Unfortunately, the pandemic still has us firmly in its grip this year. Therefore, it is all the more important to find some peace and quiet during your Christmas vacation. For those who don't just feel like eating, singing, and looking at the tree, Elektor has something to offer!

My colleague Mathias Claußen has developed a nice Christmas project for all Elektor readers. The DIY Christmas fireplace is available in different versions. One is a 3D puzzle made of circuit board parts; the other features 3D-printed walls, with LED matrix and with TFT screen. In typical Elektor style, the entire thing not only promises tinkering fun, but you will also learn a lot from it. Moreover, Mathias describes what can go wrong during development. 
 
Mathias's DIY Christmas fireplace project.
Looking for a smaller project that's suitable for novice solderers? Our "Retro" Christmas project features a few LEDs, two resistors, and a 9-V battery to form a small Christmas star. 
 
Christmas start project.
And, if that's not enough, the Elektor archive is full of winter projects for the holidays. Check out my colleague CJ Abate's compilation for a few ideas. 

If you plan on working on your own projects this holiday season, let us (and the many other readers around the world) know on our project platform Elektor-labs.com. Usually, like-minded people can be found quickly to contribute ideas.

On behalf of Elektor and the editors, I wish you a happy and reflective Christmas!