Making a lunar calendar during the winter solstice is fun and appropriate because it's the time of year with the longest nights and the longest appearances of the moon. The solstice is also the time when you will most need to know the phases of the moon, because early evening winter activities are affected by the available light. A moonlit walk is only pleasant if you can see where you are going by the light of the moon, while stargazing is more exciting if there is less moonlight. Creating a well-laid-out, pen-and-ink lunar calendar that depicts the changes in the moon every 28 days and illustrates starry skies and night-blooming flowers is a great way to pass a winter's evening. It will also give your household a quick idea of which nights you'll see full, new, half, crescent or gibbous (more than half) moons.
The long nights are a great time to work on a piece of art that will literally keep you warm. Spend those dark evening hours designing and creating a large, warm quilt decorated with a seasonal design. Embroider, silk-screen or sew on celestial patterns, your favorite holiday theme or anything else that reminds you of light and warmth at the darkest time of year.
Draw or paint your own interpretation of Vincent van Gogh's "The Starry Night." Van Gogh depicted a night full of life and energy, not of isolation and uncertain darkness. Create your own drawing or painting to express similar emotions. Using the winter solstice night as inspiration, try to capture contrasting feelings that come to you: coziness on a cold night, light shining beautifully in an otherwise dark street, the bigness of the sky and the smallness of your home.
Making candle art gives you a creative way to bring light and merriment into the long, dark evenings. Have some unifying element for the candles, such as shape, size, color or outside decoration, to create a decorative theme for winter to place throughout the house. Use warm colors, such as gold, red or orange, and add a spicy, warming scent such as clove, cinnamon or vanilla to bring another winter element to your candle-making.