Our Elf on the Shelf, Trixie, loves to have fun at night and be a little naughty. Luckily she uses things we already have at home and doesn’t overly complicate it. Here are some of our favorite naughty elf ideas that are super easy to replicate. They never take more than a few minutes or a few dollars worth of supplies. Here’s over 40 of our favorite ones so far.
#1 Shoe-Shoe Train
Basically like a choo-choo train but with shoes instead. This time our elf decided to bring some princesses along for the ride. It can be anyones shoes… moms, dads, etc.
#2 Making Popcorn
Here’s a super easy and fun one. Make a bag of popcorn and make a mess in the microwave and we even had some popcorn on the floor. Such a messy elf. This was the first day back this year so she also borrowed our magnet letters to leave a message.
#3 Mask Hammock
Get a disposable mask and hang it from a chandelier or even on the Christmas tree. I suggest a disposable mask because I have to cut it to make it work. I cut the elastics and tied them to attach in to the lamp.
#4 Fishing for Goldfish
All you need is goldfish crackers (every house with a kid has those!), a sink and any fishing rod. This rod is from a fishing game but even a twig with a piece of string will work. Warning: add the water last minute or you’ll wake up to extra soggy and bloated fishies. You can also do it in the sink without water. It’s just as cute.
#5 Chilling in the Fridge
Make some space in the fridge and use a kitchen hand towel as a blanket. It’s seriously that simple.
#6 Undies in the Christmas Tree
Our elf got my daughters panties and hung them in the Christmas tree as ornaments. You can use anyone’s undies but kid’s sizes allow for more undies!
#7 Dryer Ride
Our elf turned the dryer into an amusement park ride and brought some Barbie’s along for the fun. All you need is 1 piece of packing tape to strap them in!
#8 Tied Up Toys
Get a strand of Christmas lights, plug them in and tie up some toys. Your elf will have some hostage stuffed animals!
#9 Googly Eye Fruit
All you need is a pack of googly eyes and the options are endless. We’ve done the googly eyes a couple times around here. This time we gave all the fruit in the fruit basket eyes!
#10 S’mores
Our elf loves S’mores! She used a candle, a toothpick, mini marshmallows and a flipped over coffee mug to sit on.
#11 Toilet Paper Down the Stairs
If you have a staircase this one is so easy! You just need a roll of toilet paper. Stick the elf inside, start at the top and let him roll down.
#12 Poop in a Cup
Our elf did POOP in a wine glass. All you need is 1 Hershey’s kiss and any cup or wine glass. It’s hilarious!
#13 Stuck in an Undie
All you need is a kids undie or panty, some magnet clips (or even tape will work) and your elf. I added a fun message using our magnet letters.
#14 Orange Juice
Our elf loves Orange Juice, but this time she grabbed an orange and simply inserted a straw (I cut it so I only have to insert a tiny piece) and sat down for a drink.
#15 Painting in the Tub
Our elf borrowed the bath paints and left a fun message in the tub. If you don’t have these bath paints its a great opportunity to leave a little gift from your elf. You can find them in the Dollar Spot at Target…. they’re $1 each.
#16 Toilet Paper the Tree
Another easy one using toilet paper. Our elf got a roll of toilet paper and decorated our tree for us since we hadn’t decorated it yet.
#17 Candy Cane Zip Line
Our elf got a string and attached it from the chandelier to the Christmas tree then used a candy cane to zip line from one to the other.
#18 Toilet Paper the house
Speaking of toilet paper, here’s another one. This time she toilet papered the house. Pick any space and make a mess!
#19 Reading to the toys
Our elf got a dinosaur book and was reading it to the dinosaurs.
#20 Googly Eye Photos
Using the same googly eyes as before, we added some funny eyes to our family photos.
#21 Sprinkle Angel
Much like a snow angel, but using sprinkles and we put her on a cutting board for easy clean up after.
#22 Candy Cane Sledding
Our elf had a friend and they decided to go sledding together down the staircase railing on some candy canes.
#23 Elf Footprints
Our elf came in through a magic door and left some snowy (flour) footprints. This is a little kit I found on Amazon. Linked Here
#24 Dinosaur Ride
This one was so fun because this dinosaur dances. Our elf decided to go for a ride and hung on for dear life. I used tiny clear hair elastics to tie her hands together so she’d hold on tight.
#25 Pool Party
Our elf used a float for a cup and decided to go lounge in the pool. This one is a unicorn but any cup float will work. We’ve done it in the pool and in the bathtub.
#26 Trapped a Toy
Our elf trapped by daughters favorite stuffed animal. Use a glass jar with a lid and have your elf trap the toy. Again I used tiny clear elastic hair bands to tie her hands together and hung her from the top.
#27 Hiding Among the Toys
I did it on the staircase of my daughters loft bed (that she doesn’t sleep in) but it can be anywhere. Just put a bunch of toys, dolls, stuffed animals together and hide the elf among them. This has been one of my daughters favorites!
#28 Climbing a Decorative Tree
Our elf loves to climb. She climbed on of our decorative trees on the dining table. Again just elastic hair bands to tie her hands together. That’s it.
#29 Trees on the Cars
The day before we got our Christmas tree our elf put tiny bottle brush trees from the dollar store on the toy cars. I think it was her way of telling us we needed to go buy our tree.
#30 Princess Tea Party
She prepared a tea party and invited some of the princess to join her.
#31 Chandelier Acrobatics
Our elf loves to hang from things. She hung upside down from our chandelier showing off her acrobatic skills.
#32 Rock Climbing
Using gift bows on the fridge our elf created a rock climbing wall to practice on.
#33 Toilet Paper Swing
Get an empty roll of toilet paper and put a string through it to create a swing for your elf. You can hang it anywhere. We went for a banner because it was so easy, but it can go on a doorframe or anywhere you please.
#34 Slumber Party
My daughter had built a fort that day that she refused to take down so our elf decided to have a slumber party with some of the dolls there.
#35 Climbing for Snacks
Our elf got hungry during the night so she used household items so she could climb into the pantry into our snack bin.
#36 Hungry Hungry Hippo
Our elf recruited some friends for a game of Hungry Hungry Hippo. You can use any board game and add some friends in for some fun.
#37 Eating Candy in a Lantern
My daughter loves to hide to eat candy and our elf did just that! She found the gummy bears and hid in one of my decorative lanterns to eat them.
#38 Bubble Bath
Our elf decided to play in the Barbie house and helped herself to a bubble bath. Mini marshmallows in the Barbie bathtub. That’s it!
#39 Lipstick Notes
Our elf left my daughter a little love message on her bathroom mirror using Mommy’s red lipstick. Don’t worry, it comes right off with a little vinegar on a napkin.
#40 Decorating Cookies
Our elf brought my daughter an apron and a cookie decorating kit so they could decorate cookies together.
#41 Reading Under a Tree
Our elf found a cozy spot under a tree to read a book to some of her friends.
#42 Fancy Breakfast
Our elf helped herself to a fancy breakfast using the pretend foods from my daughters American Girl doll set. She even put on a scarf for the occasion.
#43 Hot Tub
Our elf turned a pot into a hot tub using mini marshmallows and even brought a robe to use after.
#44 Hot Dog Stand
Our elf borrowed the dolls hot dog stand and turned it into Trixie’s (her name) hot dog stand so she could feed some of her friends.
#45 Elfies
Our elf was extra silly and took Elfies (the Elf version of selfies) with my daughter while she was sleeping then used the photos for the background of my phone. It was such a fun surprise to wake up to and a great way to remember her elf when she returned to the North Pole.
#46 Playing Hide and Seek
Our Elf decided to play hide and seek and used extra toilet paper rolls to create a great hiding spot. She also left a note on the roll.
#47 Drawing on Bananas
Our Elf Trixie borrowed a Sharpie and drew some funny faces on our bananas. I opted for different funny faces… one mad, one sad and an extra cool one.
#48 Light Brite Message
Trixie borrowed my daughters Light Brite and left her a fun little message. This wasn’t very naughty, because the message was nice, but it was definitely a fun surprise.
#49 Drinking Syrup
Our Elf borrowed a straw and decided to drink syrup right out of the bottle. She sat in a while glass to reach up to the top of the bottle.
#50 Sack Race
Our elf recruited some friends for a fun game. They used brown paper bags to have a potato sack race. The bags are the perfect size once you roll over the tops.
#51 Painted Dad’s Toenails
This was definitely a favorite in our home. Our naughty elf painted my husband’s toenails bright pink while he was sleeping. We found the elf in the morning in the bathroom with the bottle of hot pink nail polish and a note that read “I left your dad a funny treat. Go find him now and look at his feet!”
#52 Toilet Paper Hammock
Trixie made herself a hammock just out of toilet paper and hung from the towel bar in the bathroom.
#53 Hiding from a Fart
This one was a favorite in our home! Our elf found a mason jar to hide in and left a note that read “Your dad farted! I’m hiding from the smell. It’s safe in here.”
#54 Mini Vacation
My daughter spent the night at her grandparents so her elf found an oversized gingerbread house to borrow for a mini vacation.
#55 Underpant Stockings
Our elf was extra silly and removed all of our stockings. She replaced each of our stockings with one of our underpants.
#56 Sick Day
My daughter was feeling under the weather, apparently she gave her cold to her elf. Her elf had a sick day. She borrowed the tissues, thermometer and Tylenol, as well as a bed in the Barbie house.
#57 Elf-Portrait
Our Elf decided to draw the elf version of a self portrait, it’s called an elf-portrait. She borrowed the sketch book and crayons to make it.
#58 Taco Tuesday
Our elf needed to remind us that it’s Taco Tuesday, so she borrowed a tortilla and wrapped herself in it. Don’t forget the cut out for the face.
#59 Fruit Car Race
Bananas and oranges are all you need to make fruit cars. You can make several and then there’s a race between your elves or any other toys. Our elf borrowed the Barbies for a fruit car race.
I will be adding more ideas throughout December as I do them so keep checking back for some more fun and easy elf on the shelf ideas…. Happy Holidays!
No Comments