fold this strip in half (picture side out), making a two and one-half inch square. On the inside, have the children right a special greeting, such as Merry Christmas, Joy to the World, Happy Holidays, or Season's Greetings. Glue the back of the small card to the three-inch foam sheet. Glue the completed foam sheet square to the ring created earlier.

You now have a Christmas napkin ring to decorate your holiday table.

Variation #1: Make the foam sheet ring as instructed above. Cut out a Christmas tree design using a cookie cutter. Decorate it with sequences, ric-rac, googly eyes, or markers.

Variation #2: Instead of using Christmas cards, glue pictures of family members and friends to the foam sheet squares.

Sources: Personal Experience