Add some extra fun to your Christmas event with my DIY popcorn bar. Transform everyday store bought ingredients into magical mix-ins with the help of my printable signs. Then add a handful of decorations, a dash of imagination, and a big bucket of popcorn to create an easy but unforgettable Christmas popcorn bar.
We had a blast at Halloween, making boo baskets and introducing the ‘You’ve Been Booed’ traditions to our neighborhood. But hands down, the runaway success of the spooky season was my Halloween popcorn bar. Honestly, who knew that popcorn and a bunch of candy with silly names (mmm witch warts) would make kids and adults alike so happy?!
So of course I can’t resist doing it all again for Christmas. I’ve rebranded everyone’s favorite mix-ins from terrifying treats to festive fancies, designed brand new printable signs, and put together a whole new set of Christmas popcorn bar ideas.
Whether you’re having a Christmas get-together or snuggling up for a festive movie night, throwing an office Christmas party or attending a community celebration, believe me when I say that a ‘make your own’ Christmas popcorn mix bar will be the PERFECT accompaniment. And if you tried the Halloween popcorn bar, you already know!
What do I need to set up a Christmas Popcorn Bar?
If you had a go at my Halloween popcorn bar, you’ll know how easy, and relatively cheap, they are to set up.
If you’re setting up a food bar for a Christmas party, you can really go to town – buy cute new things and go overboard with decorations and mix-ins galore. But you absolutely don’t have to. If you’re just having fun and setting up a Christmas popcorn bar for a movie night with your friends or as a fun activity with the kids, I guarantee that you’ll already have most of what you need.
As always with these types of activities, a little effort and imagination – delivered with love – are what counts.
Popcorn
Use a mixture of different flavors, or just use plain popcorn as a base and let the flavors of your mix-ins do the talking!
Bowls
I love to lean into red and green for Christmas, so I found a large red plastic bin for the popcorn, and smaller red paper cups to match, from Dollar Tree. But you can use whatever buckets, bins, or bowls you like. Buy something new to match your theme, or re-use what you have – I know a lot of people who have Christmas-themed dishes and glassware already hiding in their cabinets!
Popcorn bags
To scoop your popcorn and mix-ins into. I’m not a fan of washing dishes, so I’m all for using things you can recycle or throw out after you’ve used them. If you buy a big stash of red paper cups for your mix-ins like I did, you could use the spares for your containers. Or cinema-style popcorn or candy bags also work well – I found some cute red and white striped ones on Amazon.
Scoops and spoons
Nobody wants sneaky fingers diving straight into a shared snack bar! You can usually find cute mini scoops at Dollar Tree.
Printable Christmas food bar signs
Take a look at my range of mix-in signs, choose the ones that fit your theme, and print. (If you’re printing onto paper, you might want to mount them onto a bit of card stock to keep them sturdy).
Toothpicks
No, not to get the popcorn out of your teeth! After you’ve printed and trimmed your printable mix-in signs, simply tape them onto a toothpick (or lolly stick, whatever you have), and poke into each mix-in tub.
Table decorations
Tinsel, baubles, beads, fake snow – table decorations are totally optional, but I’m always a fan of adding a bit of extra Christmas magic where you can.
Christmas Popcorn Bar Theme Ideas
I don’t know about you, but I love Christmas and sometimes I can get a little carried away. When I started thinking about making a Christmas popcorn mix bar, it started out as a general festive theme with a red and green holiday popcorn bar. I used:
- Elf donuts – Cheerios
- Holly berries – Candied cherries
- Lumps of coal – Mini chocolate chips (brown)
- Christmas tree trunks – Pretzel sticks
- Snowballs – Mini marshmallows
- Reindeer poop – Chocolate-covered raisins or chocolate-covered peanuts
- Snowman noses – Candy corn
- Rudolph’s noses – Red Hots or other red round candies
- Christmas ornaments – Red and green M&M’s
- Santa suit buttons – mini chocolate chips or other round chocolate candies
And then I started over-thinking… and, before I knew it, I’d also put together a second theme – snowman popcorn! For the snowman themed food bar I used these mix-ins:
- Snowman noses – Candy corn
- Snowman arms – Pretzel sticks
- Snowman hats – Reese’s cups or Rolos
- Snowman poop – Mini marshmallows
- Snowman eyes – Mini chocolate chips
- Snowman buttons – M&M’s, chocolate chips, or other round candies
Then I thought, you could also make the candied cherries Rudolph noses, make the pretzel sticks antlers, add in the reindeer poop and – bam! You have a reindeer-themed popcorn bar. I even saw a Grinch version when I was nosing around on Pinterest for ideas. The options are endless. So, grab the kids, use your imagination, and have fun.
Alternate Option: Make a Christmas Snack Mix Bar
Shocking I know (!), but some people aren’t the biggest fans of popcorn. Or perhaps someone in your family has an allergy. Well, they don’t have to miss out! Simply swap the popcorn for a snack mix base instead. Use a cereal mix, like Chex and Cheerios, and then use all the same mix-ins and printables.
My printable holiday food bar signs even include versions for a “Christmas Snack Mix” bar and a “Snowman Snack Mix” bar, so you can easily swap out the popcorn for your favorite mix up of dry cereal:
And if the popcorn or snack mix isn’t enough, why not add a few more treats to the table – try my donut snowman treats or my adorable snowman Oreos.
Printable Christmas Popcorn Bar Signs
Want to make your own cute Christmas popcorn bar or snack mix bar for your holiday party? You can create the perfect Christmas food bar with the printables that I used in this post! Just click the link below to check out the printable bundle in my shop!
Click HERE for the Christmas Popcorn Bar Signs in My SHOP
And be sure to PIN this post for later:
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