Mum accused of taking Elf on the Shelf prank 'too far'

A mum has been accused of taking an Elf on the Shelf prank on her kids 'too far'.

It wouldn't be the festive season without the arrival of Santa's scout elves showing up in people's homes and causing chaos along the way.

In case you're unaware of the unusual tradition, in recent years parents have been using the little Elf dolls and pulling pranks in the hope of encouraging their kids to be on their best behaviour before Christmas.

Plus, you know, it's quite funny to see their reactions. You can watch the latest one below:

The woman in the footage, named Julissa, uses her social media to help other parents come up with creative ways to set up their Elf on the Shelf.

But while her followers usually appreciate her ideas, her latest trick didn't go down too well.

In the clip, she can be seen sneaking into her kids' rooms and cutting off a snippet of their hair before setting it up to make it look like Cookie the Elf was the culprit.

And it looks pretty convincing, with the little troublemaker sitting with the scissors in his hands and the robbed locks beside him.

Alongside the footage, the mum wrote: "Cookie the Elf on the Shelf, we do it for fun! Cookie the hairstylist," before adding: "**no kids were harmed in the making*".

Despite the warning, a number of people haven't taken too kindly to the prank, with some saying she took it 'too far'.

"What is this teaching your kids??" asked one, while another simply wrote, "Just no."

A third added: "I just think things like this must breed distrust and is a total violation of safety and respect.

"I get it’s for fun and a joke but what does this teach children tbh."

A fourth chimed in: "Wow! How to make your kids anxious about going to sleep!"

Instagram/@julissa.sahm

Others came up with ideas on how the prank should have been delivered.

"I’d buy single stand extensions in the kids hair colours and cut them instead of the actual hair," explained one.

Another suggested to have waited until the day before they have haircuts.

I must admit, if I woke up to discover that a dodgy-looking Elf on the Shelf had cut my hair while I was fast asleep, I would be locking my room up at night.

But, as is the case with the rest of Julissa's page, it's only meant to be a bit of fun, and plenty of people found the stunt amusing.

What do you reckon - too far or just enough?