10 Cute Christmas Button Crafts

A handful of buttons can become a little angel, a Christmas tree, or even a snowman with a very important hat. How cute is that? These Christmas button crafts are a fun way to turn a simple supply into ornaments, handmade cards, and little decorations for your home.

What makes these ideas especially fun is how much room they leave for playing around. Mix colors, use mismatched buttons, or let the kids choose their own combinations. A pink Christmas tree? Absolutely.

The photos below offer inspiration for your own projects. You can simplify the designs to suit the supplies you have and the children crafting alongside you.

Before You Start

Sort your buttons into shallow trays so everyone can find the colors and sizes they want. For paper projects, choose a craft glue suitable for the materials; an adult can handle any hot glue, needles, or wire needed for the more involved ornaments. Buttons and beads are small parts, so these projects are best for children who no longer put things in their mouths, with adult supervision.

Christmas Button Craft Ideas

1. Button Angels

Stack buttons from large to small to create an angel’s dress, then add a bead head and a ribbon bow for wings. White and cream buttons give your angel a traditional look, but soft pink or pale blue would be sweet, too. Make a few for the tree, or tie one onto a wrapped gift as a little keepsake.

Photo by notches_sewing

2. Button Snowman Art

Turn a simple snowman outline into a button picture by filling the body with white buttons and adding a hat, face, and scarf. For a version kids can tackle more easily, start with three drawn circles on sturdy cardstock and let them arrange the buttons before gluing. Each child can choose a different scarf color and give their snowman a name—because a snowman this cute deserves one.

Photo by buttoncanvas_pixelknot

3. Button-Covered Christmas Baubles

Give a plain, sturdy ornament a new look by covering it with buttons in different sizes. Red, green, and white are an easy Christmas combination, while all-white buttons with a pretty ribbon would work beautifully on a softer, neutral tree. Let kids plan the colors and placement, with an adult helping attach the buttons securely to the curved surface.

Photo by smirchs_

4. Button Bauble Christmas Cards

Make a Christmas card with a round button-filled bauble on the front, then add a little paper ornament cap and a handwritten greeting. You could glue the buttons onto a drawn circle or have an adult prepare a circular window with a backing for kids to decorate. This is a fun option when everyone wants to make something different: one bauble can be red, another rainbow, and another full of sparkly buttons.

Photo by studio_rosie

5. Snowy Button Tree Pictures

Draw or paint a tree trunk with spreading branches, then use white buttons to create a snowy treetop. A few pale blue buttons or paper snowflakes can add variety, but you don’t need lots of extras for the idea to work. Make it on a small canvas or sturdy card and display it through Christmas and into the winter months.

Photo by buttonsgalore

6. Stacked Button Christmas Tree Ornaments

Arrange buttons from widest to narrowest to form a tiny Christmas tree, with a few smaller buttons underneath for the trunk. Green buttons make the shape instantly recognizable, and a bead or star at the top gives it a finished look. Kids can sort and stack their tree designs while an adult helps thread and secure them.

Photo by clay.and.color

7. Colorful Button Trees For Kids

With the use of a glue gun, some popsicle sticks and buttons you can make an afternoon craft with the kids that can be used to decorate the tree.

Photo by tsitiridouanthoula

8. Button Christmas Tree Cards

Arrange buttons in a triangle on the front of a blank card, then add a small paper trunk and a ribbon bow or star. Lightly drawing the triangle first gives kids a guide without making every button placement feel like a puzzle. Try green buttons for a traditional tree, or use cream, gray, and brown for a quieter look on kraft cardstock.

Photo by einzigartig_kreatives

9. Button Christmas Tree Art

Create a larger Christmas tree picture by filling a tree outline with green buttons, then decorating it with colorful little accents. Unlike the smaller card project, this gives you room to layer buttons and add details—a few beads or sequins can become the tree’s ornaments. For a family project, let everyone decorate a section, then display the finished piece on a shelf or mantel.

Photo by juliasbuttonart

10. Vintage Button Tree Ornaments

Similar to the earlier idea but with a vintage touch! Give stacked button trees a collected look with cream, brown, metallic, and mismatched older buttons. Decorative buttons can become the focal point, so set those aside first and build each little tree around them. Finish with a hanging cord and, if you like, a small charm for an ornament that shows off the character of your button collection.

Photo by treasurebooks03

Make Them Your Own

Before gluing or threading anything, let everyone lay out their designs and move the buttons around. It’s much easier to change a scarf color or swap a tree topper at that stage! And if you’re making these with kids, add their names and the year to the back of the cards or pictures—you’ll be glad you did when you pull them out next Christmas.

Sharing is caring!