Christmas Light

Found this little gift at a recent Christmas Fair and thought how simple it is to make but is lovely  to give as a small gift to family and friends.

You will need:
A tea light holder
A tea light
A small clear bag
Ribbon
Card

Place the candle in the  candle holder and place in bottom of clear bag.
Print a small card with the verse and place it in the bag.
Tie at the top with some festive ribbon.

Christmas Light
HE CAME TO BRING US LOVE AND LIGHT
TO BRING US PEACE ON EARTH
SO LET YOUR CANDLE SHINE TONIGHT
AND SING WITH JOY AND MIRTH

You could also put a safety message on the back.

I hope that you are enjoying the ideas and if you have any that you would like to share then please let me know them. I would love to get your feedback so feel free to leave me some. Thanks Helen x

Letters to Santa

Have a Letter to Santa Booth
Print off some Christmas Theme Headed Paper
Envelopes with Santa's address on
A special Santa post box made out of a large cardboard box
Painted red

Make sure the Children leave there name and address for a reply.

If you are going to charge for this service then sell tickets in advance so it makes it more special on the day for the Children.

Find the Stars

What you will need:
Star shapes
Christmas pencils/pens
A prize

Make up some Star shapes in different sizes.
Make some type of marking on it so that players know it is one of your stars ( a symbol in the middle)
Place the stars around the building where the event is being held
Place them on stalls, On stall holders,near Santa's Grotto
Print off instructions sheets . (not how many keep them guessing) .

Sell the sheets at the start of the event with a free pencil
Have a posting point to return the answer sheets to at the end of the event
The person who has found all the Stars or the nearest number of stars is the winner of the prize
If two or more winners then pull out a winner.

The idea is that while looking for Stars it will attract them to look at everything in the event .

RUDOLPH'S NOSE

You will need:

A piece of hardboard about 1m x 1m 
A Screw in Hook
Paints 
Small Hoola Hoops

Paint a picture of Rudolph face on the piece of hardboard,paint a lovely bright red nose.
Screw the large hook to the centre of the nose

The player gets three hooks and win a prize if  they can hook one on to Rudolph's nose

Simple but fun to play .

Santa's Socks

You will Need:

12 felt Santa Stockings or Stripy Socks numbered 1 to 12 (if using long stripy socks it can be called Elves Socks)
A mixture of sweets,balloons,small toys like bubbles etc
Strong rope (washing line rope is fine)
Clothes pegs
2 dices

The Children love this simple and great game to play

Fix the line so it can be seen behind the stall
Put a handful of sweets or a toy in each of the socks
Have some extra items in sock number 12 as the super prize if double six is thrown
Peg the socks up on the washing line

The player pays to have a go at throwing the dices
The prize is what is the contents in the sock that matches the number on the dices
Refill the sock and hang it back up

Every time they get a prize and if you buy sweets in bulk from warehouses etc then you can make a good
amount of profit.

Christmas Tableware

A good stall to have at the event is a stall that caters for everyone not just large family's.

Buy Christmas Crackers 

Serviettes,paper plates,cups,table clothes

Christmas Cards

Wrapping paper

Baubles

Candles

Gift Bags

Money Wallets

Al of these come in packs that can be split and sold as individual items.

You may not make much profit from this stall but it may just help someone have a little bit extra on Christmas Day.

Santa's Chimneys

What you will need:

6 Cardboard boxes small and tall but not very wide shaped ones
3 Bean bags
Prizes

Paint or use paper to cover the boxes and mark them to look like brickwork and chimney pots. Keep the bottom and the tops of the boxes opened.
Mark a spot on the floor where the player has to stand.

Place the Chimneys on the floor.
The idea of the game is to get a bean bag into one of the chimney pots to win a prize

Children will love the fun of this.

Christmas Cd/Calendars/Christmas Cards

CHRISTMAS CD

This one is great for all organisations but especially good for a School.

Each Class Year sings a Christmas Carol/Song and records it and uploads it onto a Cd

Have all pupils involved in the event,playing there musical instruments,designing the cover.

Parents,Grandparents will love the idea of playing the School Cd with there child singing on it!

CHRISTMAS CARDS

There are lots of company's out there now who have ready made kits that include all you need to design your own Christmas cards. 

This idea can be used for any organisation whatever size. 

A great little fund raiser.

TEA TOWELS

Based on the same idea as the Cards the personal drawings designed by your group members are put onto a tea towel to be sold at your event.

CALENDERS

Why not have 12  photos from various events during the year and have them made into Calenders to sell or even one photo made into a sheet calendar. 

All of these fundraisers can be made and sold at your Christmas Fair or can be sold as individual fundraisers.

Santa's Journey

You will need;
Wall decoration of Santa and his Reindeer's
A large piece of paper
A Jar of Sweets or Chocolates or a Toy as a prize

Write down a number on a piece of paper on what you think the miles are that Santa travels on Christmas Eve
place it in a envelope.

Use a wall to put the wall decoration on and decorate it up to make the theme of Santa on his journey
.
The player then has a guess at how many miles they think Santa travels on Christmas Eve.
At the end of the event the one who picks the right answer or is the nearest wins the Prize.

It is all about the Fun!!

Snowball Throw

What you will need:

A Large drawing of a Snowman with 3 good size buttons drawn on

3 Foam balls

Double sided sticky velcro

Prizes

Place the Snowman on a wall and stick strips of velcro over the buttons.

On the foam balls place strips of velcro too.

The idea is to throw 3 balls and get them to stick to the buttons.

The prize can be for all three balls to stick or a smaller prize if just one or two stick.

Secret Present Stall

What you will need:

Lots and lots of little gifts 

Christmas wrapping paper

Gift tags,Ribbon,Lace.

Buy lots of small gifts some can be bought in packs and split. Buy for all ages. Buy presents that can be shared (Bars of chocolates for Mums and Dads) 

Before the event ask for donations of wrapping paper,ribbons.tags.

Make the stall in a corner and state NO ADULTS ALLOWED !!! 

The Children pay a £1 per gift and get to choose a present,and have it wrapped and tagged to take home and place under the tree .

Have a few helpers on hand to wrap and help with tagging.

A lovely Stall to just experience the excitement of the Children buying a gift for someone special x

That is why I always say be on the look out for bargain items all year round to use on stalls like this.

A Great Christmas Raffle

One of the best money makers at a Christmas Event has to be A Christmas Raffle.  It really is worth taking the time and effort for this and I always think that having the tickets printed up and getting them out there as early as possible is the best way.....Get them out there before all the other groups start selling there tickets!!!

If you are having a Christmas Fair in November/December start selling your tickets in October . A good Christmas Raffle should have something in it for everyone. If you are in a School/Church or organisation give everyone £2 worth of tickets to take home and sell among  family and friends.

A Hamper of food is a must........Everyone likes a little extra at Christmas

A Toy for a Boy

A Toy for a Girl

Buy the latest/popular Christmas Girl and Boy Toy for this year and the most expensive your budget can allow you to buy.  I know that once the shops run out of this item that is on there child's list then  people will buy a £1's worth of tickets if they think they have a chance to win it.

A Family ticket to the local Pantomime show.

Ask your local Theatre if they would make a donation of tickets or a discount if they don't.

A great prize for a Christmas Raffle and many people will buy a ticket if they think they have a chance of winning this.

A couple of bottles of alcohol

Whisky

Vodka

Wines

A box of Chocolates 

Get out there ask your local shops and supermarkets if they can donate or they can allow you a couple of hours to stand and sell tickets in there shop.

Remember to sell raffle tickets before the event you need to be registered with your local council (uk),check with them for details.

Remember to always thank the people who have donated prizes and also thank the public for buying. A notice with winning ticket numbers and the amount made is remembered the next year when you go to sell again.

Happy Selling,organised early enough the Raffle can make you a great deal of money x

Face ,Hair and More

A good way of making a little money is to rent out a table at your event. Most people will pay either a percentage of there takings or a fee to come to your event. The advantage of this is that you have no lay out costs.


Glitter tattoo Stalls

Nail Painting
Face Painting
Hair Chalk Stall






Hair Braiding





Handmade Christmas Card

Find the Kings

What you will need:

A pack of cards

Prizes

Place the cards down on the table face first.

The player gets to turn 3 cards over for a £1

A prize is given if they find any King or Kings

1 King...small prize

2 Kings...medium

3 Kings..biggger

4 Kings....Jackpot prize (having a good prize for this will encourage people to have a go )

The value of the prize can go up with the number of King's found

Remember to move around your cards when they are on the table so people do not see where the Kings are being put back OR shuffle the cards and place them down on the table after each go.

Have a go,and see how hard it is to get 4 Kings

Personalized Baubles

What you will need:

Cheap plain metallic baubles the one you find in the £1 shops 6 for £1 in all different colours, red,gold,pink,blue

Lots of different glitter pens

Small gift bags with some tissue paper in the bottom.

This stall is very popular and all ages love it .

You will need someone who is good or does creative writing

The idea is for them to pick a bauble and have a message written on with the glitter pen

The message can be there name,or love you Mum,or Best Gran,Have a Great Christmas Grandad

Baby Jays first Christmas 2012,anything they wish it to be.

We charged a £1 a bauble for this and it was so popular we ran out of them very early.

Scrooge or Humbug

What you will need:
A plastic bin
Ping pong balls
Prizes
Shredded paper or polystyrene shapes

This game is so easy to set up and the Children love to play it.
On the Ping Pong Balls you write either Scrooge or Humbug

Put all  the balls into the plastic bin with the shredded paper/shapes
A lid with a hole big enough to get a hand into is ideal or ask player to turn away when picking a ball

The idea is to charge 50p for the chance to pick a ball from the bin.
If it says Scrooge they loose
If it says Humbug they win a small prize ( bags of ready made up mix ups are ideal)

Dress up and decorate the stall to match the theme.

Drinks and Food

Serve Mugs of Tea,Coffees,Hot Chcolate and Home made Soup

Have Slices of Chrismas Cake, Mince Pies

You have to have a  Chocolate Fountain..........Children love it  especially if they do it themselves.
Charge £1 and let them pick a selection of items and a dip in the fountain.

Hot dogs..........so easy to do.

Buy Sweets in bulk form wholesalers and make up mix ups before the day 20p,50p and £1

much easier and this way the stall can be run with just one person.

If you want more then do Jacket Potatoes with different fillings.

Cakes and More

The most popular stalls always seem to be the home made baking stalls.

Get as many people as you can to prepare fresh homemade baking for the day.

Remember not everyone has large families so bake Christmas Cakes in different sizes. I have seen individual cakes being made using the empty small beans and spaghetti tins to bake them in,also the tins you buy sponge puddings in are a good size.  Decorate them and wrap them in clear cellophane,tied with ribbon for grandparents,parents or neighbours.

In advance make your own pickled onions,beetroot,jams..........these go down a treat at Christmas.

Mince Pies,Truffles,Christmas Shaped Biscuits.

Santa's Reindeer Dust

What you will need:
Porridge Oats
100 and 1000s cake decorations
Edible glitter (used for cake Decorating)
Small organza bags or circles of material
Ribbon

I like to use items that are not going to harm birds and wildlife that may come along and eat the dust.

Mix all the ingredients together in a bowl and spoon a couple of spoonfuls into your bags or material and then tie up with the ribbon.

Make a label and print a verse on to it.

The children then sprinkle the dust on the lawn or step on Christmas Eve to guide the reindeer's .

Costs little to make and is a real seller .

Verse
Be sure to take this magic food
and sprinkle on your lawn
On Christmas Santa's reindeer's travel far before the dawn
The smell of oats and glitter path,will guide them on there way
And you will wake up to Santa's gifts next morn on Christmas day.

Grotto

If you are having a Christmas Fair or Gala then the most important thing must be the Santa's Grotto.
Decorate a small cupboard or room walls with white sheets or tinfoil to get the effect.
A large high backed chair covered in a deep coloured velvet curtain or material for Santa to sit on
A mixture of different shaped empty boxes wrapped in different Christmas paper around Santa's chair
A small fibre optic Xmas tree
Lots of tinsel and little ornaments .
A reliable Santa who is CRB checked http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/agencies-public-bodies/crb/
A assistant dressed as a angel or elf   who is also CRB checked
A gift that will suit  most ages is a Selection Box.  A mixture of both white and brown chocolate selection boxes
A few extra small gifts for children who are not allowed sweets for medical reasons.

If you buy the selection boxes in bulk most Supermarkets will give you a discount if you take along a headed letter form your organisation stating that you are buying goods for the event.

Have a number system where a purchase of a cloak room ticket is made and they will be shouted in order of purchase. This stops a large queue from forming and allows people to look around the event and spend money instead of standing in a queue waiting for Santa.

Organise it so that the Reindeer Food is being sold at the entrance to the Grotto, you have more chance of people purchasing it then.

Another way to make money  is to take photos and have them printed there and then,you can purchase photo Christmas cards on most selling sites like Ebay,Amazon .