7 Ideas for Making Your Own Holiday Ornaments

Christmas just doesn’t feel the same without a tree in the living room decked out in holiday ornaments. Some people only add a few bulbs, then decorate the branches with garlands and other garnishes. Some amass enormous collections capable of covering the entire tree, from the base of the trunk to the star at the top. Either way, the sight can be dazzling.

Holiday ornaments are a way of personalizing your tree. Some people like to add an even more personal touch by making their own. If this activity sounds like fun to you, then you may find inspiration and guidance with this list of fun DIY ideas.


Paper Danglers

Paper danglers are easy to make, and your household probably already has all the arts-and-crafts supplies you need. Take a colorful sheet of construction paper, outline a creative design, and cut it out with scissors. Once it’s out, use a hole puncher on one end and run a ribbon through the new opening so you can hang it up.

The best part about paper danglers is that they can look like anything you want. The silhouette can resemble a curvy diamond, a mini Christmas tree, or something much more abstract. You can draw on it with markers, slap on some stickers, paste on glitter, and so much more. Make as many as you want.


Snowman Bulbs

A plain white holiday ornament can look nice on a tree, but creative types can view it as a blank canvas. Take a Sharpie marker or something similar and draw a bunch of dots — two for the eyes, several in a curved row for the mouth. You have the start of a convincing and cute snowman head.

For extra flair, you could cut some accessories out of craft foam and carefully plant them onto the ornament with a hot glue gun. A black top hat, a green scarf, and an orange carrot nose are just a few ideas. The result is a snowman who will greet you every time you look at the tree and never melts away.


Wooden Planks with Kid Art

DIY holiday ornaments offer wonderful ways for children to get more involved in tree decoration. One fun idea involves small planks of wood, which you can likely find at a local crafts shop. Give them to the kids, then hand them some markers or paintbrushes. They’ll know what to do next.

Once they’re done with their masterpieces, you can drill a hole on one end and loop some string through it. The result is a sample of your kid’s artwork that, if properly cared for, will last for many more Christmases. Even when they’re all grown up, they and you can still enjoy that piece of their childhood.


Wish List Roll

Fans of knitting and crocheting can create all kinds of decorations with a little skill and a lot of yarn. The wish list roll ornament is one they can create with a spare bobbin. The same tool used for spooling thread can be repurposed for a special piece of paper.

After that, you need a long strip of card paper that’s cut so the width fits into the bobbin. Attach one end of the paper roll to the bobbin with a hot glue gun, wrap the paper around, and secure the other end with a rubber band. Then, write a list of desired presents onto the paper! It can be your own, your child’s, or just one you made up for decorative purposes. Take off the rubber band, then loop some yarn through the bobbin’s holes.


Fun with Clear Bulbs

If you can find a clear holiday ornament for the tree, you have a great opportunity to add your own touch. Removing the cap allows you to fill the bulb with anything you please, from various nuts and assorted Legos to candy sprinkles and colorful sands. You can also paint the inside of the bulb for striking visual effects.

A steadier pair of hands can accomplish something more daring: inserting figures that stand upright. Examples may include miniature Santas and diminutive Christmas trees. To create these dioramas, you need strong glue, a firm pair of tweezers, and a great deal of care. Our advice: if the figures topple after too much tree jostling, just say it’s intentional.


Twine Trees

How fortunate for crafts enthusiasts that so many symbols of the winter holidays are easily rendered into geometrical shapes. If you join a tiny cylinder to a wooden acute triangle’s base and drill a hole at the top, voilà! You’ll have a tiny Christmas tree ornament.

With a little more ornamentation, it can look even better. Before gluing the cylinder, we suggest wrapping the triangle in twine and applying hot glue every few lines or so. The result is a sweet work of rustic art. Gluing more pieces, like tiny metal stars and dots, can add to the charm.


Clay Creations

If you’re comfortable working with clay, then a whole world of DIY holiday ornaments opens up. You could take a small lump and transform it into all kinds of fun shapes and sizes. More skilled artisans can create textures, cut lines and designs, and paint over the clay after it dries.

We would advise not to make anything overly heavy. You would not want it dragging down the branch or completely falling off. Most importantly, remember to leave a gap somewhere for a piece of string to loop through. As long as you keep these tips in mind, you can do whatever you want and produce a wonderful and original ornament.


All Things Holiday Ornaments and More

These are only a few fun and relatively simple ideas for making your own holiday ornaments. You can find even more concepts online or by asking fellow DIY fanatics, and you can probably brainstorm a few ideas of your own. We hope this article inspires you to personalize your decorations and even take up some enjoyable new hobbies.

If you want some pre-made Christmas tree bulbs as raw material, or just don’t feel like making all of your ornaments yourself, you’re in luck. All Things Christmas and More features an absolutely enormous repository of holiday ornaments. We love giving customers plenty of options, and you’re sure to find many that you’d be happy to call your own.

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