Whenever there's a holiday, there's an opportunity to make holiday-themed crafts, which we love. But it's equally true that an opportunity to make holiday-themed crafts also means more holiday-themed messes for us to clean up … which we don't exactly love. Lucky for you, these crafts are totally, 100% glitter-free — yes, we're heroes — and many of them just involve stuff like folding paper and tying knots. There are some items that require some glue, but those can usually be replaced with glue dots. For anyone who hasn't experienced the absolute joy of glue dots, check them out: they're tiny dots, much like those candy dots on the paper rolls we ate as kids, only these are sticky enough to make crafts hold together, but are totally mess-free. They're definitely pricier than a bottle of glue, but less pricey than a new coffee table or carpet, so… we call it a win.
But while crafting is awesome, there are so many wonderful aspects of the holiday. Yes, there's family — we'll get to that in a minute — but primarily, there's pie. For anyone who just cannot get behind making a homemade pie dough, we feel it — it's hard to work with, it's annoying … but let's face it, the frozen crusts just don't ever taste great. Our solution: the heck with the crust. Instead, check out crustless pies to try this Thanksgiving. They're delicious, and the stuff with the actual flavor — the filling! — is the star of the show, and it's way easier to make. So OK, yes, back to family, the other best part of Thanksgiving. We adore our kids, but they're often underfoot when we're trying to cook. This Thanksgiving, we have two ways to keep them occupied while the turkey is in the oven: creative games and Thanksgiving activities to teach kids to be thankful, which sounds like it's hard work on our end, until we remember that we can assign a teenage cousin to leading the younger ones through it. Delegate!
Placecard Tags
This one couldn't be easier — just take a a calligraphy pen, some rough twine, and some small cards, and create personalized place cards for each person at Thanksgiving dinner. This way, we get to put people with wildly opposing political differences on opposite ends of the table … and we create a little gift to take home! Decorate the table itself with little pumpkin reminders, like "give thanks."
Thanksgiving Felt Turkey Craft
This one works as a group project with all the kids in the family. This Thanksgiving turkey craft for kids and adults is a super cute craft that will totally make grandma proud, and better yet, it's not made using any glue, so it's totally mess-free.
Turkey Pumpkins
This Turkey pumpkins craft makes use of a small pumpkin, brown and yellow foamy, red felt, fall leaves, googly eyes, a glue gun, and glue sticks. We love that it's super easy to put together, it's adorable, and because it uses a glue gun and not regular glue, it's relatively mess-free.
Toilet Roll Turkeys
These toilet roll turkeys are so easy to make and are kind of a hilarious way to celebrate the holiday. They making use of something that would otherwise be recycled or thrown out, too! The instructions are in the caption, and they're easy enough for even small children to follow.
Paper Finger Puppet Turkey
How incredibly cute is this sweet turkey finger puppet?! It's a great craft for the kids to do together while the turkey cooks, especially since it's a relatively mess-free endeavor. The site has easy step-by-step instructions for this cute Thanksgiving project.
Cool Gourd Stamps
Remember potato stamps from when we were kids? This is the same thing, but with seasonal gourds! As the creator notes, "This is such a simple craft project that kids of any age can make. " Basically, just slice a gourd in half, scoop out the seeds, and hand it over with some paint and paper to a kid!
Wine Cork Placeholders
These wine cork placeholders are so cute and so easy — just hot glue some little googly eyes and a few pieces of finger-shaped felt in the appropriate places, then use a straightened paperclip to create the name card holder. Ta-da! A sweet craft that comes together in minutes.
Paper Towel Roll Napkin Rings
Start stockpiling the paper towel rolls now, and there will be enough for the Thanksgiving crafts coming up! These are adorable and can be reused again next year, too. The PJs and Paint site has full instructions on how to DIY these napkin rings.
Pumpkin Pie Garland
We're not totally sure why this pumpkin pie garland is so impossibly adorable — it just is. We think it's partially because the colors are subtle. As the author notes, "All I needed were a few sheets of felt, pom poms, and twine (+scissors, hot glue gun, ruler, and a pen/marker)."
DIY Pumpkin Flower Arrangement
This DIY pumpkin flower arrangement is so super simple, and it's incredibly pretty. Fill with seasonal flowers like mums, or pretty fall leaves. And there's a bonus to this one: roast the pumpkin seeds for a delicious appetizer to serve before the turkey is ready.
Paper Turkey Craft
This paper turkey craft is a total classic for a reason — and anyone who can fold a fan can create one! It's the go-to craft for keeping kids occupied on a rainy November day, and can be used to decorate the home when everyone comes over for Thanksgiving dinner.
Pine Cone Napkin Holders
These pine cone napkin holders are not only pretty, they're also basically free if there's a pine tree anywhere in the neighborhood. And the best part: They can be easily reused for Christmas, especially if we just spray paint them silver or gold.
Painted Pumpkins
For anyone who's a little scared of letting kids use knives for carving a pumpkin, there's still a way to make a pumpkin look special for the holiday. Use acrylic paints — on top of a solid newspaper base, of course — to decorate pumpkins for Thanksgiving.
Pine Cone Turkey With Silk Feathers
These pine cone turkeys are adorable and hilarious, and kind of remind me of some of the sillier Muppet characters. They each have their own personality. For full instructions, check out this step-by-step guide to making pinecone turkey with silk feathers.
Turkey Pretzels
What's better than crafts we can eat? These turkey pretzels are so delicious, and they're really cute. We'll admit they're on the messier side of things on this list, but when it comes to mess, we like the kind that's made out of edible chocolate rather than glue.
DIY Wheat Wreath
This DIY wheat wreath is way easier than it looks — and the results are so elegant! For a simple version, it only takes five items to make this whole thing — and that's including the scissors. While the wheat can get on the counter, it just takes a quick wipe to get it up.
Easy Fall Garland
Take a look at this easy fall garland. It's an ideal craft to make to hang across doorways or over a fireplace mantle, and we think it really adds some cute, homespun Thanksgiving cheer. Definitely a great craft to do with kids because it's so simple!
Thanksgiving Kids Craft: Handprint Turkey Crown
Check out this Thanksgiving handprint turkey crown for a super-adorable way to crown a tiny prince or princess on Thanksgiving. It's a fun craft for kids to get to do together, as each of their crowns will look similar but won't be identical.
Painting on Leaves
Painting on leaves is an activity that creates a cool option for a tablescape: Once they're dry, just scatter the leaves across the table. Use paint in fall colors, or create contrast with a simple white. Alternatively, create little animals like owls with them.
