3 easy ideas for DIY Hanukkah decorations

Save money on decorations while enjoying a beautiful Hanukkah by making use of everyday items laying around you home.

Candles are the centre of Hanukkah decorations, and you need nine of them — eight as Hanukkah candles, and one as the shamus candle.

There are plenty of ways to make your own menorah. Use a small branch, painted or left as-is. Simply attach candle clips or drill holes for the candles. Another idea is to take a piece of wood about 20 x 5 cm and 10 large stainless steel nuts. Attach the nuts with wood or epoxy glue onto the wood in a line, with eight single nuts and a stack of two in the centre of the row. Decorate with glitter or paint, and fit the candles into the nut holes.

Instead of using real candles, you can also draw a picture of a chanukkiah on a card and decorate it with foil and scraps of coloured paper or material. You can also try drawing or painting candles on the sides of tall, narrow cardboard boxes. Make eight of them the same size, and one a bit taller than the rest.

Purchase some inexpensive dreidels and give them some sparkle by coating them in clear-drying wood glue and glitter. Display the dreidels in a large glass jar or bowl or hang them bunting-style in a window.

Cut out dreidel shapes from a card or construction paper and let your kids decorate them with crayons, markers, glue and glitter, pieces of ribbon or stickers. Hang up the cards or use them as a decoration on the dinner table.

Fabric dreidels from scraps of material or felt are simple to make. Give them some body by sewing two pieces of dreidel-shaped material together and stuffing with cotton wool. Attach thread or ribbon to the handle section to hang them.

Make a garland with chocolate gelt or cardboard circles covered in foil by threading metallic or nylon thread through individual pieces of gelt. Alternatively, glue your gelt to a length of ribbon. Hang the garland on your mantelpiece, above a door or in a window.

Another idea is to bake a batch of your favourite cookies and when they're almost done, remove them from the oven. Quickly place an unwrapped chocolate gelt coin on the top of each cookie and gently press down. Return the cookies to the oven for another two to three minutes, then remove and allow to cool.

Hanukkah is a joyous celebration you can add a pleasant personal touch to by making your own decorations.