Sunday Funday: Getting Crafty With It - Homemade Christmas Ornaments

One of my favorite things to do at Christmas is decorate the tree. With every ornament I unwrap comes a fond memory of Christmas past. Every year I get a new ornament and with it I associate all the great things that have happened over the past year. These memories are always going to stay with me and they are some of my best. I would say about half of my ornaments are store bought and the other half are handmade, either by myself or someone else who gave it to me as a gift. While I have some great memories attached to the store bought ornaments, my best memories come with the homemade ones. For those of you who have never made their own ornaments I am going to give you some ideas with directions on how to make some of the cutest Christmas ornaments around. Maybe you and your partner or you and your family and friends can sit down and make them together; all the while creating lasting Christmas memories for years to come.

Ornament #1:

Sparkling Lightbulb Ornaments

This one is really fun and easy too. Any size lightbulb will work.  Step 1: brush some glue into the light bulb. Step 2: roll the glue covered lightbulb in glitter.  Step 3: let the lightbulb dry for 15 minutes. Step 4: using your glue gun, attach a piece of shiny metallic embroidery floss to the base of the lightbulb. It's that easy and the ornaments are so cute. 

Photo Credit: Yahoo Images

Ornament # 2: Yarn Candy Canes

These candy canes make great gifts and they are wonderful ornaments if you have little fingers in the house that tend to pull ornaments off the tree.  These are virtually indestructible. You will need scissors, 2 skeins of DMC Pearl Cotton, red pipe cleaner, and ½” to 5/8” ribbon (all can be bought at Michaels or Joanne’s). Step 1: Open a skein of cotton and snip the loop at each end so you have two bunches; repeat with the other skein. Then take one red bunch and one white bunch and tie them together into a single knot around the end of a pipe cleaner. Step 2: to make the stripes, twist the two colors around the pipe cleaner and knot the ends together around the other end. Trim the cotton at both ends and trim the pipe cleaner if need be. Step 3: Bend into a candy cane shape and adorn with a ribbon bow. So easy, cute, and decorative.

Photo Credit: Yahoo Images

 Ornament # 3: Time Capsule Ornament

This is my favorite crafty Christmas ornament. It is so fun to make and really creates lasting memories. My suggestion is to make one after Christmas from all the photos you took on Christmas day.  This way every year you will have a memory of the day.

You will need a fill able clear plastic ornament, double-sided tape, rickrack or ribbon, scrap booking paper cut into strips, small photos or other memorabilia that fits inside the ball. Step 1: Separate the two halves of the ball. Apply a strip of tape around the outside of the wider half. Carefully press the ribbon to the tape so that it's close to but not touching the outer edge. Step 2: Write notes on the strips of scrap booking paper, then roll them up and tuck them inside the ball. Add pictures, a photocopy of your child's newborn footprint, and other mementos, if you like. Put the ball back together, then tie some ribbon and a tag with the year written on it onto the plastic loop.

Photo Credit: Yahoo Images