DIY Nutcracker Painted Rock Puzzles
Rocks are such a great natural crafting materials you can paint them and even turn them into Story Stones. For today’s Storybook Advent idea we have another great Nutcracker Craft for Kids to make their own set of Nutcracker Painted Rocks – but instead of creating some story stones we are going to make them into a DIY puzzle.
Every year my family enjoys various activities as we countdown to Christmas . Reading books and Crafting are one of our favorite activities . Today, we’re sharing with you a Nutcracker painting rocks activity that kids can make after reading classic storybook The Nutcracker .
DIY Nutcracker Painted Rocks Puzzle Materials Needed
We have included affiliate links to some of the products and resources as an associate we may earn from qualifying purchases.
- Rocks – These are a our favourite type of rocks to use
- White coloured pencil – available from here we love these because they are easy to remove as well.
- Acrylic Paints – this set is great for Kids and Your Crafts
- Brushes – we have this pack that gives us lots of different options
All of our crafting equipment is available in our Amazon Store – UK and USA
How to make your DIY Nutcracker Puzzle Rocks
Before you start, make sure you pick the right rocks. Flats surfaced rocks are easy to work with. The set that we recommend above in the materials list are ideal for this.
Check out our Nativity Story Telling Rocks for even more rock ideas for Christmas Crafts and Story Telling
We will be using 5 rocks here as we divided the nutcracker into four parts :
Hat, Face ,Body and Legs (2 rocks )
First use a white color pencil to draw the face, hat, shirt and boots outlines on the rocks.
You could draw a crown hat or a regular black hat. You can draw round buttons or striped ones. Let your imagination run wild.
Next step in this activity is to Paint the rocks with acrylics.
Kids can paint themselves following the white outlines that you have drawn with the pencils. The ones we recommend will rub off easily with your finger afterwards do ideal for drawing outlines for kids to colour in on rocks.
My 8-year-old was happy to see the outlines drawn for him to follow. He wanted the Nutcracker’s shirt Red because it’s his favourite colour.
We used two coats of paint especially for lighter colours like white and flesh but don’t forget to let them dry thoroughly before adding another coat of paint.
The Nutcracker Rocks are ready to play and explore!
Make Memories every day as you countdown to Christmas
24 Simple and easy activities to do at home with your kids this Christmas.
Make it a mix and match Nutcracker dress-up puzzle
Arranging the Nutcracker rocks from head to toe can be fun for younger kids like solving a puzzle . Kids will love changing hats for the nutcracker , We made an interchangeable hat for the Nutcracker by painting on both sides of the rock, one side is a crown-like hat and the other is a black hat . You can try the same with clothes and boots too . This is a great Extension to the activity especially if you have younger kids .
Handmade Gifts are special and precious . So , If you plan to make and gift a set of nutcracker puzzle rocks then a little jute bag is perfect to hold the beautiful handmade rocks .
Enjoy all the story advent ideas we have for you and have a great holiday season !
More Nutcracker-Inspired Crafts and Activities for Kids
Aparna Nagamalla from The Weaving Ideas
Aparna Nagamalla blogs at The Weaving Ideas where she shares craft activities to keep her son busy which also includes educating about Indian Festivals and traditions through play.
She is a private Art teacher living in Pennsylvania who enjoys spending time with family and believes that "A family that plays together, stays together!"