Elf on the Shelf ideas
87 Easy Elf on the Shelf Ideas for Irish Homes (Free, No Sign-Up)
Most elf lists are written for a different kitchen. Ours is for an Irish one: an elf in the hot press with the warm towels, sailing in a runner, minding the biscuit tin. Pick the time you have, follow the 24-night plan and print the elf's letters: free, no sign-up.
Tonight's mischief
How much time have you got?
About 2 minutes · no mess · You'll need: Towels, a note
Cosy in the hot press
Tuck the elf in among the warm towels in the hot press with the door open a crack and a note: "Best seat in the house. Don't tell Mammy."
The 24-night plan
The elf arrives on Tuesday 1 December and leaves on Thursday 24. Busy school nights get two-minute ideas; the bigger projects land on the weekends (5 and 6, 12 and 13, 19 and 20 December). Don't like one? Remake the plan, or print the notebook and tick them off as you go.
Tue 1 December · 2 min
Arrived in the night
The elf is asleep on the bedside table with a sock for a nightcap, and the arrival letter under the pillow.
Wed 2 December · 2 min
Hide and seek
Put the elf somewhere odd but findable (in a runner, behind the curtain, in the fruit bowl) with a note: "Bet you can't find me before the school run!"
Thu 3 December · 2 min
Channel hopping
The elf sits in front of the switched-off telly cradling the remote. A note: "Looking for the Christmas film."
Fri 4 December · 2 min
Phoning the North Pole
The elf holds a banana to his ear like a phone, with a note: "Hello Santa? Grand, all grand here."
Sat 5 December · Weekend
The elf show
Cushions for a stage, the elf as presenter and a poster. Your kids put on a small Christmas show for the family.
Sun 6 December · Weekend
A half-built gingerbread house
Biscuits, icing and sweets on the table with a house half built. "I haven't finished. Will you help me?"
Mon 7 December · 2 min
Cosy in the hot press
Tuck the elf in among the warm towels in the hot press with the door open a crack and a note: "Best seat in the house. Don't tell Mammy."
Tue 8 December · 2 min
A game of noughts and crosses
A grid on a scrap of paper, one cross already played by the elf and a pencil waiting for your child.
Wed 9 December · 2 min
Snow angel in flour
Dust a little flour on a dark tray, lay the elf in it with arms and legs spread, then lift him out. "Snow! Finally."
Thu 10 December · 2 min
North Pole breakfast
A drop of green food colouring in the milk and a note: "Elf breakfast special!"
Fri 11 December · 2 min
Guarding the school bag
The elf sits against the school bag with a note tucked in the strap: "Have a great day! I'm minding the house."
Sat 12 December · Weekend
Hot chocolate bar
A tray with mugs, marshmallows, sprinkles and a candy cane or two, set up by the elf. A note: "Open all evening. Wellies at the door."
Sun 13 December · Weekend
Cards for granny and grandad
Blank cards, felt tips and envelopes on the table. The elf suggests writing to granny, grandad and the neighbours.
Mon 14 December · 2 min
A meeting of the soft toys
Sit the soft toys in a circle round the elf as if he is giving a speech. A note: "AGENDA: Be good until Christmas."
Tue 15 December · 2 min
Ready for the big telly night
Line up a blanket, a bowl of popcorn and the elf on the sofa as if he's saving the best seat for the Late Late Toy Show. "Who's making the hot chocolate?"
Wed 16 December · 2 min
Borrowed Mammy's slippers
The elf has climbed into a pair of grown-up slippers and sits at the door. "They fit grand."
Thu 17 December · 2 min
Writing his report
The elf sits at a tiny desk with paper and pencil: "Writing my report for Santa. Want to add your letter?"
Fri 18 December · 2 min
Warming up on the radiator
Sit the elf on a warm radiator cover or beside it with a tea towel for a blanket (never directly on a hot surface).
Sat 19 December · Weekend
Picnic on the sitting room floor
A rug on the floor, little sandwiches, fruit and juice, and the elf in the middle with a basket. Rain outside, picnic inside.
Sun 20 December · Weekend
Christmas film evening
Curtains drawn, blankets, a bowl of popcorn, a chosen film and hand-made tickets from the elf for a home cinema night.
Mon 21 December · 2 min
Bedtime story
A picture book open on the sofa with the elf leaning on it and a tiny torch pointing at the page.
Tue 22 December · 2 min
Gatecrashing the family photo
Tuck the elf into the corner of a framed photo, as if he's always been part of the family.
Wed 23 December · 2 min
Stuck in a jumper
Slip the elf into the sleeve of a big woolly jumper so only his head pokes out. "Rain again? I'm staying put."
Thu 24 December · 10 min
Off on the sleigh
The elf sits in a little paper sleigh or a box with a bag of sweets and his goodbye letter.
Printable elf letters
Arrival, goodbye, "I didn't move", "you touched me" and the "No elves allowed" poster. Add your child's name and the elf's name: free, no sign-up.
NORTH POLE · ELF POST
I'm here!
Hello! It's me, your elf! Santa has sent me all the way from the North Pole to spend December at your house. Every night, while everyone is asleep, I will get up to a bit of mischief, and every morning you will have to find out what I have done. I go back to the North Pole with Santa on the evening of the 24th. Until then, let's have fun (and I'll take a cup of tea, if you're making one)!
Your elf
The 24-night notebook
The plan above on one A4 sheet, with the things you need. Stick it inside a press door, out of little eyes' reach.
My elf's 24 nights
DECEMBER 2026 · TICK OFF EACH NIGHT
- Tue 1Arrived in the night
The arrival letter - Wed 2Hide and seek
Nothing - Thu 3Channel hopping
The remote - Fri 4Phoning the North Pole
A banana - Sat 5The elf show
Cushions, a poster - Sun 6A half-built gingerbread house
Biscuits, icing, sweets - Mon 7Cosy in the hot press
Towels, a note - Tue 8A game of noughts and crosses
Paper, pencil - Wed 9Snow angel in flour
Flour, a tray - Thu 10North Pole breakfast
Food colouring - Fri 11Guarding the school bag
A note - Sat 12Hot chocolate bar
Mugs, marshmallows, sprinkles - Sun 13Cards for granny and grandad
Cards, felt tips, envelopes - Mon 14A meeting of the soft toys
Soft toys, a sticky note - Tue 15Ready for the big telly night
A blanket, a bowl - Wed 16Borrowed Mammy's slippers
Slippers - Thu 17Writing his report
Paper, pencil - Fri 18Warming up on the radiator
A tea towel - Sat 19Picnic on the sitting room floor
A rug, a picnic - Sun 20Christmas film evening
Popcorn, paper tickets - Mon 21Bedtime story
A book - Tue 22Gatecrashing the family photo
Nothing - Wed 23Stuck in a jumper
A jumper - Thu 24Off on the sleigh
A box, the goodbye letter
88 elf names
Tap a name to put it in the letters.
The elf didn't move: ready-made excuses
Everyone forgets, especially around the 15th. Here is what to say at breakfast, without fibbing your way into a corner: one line, then on with the day.
- You forgot to move him
- Elves only move when the whole house is asleep. Somebody stayed up very late last night!
- He hasn't moved for two nights
- Santa asked him to keep a close eye on something very important in this room.
- A child is nervous of the elf
- Put a "No elves allowed" poster on their door. Elves always respect the sign (printable above).
- You fancy a quiet night
- Elf day off! He's got his feet up with a cup of tea and will be back with some mischief tomorrow.
- Yesterday's trick upset someone
- A sorry note from the elf and something gentle the same evening. Elves tease, but they never mean to upset.
- A child touched the elf
- He's lost a little magic. A night's rest, a word with Santa and it comes back. The "You touched me" note is printable above.
- You're staying at granny's
- The elf travels with Santa's magic: he'll turn up wherever you're sleeping, or he's stayed home to mind the tree.
- A child asks why their friend's elf does more
- Every elf does it his own way. Some are tricksters, some are watchers. Yours takes his time.
- It's lashing rain and the elf got stuck
- Even elves get held up by the weather. He'll make up for it tomorrow.
- No time on a busy night
- He had a nap when he got in. Tomorrow there's a double dose: a quick one for tonight, a bigger one for the weekend.
Running the elf in an Irish home
The best elf ideas use what is already in your house, and an Irish house has plenty: the hot press full of warm towels, the press beside the cooker, the line of runners and wellies at the back door, the biscuit tin and the teapot. An elf who has gone looking for the warmest spot in a wet December, or who is caught with a biscuit, is funnier than any elaborate setup and takes two minutes.
Winter in Ireland is damp, so many families spend December afternoons indoors. That suits the elf. Use wet weekends for the bigger ideas: a blanket fort, a sitting-room picnic, a hot chocolate bar or a home cinema evening. On busy school nights, keep it to a two-minute scene and move on.
Plenty of homes put a candle in the window at Christmas, and the elf can take part: sit him beside it on the night he arrives, "keeping watch for Santa". It is a gentle way to make the elf part of what your family already does. If your family has its own customs, such as Wren Day on 26 December, the elf can nod to those too, in your own words.
The school concert, the Toy Show night in front of the telly and the long run-up to the holidays are where an elf earns his keep: a note on the school bag, a bowl of popcorn on the sofa, a kind mission for the week. Keep the tone warm rather than scary, and let the elf cheer the children on rather than report on them.
If you are travelling to granny's or the cousins' house, bring the elf in the bag and say he has special permission to travel. On the 24th, the goodbye letter works just as well in someone else's kitchen as at home.
Elf on the Shelf questions
- What can I make my Elf on the Shelf do?
- The best ideas take two minutes: the elf in the hot press, sailing in a runner, in the cereal box or guarding the biscuit tin. Save the bigger scenes for the weekend. The tool above sorts ideas by the time you have and the mess they make.
- What is the best idea for an Elf on the Shelf?
- The one you will actually do on a tired night. A simple scene, such as the elf drinking tea with the soft toys or stuck to the fridge, gets just as many giggles as a big setup. Keep the big ideas for the weekend.
- What are the rules of the Elf on the Shelf?
- The usual rules: the elf arrives in early December, is in a new spot every morning, and flies back to the North Pole on the 24th. The big one is that kids look but don't touch, because the elf loses his magic. You can make your own rules, and the printable "you touched me" note is there for when someone slips.
- What are some easy Elf on the Shelf ideas for beginners?
- Start with the no-supplies ideas: a hide and seek spot, a banana phone, a family photo gatecrash, the cereal box dive. Nothing to buy and nothing to clean up. Do those on busy school nights and save the messier ideas for the weekend.
- What are some good names for an elf?
- Kids often like a sweet name (Nutmeg, Biscuit, Barmbrack) or an Irish one (Shamrock, Clover, Finn). The names section on this page has a list you can tap to put straight into the letters. Let your child choose: they will be more attached to their elf.
- What should the goodbye letter say?
- Keep it short and warm: thank the kids for a fun December, say the elf is flying back to the North Pole with Santa on the 24th, and ask them to stay kind until next year. The goodbye letter above is free to print, with your child's name and the elf's name added.
- Why are some parents against Elf on the Shelf?
- Some parents find the nightly job tiring, and some dislike the idea of an elf who watches the kids and reports on them. Both are fair. A gentler way is a kindness elf: no spying, just small surprises and a daily kind mission such as "say something nice to everyone before dinner". Do as much or as little as suits your family.
- What if I forget to move the elf?
- Everyone does. Say that elves only move when the whole house is asleep, or print the "I didn't move" note. The ready-made excuses are just above.