Seasonal Note:
This Christmas craft idea is shared as inspiration and can be enjoyed by families every festive season.
Before you worry — no, I haven’t started on the mulled wine yet, and no, I didn’t forget the spellchecker. I really do mean Light Bulbles… because that’s what you get when you cross a light bulb with a bauble. Makes sense, right?
A few days ago, we decided to get stuck into some festive crafting, and this idea turned out to be one of those happy accidents that becomes a proper family keepsake. The challenge was simple: take old, plain light bulbs and turn them into Christmas decorations — and honestly, I was sold the moment paint and mess were involved.
Turning light bulbs into memories
Supply List:
- Old light bulbs
- Acrylic paint
- Porcelain or glass pens
- Ribbon or string
Being the sentimental softy that I am, I wanted to make our Light Bulbles personal — and by personal, I mean child-centred. So I popped out to grab a tube of white acrylic paint and then set about painting the children’s hands (which they found absolutely hilarious, mostly because they’re so ticklish).
Once their hands were covered in paint, they squeezed the light bulbs tightly, leaving behind the most perfect little white handprints. When the paint dried, I used porcelain and glass pens, along with a black marker, to turn those handprints into tiny snowman families complete with colourful hats and cheerful expressions.
Because their hands only covered one side of the bulb (we are, thankfully, still a five-fingers-per-hand household), the back looked a little bare. So we added Christmas trees behind the snowmen, creating a little winter scene that can be seen through the glass.
Not perfect — and that’s the point
I attempted to make hanging loops using crafting wire… and honestly, it wasn’t my finest moment. They worked, but they weren’t pretty. Ribbon would definitely be a better option, and that’s something I’d change if we did it again.
But that’s part of the joy of crafting with children — it doesn’t have to be perfect. It just has to be theirs.
When one craft leads to another
The children loved this so much that we ended up decorating some plain baubles too. Eventually, everything was displayed together on a cream stand we’ve had for years, creating a bright, cheerful Christmas table decoration made entirely by little hands.
Jelly Bean’s snowmen are especially teeny tiny, which only makes them more precious.
I wrote each child’s name and the year on the underside of their Light Bulbles, so we can bring them out every Christmas and remember exactly how small they were when they made them.
And that, really, is the magic of Christmas crafting — it’s not about decorations that match the sofa. It’s about memories you can unwrap year after year.