How to Make a Candy Cane Reindeer

Candy canes and reindeer can both get you into the Christmas spirit, but do they go together? They sure do! Making your very own candy cane reindeer is one of the easiest holiday crafts you can find. All you need are some candy canes, glue, pipe cleaners, and pompoms, and you’re all set to get into the Christmas spirit. Whether you want to decorate your home for a Christmas party or do an activity with your kids, everyone will love your candy cane reindeer.

[Edit]Steps

[Edit]Attaching the Antlers

  1. Wrap a brown pipe cleaner around a pencil. This is a simple trick to get twisty antlers. Take a brown pipe cleaner and twist it all the way around a pencil or pen, like a snake crawling up a pole. Then slide the pipe cleaner off and it will be all twisted, like a spring. This is perfect for a quirky antler design.[1]

    • Brown pipe cleaners will look more like a real reindeer’s antlers, but you can use any color you want. Green or red can fit the festive holiday mood.
    • If you want your reindeer to have straight antlers, you can skip this step. Straighter antlers give your reindeer a more realistic look.
  2. Line up the pipe cleaner with the top of the candy cane. Hold the candy cane upright so the curve is pointed up. Take your pipe-cleaner antler and center it just under the bend in the candy cane hook.[2] Since you'll be bending the pipe cleaner in half, make sure there’s an equal amount of pipe cleaner on each side. Otherwise, your antlers will be uneven.

  3. Twist the pipe cleaner around the top of the candy cane. Bend each side of the pipe cleaner up above the candy cane so they’re touching. Then twist the 2 ends around each other to keep them in place. Fold each end back down about halfway for 2 perfect antlers.[3]

    • You could use other angles for the antlers too. Pointing them up looks more like real antlers, while curving them down looks like your reindeer has big, silly ears.
    • If the pipe cleaner won’t stay in place, you can put a dab of hot glue on top of the candy cane to hold it down. Press the pipe cleaner onto the glue for a few seconds so it sticks.
  4. Fold the pipe cleaners in different directions to shape the antlers. You can keep your reindeer’s antlers straight or fold them into different shapes. Try bending the pipe cleaners up and down in a few different spots to give the antlers some shape, just like on a real reindeer.[4]

    • If you want your reindeer to look more realistic, bend the pipe cleaners up and mold them into a boxy shape.
    • This works whether or not you twisted the pipe cleaner at the start.
    • If you didn’t twist the antlers from the start, you still can! Just wrap them around your finger for crazy, twisted antlers.[5]

[Edit]Decorating the Reindeer’s Face

  1. Put a dab of hot glue on the tip of the candy cane’s short end. Hold the candy cane so the short end is facing you. Take a hot glue gun and squeeze a little bit of glue right at the tip, on the bottom of the hook. This is the spot where you’ll put the reindeer’s nose.[6]

    • Work quickly after you squeeze out the glue, because hot glue dries fast.
    • You could also use a different type of glue like white glue. This doesn't dry as fast, though, so make sure you hold each piece down so it sticks.
    • Be careful with the hot glue gun. Don’t touch the tip or you could get burned.
    • If you’re doing this activity with young kids, do this step for them. They could hurt themselves if they’re playing with a glue gun.
  2. Stick a pompom on the tip for the reindeer’s nose. You can use any color pompom you want to. Take one and press it gently onto the hot glue. Hold it for a few seconds so its sticks right.[7]

    • Small pompoms, just about as thick as the candy cane, will work fine for a nose. For a wackier design, try using a big pompom for a really pronounced nose.
    • Don’t press down too hard or you might break the candy cane.
    • You could also use a rhinestone for the nose, if you want it to be shiny like Rudolph’s. Some rhinestones have sticky backs, so you won’t need the hot glue. Colored beads also work.[8]
  3. Squeeze 2 dabs of hot glue halfway up the short end. Find the point about halfway up the short end of the candy cane, which is the perfect spot for the reindeer’s eyes. Squeeze 2 small dabs of hot glue at that spot right next to each other.[9]

    • You could put the eyes higher or lower if you want, it’s up to you.
  4. Put 2 googly eyes on the hot glue. Googly eyes are perfect to give your reindeer some personality. Press 1 onto each dab of glue and hold them down for a few seconds. Now your reindeer has eyes![10]

    • You can easily find googly eyes at any arts and craft store. They come in all different sizes. Try to get eyes slightly thicker than the candy cane for a cute, big-eyed look.
    • Some googly eyes have a stick back, so you won’t need hot glue for these.[11]
    • If you don’t have googly eyes, then you could also cut out 2 white paper circles and put dots in the middle with a marker for your reindeer’s eyes.
  5. Add a bowtie for more decoration. This is totally optional, but can be a perfect addition to your reindeer. Take ribbon of any color and wrap it around main part of the candy cane about halfway down. Then make a knot with the ribbon to give your reindeer a classy Christmas bowtie.[12]

    • You can also use 2 different ribbons in the knot to give it more of a Christmas feeling.
    • If you don't have ribbon, then there are tons of other things you could use. String, shoelaces, or another pipe cleaner will all work.

[Edit]Displaying Your Candy Canes

  1. Hang the reindeer from your Christmas tree if you want an ornament. Who doesn’t love a homemade Christmas ornament? You can take your candy cane reindeer and loop them around the branches on your tree for a festive Christmas decoration.[13]

    • If you have a Christmas party, you can let your guests go and take candy canes off the tree for a snack.
  2. Tape the reindeer to the top of a gift for an extra treat. You’ve heard of putting a bow on a gift, but a candy cane is a nice, unique idea. After you wrap a present, try taping one of your reindeer down for an extra treat.[14]

  3. Put a bunch of reindeer into a jar for an easy decoration. If you make a group of reindeer, display them together for an easy, decorative candy jar. Take a glass jar and fill it with your candy cane reindeer so they’re all peeking over the side.[15]

    • You can leave the jar by your door or living area so guests can help themselves to a candy cane around the holidays.

[Edit]Video

[Edit]Things You’ll Need

  • Candy canes
  • Pipe cleaners
  • Googly eyes
  • Hot glue gun
  • Pompoms or rhinestones

[Edit]Tips

  • You can use pipe cleaners, ribbons, and pompoms of all different colors if you make more than one reindeer so each one has a unique look.
  • You can also use candy canes with different colors too.

[Edit]Related wikiHows

[Edit]References

  1. ↑ https://mommymoment.ca/candy-cane-reindeer-craft/#_a5y_p=4727037
  2. ↑ https://mommymoment.ca/candy-cane-reindeer-craft/#_a5y_p=4727037
  3. ↑ https://youtu.be/SawR6brZPOo?t=52
  4. ↑ https://youtu.be/SawR6brZPOo?t=76
  5. ↑ https://onelittleproject.com/candy-cane-reindeer/
  6. ↑ https://mommymoment.ca/candy-cane-reindeer-craft/#_a5y_p=4727037
  7. ↑ https://onelittleproject.com/candy-cane-reindeer/
  8. ↑ https://youtu.be/SawR6brZPOo?t=118
  9. ↑ https://youtu.be/SawR6brZPOo?t=97
  10. ↑ https://youtu.be/SawR6brZPOo?t=103
  11. ↑ https://youtu.be/5g3A2wCDPfo?t=76
  12. ↑ https://onelittleproject.com/candy-cane-reindeer/
  13. ↑ https://youtu.be/SawR6brZPOo?t=145
  14. ↑ https://youtu.be/SawR6brZPOo?t=152
  15. ↑ https://mommymoment.ca/candy-cane-reindeer-craft/#_a5y_p=4727037

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