Quick Elf On The Shelf Ideas For An Easy Life (2024)

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Super easy and quick Elf on the Shelf ideas. All these ideas can be completed in under 5 minutes, making the Elf on the Shelf’s stay a breeze.

No mess, no fuss, but a funny and mischievous Elf that the kids will love. A first time Elf doesn’t have to be daunting and these quick ideas are perfect for the whole family.

Related:

• The Best Easy Elf On The Shelf Ideas For Busy Families
• 10 Free Elf On The Shelf Printables You Wont Want To Miss

Elf on the Shelf is a great family tradition that has been sweeping the homes across the world. A little Elf from the North Pole visits every year bringing, fun, laughter and sometimes cheekiness to your home.

And it’s that time of year again.

This will be the third year that our Elf Cookie has visited us. My daughter literally said the other day that she hoped Cookie would return again and she couldn’t wait to see him. I better not forget to get him out!

There is a big BUT that comes with Elf on the Shelf though.

Families are busy enough at the best of times, but at Christmas things just get super crazy busy. That’s why I focus on quick Elf on the Shelf ideas that can literally be put together in under 5 minutes.

No fuss, simple, quick and EASY. Sounds good right?

If this is the first time that you have every done Elf on the Shelf you might have a lot of questions. Questions such as:

• How does Elf on the Shelf work?
• How do you introduce Elf on the Shelf?
• When does Elf on the Shelf come?
• How can I undertake quick Elf on the Shelf ideas?

It’s quite normal to have a lot of questions.

The important thing to remember is not to overthink this. It’s a fun game to play with the kids and most of the “rules” are really ones you make up for yourself.

Let’s take a look at some of these questions.

How Does Elf on The Shelf Work?

Elf on the Shelf can be as good, naughty, mischievous, funny, tidy or messy as you want him to be.

YOU control your Elf and YOU decide how you want him to behave.

It is still possible to have a lot of funny Elf on the Shelf ideas without having to introduce all the naughty ideas you see on Pinterest.

Our Elf is NOT naughty.

Our Elf is funny and mischievous but NEVER naughty.

For instance our Elf is not going to tip all the cereal all over the floor, empty a tube of toothpaste all over the bathroom or draw on the mirror with my lipstick.

There are a lot of funny Elf on the Shelf ideas without getting into the realm of naughty.

So, how does Elf on the Shelf work? You basically move him into a new position every night and you decide what that position will be.

Simple.

Those funny Elf on the Shelf ideas will be coming shortly so keep reading!

How Do You Introduce Elf on The Shelf?

Our Elf arrives on the first of December, but again the date you choose is completely up to you.

An easy way for him to arrive is to bring a letter explaining his arrival.

I have a FREE arrival letter that you can print and use to make the arrival of your Elf easy. Simply pop the Elf in a location that is very obvious and place the letter on his lap.

Super simple.

What are the Quick Elf on The Shelf Ideas?

This is what you have really been waiting for. The super easy and quick Elf on the Shelf ideas.

I guarantee you, that these ideas take zero effort to think about and you can create them in under 5 minutes before popping into bed.

You won’t need to undertake any Pinterest crafting.

You won’t need to make a mess of your house that ultimately you will just have to clear up the next day.

You won’t have to spend your evening wondering what the next amazing adventure your Elf will need to undertake to impress the kids.

But you WILL still have very happy children in the morning with very little effort.

Elf on the Shelf plays with Christmas decorations

At Christmas time we always have extra decorations around the home that are not here during the year. Make the most of these!

Your little Elf can have a great time hugging, sitting on and climbing various Christmas decorations.

These are the quick Elf on the Shelf ideas that I used last year with our Christmas decorations.

We had Cookie climb into a bauble tree,

Climb onto Santa’s head,

and ride a reindeer.

Our Elf read Christmas cards,

climbed into a mini stocking,

ate the chocolates on the Christmas tree,

climbed into a Santa sack,

and even took the place of the Angel on the top of the tree.

And of course, how could he resist but to hold baby Jesus.

Take a look around at your Christmas decorations.

What could your Elf sit on, hug or crawl inside?

The Elf on the Shelf Loves To Eat

Super quick Elf on the Shelf ideas can easily involve food.

Simply leave some remnants of what you have been eating that night with your little Elf and wham, job done for the night.

Our little Elf had a drink of Whiskey,

Enjoyed snacking on some chocolates,

and helped himself to some cookies and milk.

Quick Elf on the Shelf Ideas Using Your Everyday Furniture

Don’t think that you need lots of fancy ideas to have fun with your Elf. By simply placing him somewhere on something you see everyday can cause a lot of laughs.

The kids even then remind you during the year, “do you remember when Cookie…..”. You get the drift.

So Cookie got himself stuck in the blinds,

did a trapeze act from the light fitting,

and sat in a couple of our plants.

He used our son’s toothbrush to clean his teeth. (But this was totally mess free, without those awful toothpaste scenes you see on Pinterest).

Utilize Items From the Kids Bedrooms

The kids will find it very exciting when the Elf uses items from their bedroom.

Remember, the simple things are just as good, if not better sometimes.

Cookie hung from a star above our daughter’s bedroom door. This was left over from her birthday decorations and it took her ages to find him. Once she did find him, she thought it was hilarious.

The elf sat on some bookends,

and rode a tractor,

Elf on The Shelf Departure Letter

Our Elf leaves our home on 24th December and returns to the North Pole. He leaves the kids a little note and a chocolate letting them know how much fun he has had.

This is an easy way to say goodbye and confirms to the kids that he will be going home.

A free printable farewell letter is available for you to download from the free printable library.

Whether it’s your first time with your Elf or you are looking for some extra ideas, the key to enjoying the Elf’s visit is to really keep it SIMPLE.

Kids love the simple things and you don’t need to go overboard to impress them.

Use what you already have on hand to keep your life easier and steer away from the ‘naughty’ Elf to make your life a lot easier.

Enjoy your Elf’s stay and I’d love to hear any extra quick Elf on the Shelf ideas that you have and use.

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