Thanks to two detailed printables, creating a magical letter from Santa is absolutely within reach. This tutorial includes everything you need to make a cherished keepsake for your loved ones, plus a bonus calligraphy medallion worksheet for when you want a little holiday-themed calligraphy practice.
One of my favorite childhood Christmas traditions was receiving a letter from Santa each year. On Christmas morning, a note would always be waiting for me, full of praise and holiday magic. These letters have become treasured souvenirs from my younger years that act as windows into seasons of my childhood. Now, as a parent, I’m excited to start the tradition again with my own children. Today, I’ll show you how to create a magical letter from Santa that will become a treasured keepsake for years to come.
To create this letter, you’ll need the following supplies:
First, lay your drawing paper over the Letter from Santa Template. Then, place both pages on an illuminated light pad. Use your red and green inks plus your gold watercolor to trace over the strokes. (To learn how to use gold watercolor with a pointed pen, see this tutorial.)
Remember to rotate the pages as needed to give yourself the best writing angle. Keep in mind, too, that slow and steady is always the best approach when it comes to lots of flourishes. There’s no need to rush!
Once you finish up that last stroke, your letterhead is complete!
Just a quick note that before I flourished the green, gold, and red letterhead, I tried it making it with iron gall ink. The result wasn’t quite as festive and didn’t feel like a good fit for my two young kids (ages six and almost three). But, I think it could be really nice for older kids or adults:
Now, it’s time to write your letter! First, it’s a good idea to type it out as a draft. Try to keep it fairly short; you don’t want to run out of space while writing! Two medium-sized paragraphs or three short paragraphs is a good idea. Here’s the draft that I came up with for my kids:
Dearest Pia and Remy,
I overheard my elves chatting as they finished up their work in the toy shop last night. They were saying that the two of you had a wonderful year, and I very much agree!
Remy, throughout the year, I noticed you were very kind to your friends and classmates. You were also very patient with your sister! We at the North Pole also feel so proud of all your hard work at school.
Pia, we’ve all enjoyed watching you sing and dance this year. You have so much spunk and imagination, much like me.
You are both so loved! The elves and I hope you have a festive and fun day.
Best, Santa Claus
Once you’re happy with your draft, place your letter over the Handwriting Guidelines Template. Put both the template and the letter on a light pad so the template shines up through the paper. Then, try your best to use a vintage-flavored cursive handwriting style to write “Santa’s” words. The video below will give you some tips:
Once you finish writing the letter, you absolutely can consider this project done! My mom always just placed the letter by itself on a table by the Christmas tree, and I never missed the absence of an envelope. However, if you want to go that extra mile, you can flourish an envelope from St. Nick. The letter will fold nicely in any A7 envelope; or you can slide it whole into a C5 envelope, which is what I am using this year.
If possible, seal the envelope with a wax seal. Then, on Christmas Eve, after the littles have gone to bed, place the letter near the Christmas tree. They’ll be absolutely delighted to see that Santa left them a little something extra and noticed their good behavior!
Today’s letter from Santa project was designed for people who want to get this project comfortably created in time for Christmas. Given the timeline, the print and trace route is the way to go! That said, if you are looking for some calligraphy practice that’s both celebratory and calming, you can make the Santa Claus calligraphy medallion on its own.
To help you do that, I put together a three-page worksheet that walks you through every step of the creation process. After reading the instructions, you’ll have the opportunity to practice tracing two medallions. Then, you can reference a comparison image within a medallion template to make your own!
This worksheet is just a little TPK Premium member perk. It’s here for if you want some relaxing calligraphy practice to help you recenter during the “holidaze”! Remember to have fun with it, and don’t hesitate to swap out Santa Claus’ initials for your own or those of a loved one.
I hope this tutorial inspires you to bring a little extra magic to the holidays with a personalized letter from Santa. It’s such a simple way to make recipients (especially children) feel noticed and special—and the act of creating it can be just as rewarding. Wishing you a festive, creative holiday season filled with joyful memories!
Warmly,
*This post contains affiliate links to Amazon
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