Five Ideas to (Permanently!) End the Carnage That Is Elf on a Shelf

Uh-oh, he’s back... If your household participates in the craze that is Elf on the Shelf, December typically means 24 nights of brainstorming ways you can wreak havoc on your own home, allowing your children to believe that the naughty elf and his Christmas magic is responsible.

Elf on the Shelf is a brilliant concept first thought of by award-winning writer Carol Aebersold, but what happens when you need to bring the tradition to an end? Perhaps your children are getting older and are no longer invested in the mischievous adventures of your elf, or maybe it’s just putting too much pressure on you as a parent. December is hectic as it is!

Here are some creative (and gentle) ways you can catch that Elf on a Shelf and put an end to the madness once and for all...

Write a ‘goodbye’ letter

Sometimes, we must move on when the situation feels right, and elves aren’t exempt from these life-changing epiphanies. If you want to end things while keeping some of the magic alive, write a ‘goodbye’ letter from your elf, outlining their reasons for moving on.

It could be that they wish to return to the North Pole and help Santa in other ways, or maybe they feel it’s time to take their tricks and pranks to another household; one with children at risk of not receiving any presents this year. Teach them empathy in the process!

Just make sure the letter is tailored to your children’s individual relationship with the elf, and you can leave a parting gift behind to help ease any upset.

Set a booby trap

The elves are notorious for misbehaving and causing chaos, so let’s turn the tables on them this year. Put a stop to the tradition by catching your elf in a booby trap and leaving them there indefinitely (perhaps until your kids leave home for university?!).

You could get your children involved in making the trap so that the elf’s capture isn’t a surprise. Firstly, use straws to prop up a small cardboard box, putting sweets or treats underneath to lure the elf in. For added carnage, lay sheets of eco kitchen roll around the box as a type of minefield and then tangle the elf in the paper when morning comes.

When your trap is successful and the elf has been caught, allow your children to find them there in the morning, under the box and wrapped in the kitchen roll. Explain to your kids that you were all too clever for the elf, and now he must return to the North Pole and let Santa know how brilliant you all are!

Shhh, they’re sleeping!

Getting up to mischief is tiring work! If you want to stop the Elf on a Shelf tradition – or even just give yourself a break for a few days – you can put your elf to sleep in a toy bed with a polite ‘do not disturb’ request taped to it.

Make sure they look super cosy and comfortable, and maybe they can be cuddled up with one of your children’s toys; they might be sleeping, but they’re still naughty!

Hopefully, your children will respect the fact that the elf needs a well-earned break and will not wake up until he feels rested. If they do attempt to wake the elf, however, you can warn them that Santa will not be pleased as he needs his elves in tip-top shape on Christmas day.

Hide and seek

Elves love a game of hide-and-seek, and sometimes they’re just a little too good at it! Have your elf become a hide and seek pro by hiding them in a spot that your children will never, ever find. Cough, cough, the bin perhaps? Hey, we’re not judging...

The next few mornings will probably consist of your children attempting to find the elf (prepare for some final mess and chaos!) but eventually, they should get bored of looking and just accept the fact that the elf is really, really good at hide and seek.

Trap them in a photo frame

If you’ve had enough of the games and larks, but want to keep the elf around for memories, consign them to a photo frame! It’s simple to bring this idea to fruition, too. All you need to do is print out a picture of your elf and stick it inside a frame, either hanging it on the wall or perched on a cabinet.

For those that want to be a little more creative, you could take an existing family photograph and photoshop your elf somewhere in the background, replacing the original framed picture with the edited one. Your children won’t believe their eyes! Better yet, there’s no way of freeing the elf from the photo frame, so they’ll have to stay there indefinitely... Perfect!

Farewell, Elf!

All good things must come to an end. Whatever your reasons for wanting to catch the pesky elf and finally put an end to its reign of chaos, we support you! If telling the truth about the elf isn’t an option (“you’ve been moving them around this entire time?!”) stick to one of the above suggestions and get the best of both worlds!

The Christmas magic lives on, but do you know what stops? That feeling of dread when you finally crawl into bed after a long day and realise you haven’t moved the elf...