Cute DIY Christmas Ornaments You Can Make In Minutes
Now that Halloween is over and Thanksgiving is just around the corner, everyone is beginning to think of Christmas. After all, Christmas Eve is just a month away. Now is the time to pull out your holiday decorations and take stock of the stuff you've been saving year after year. But with the gift (or maybe curse?) of Pinterest and the thousands of lifestyle blogs to be found all over the internet, maybe it's time to try some new decorations.
So, instead of using the same old traditional ornaments on your tree, why not get creative this year? Follow along to see some of the best out-of-the-box ornament ideas that you can definitely do yourself! Maybe even have an ornament-making party with some friends or family and get everyone in on the creativity?
Road Map Ornament Keepsake
If you are a travel junkie, these ornaments are for you. They are so cute and some of the best ideas for upcycling old maps. If you want to make your old Christmas ornaments look new, use Mod Podge to decoupage the map pieces. Or, use maps of your favorite destinations to create keepsake travel ornaments.
Mini Pinecone Elf Ornament
If you're a fan of the hot glue gun and have a backyard full of pinecones, this is a great idea for you to try. Look at how cute these little pinecone elves are! You could have a tree with several of them in different colors. All you need is a pinecone, a small wooden ball for the head, a piece of felt cut into a triangle for the hat and then a long, thin piece for the scarf.
Light Bulbs To The Rescue!
There is no need to recycle old light bulbs when you can upcycle them! If you love Christmas characters, you can use old light bulbs to paint Santa, a penguin, or a snowman. Or, if you're more of a glitter fanatic, paint the bulbs with glue and then dip or roll them in your favorite color glitter. Once on the tree, they will reflect the light and look very festive!
Upcycled Sweater Pinecone
This is a great way to reuse your old sweaters! You can keep the ornament you make from your favorite, old sweater year after year, always remembering the good times you two shared together. All you need is a little twig, some felt, the tiniest bit of fiber fill, and your trusty sewing needle and thread. Follow the how-to here.
Clothespin Snowflake
This beautiful ornament goes great with country farmhouse and rustic decor. It's super easy to make, too. The only necessary materials are hot glue and clothespins. After you've assembled the snowflake, you can go crazy with craft paint and spray glitter to really make a beautiful DIY ornament.
Baby Shoe Ornament
Now this has to be the easiest, sweetest keepsake ornament out there! Remember when your babies had those teeny, tiny feet and their shoes could fit in the palm of your hand? To be honest, they only ever wore those things once or twice for a photo, right? So instead of packing them away and never looking at them, why not hang them as a keepsake on your Christmas tree?
Scrap Fabric Ornament
What do you do with all your leftover fabric scraps? Often they just get tossed because what kinds of things could you actually make with tiny pieces of random leftover fabric? This ornament is your answer to that and it's so easy. You just need to have some old ball ornaments that you don't mind covering up and some hot glue to stick the fabric too.
Cookie Cutter Ornaments
These cookie cutter ornaments are so creative and fun to make that you will want to make a dozen! You can find old cookie cutters at thrift stores easily. You'll just need to make a trip to the craft store to get some fun scrapbook paper to use for the backing. You could get really creative and add embellishments and glitter.
Sheet Music Pinecone
This is a great idea for anyone who loves music. Here's the how-to: find your favorite piece of music and cut the sheet music for it in little strips. Then you can fold it into points like shown above or you can simply use special scissors to cut fun patterns along the edges. Then hot glue each piece starting from the bottom and working your way up. To finish it off, hot glue a piece of ribbon to hang it on the tree.
Metal Stencils
You can use metal stencils as Christmas ornaments! This is a fun idea that repurposes antique (or new) stencils to add some industrial flair to your decorating. You can choose to add some paint to match your color scheme or you can leave them in their natural metal condition to really embrace the industrial style.
Upcycled Toy Ornaments
You have probably seen Christmas ornaments in all the department stores already this year and so many of them resemble little toys. So, instead of buying them for way too much money, why not have some fun and make your own? These upcycled toy ornaments are a playful idea that brings some whimsy to your Christmas decorating. Simply spray paint them the color you like and add ribbon.
Button Ornament
This is a great way to use all those random buttons you've had lying around forever. All you need is a styrofoam ball and some pins. Start at the top and try to pin one row at a time until the ball is mostly covered, then just layer the pins on top of the other ones where there are gaps on the ornament.
3D Cardstock Ornaments
Get some thick cardstock in fun designs and patterns and cut seven circles with a round paper punch, or you can just use scissors. Fold each one design side in, then start gluing each side to another piece until you have one more piece left to glue. Insert a looped ribbon and then glue your last piece!
Confetti Tinsel Ornament
When you are decorating for the holidays and wrapping presents why not use some leftover pieces of tissue or tinsel to make some fun matching ornaments? Make sure you grab some clear glass ornaments the next time you go to the store so you can have them on hand and then let the creative juices flow. Use a hole punch to cut out homemade confetti, add some glitter, pretty beads, or colorful tinsel.
Spool Ornament
This is a great idea if you have old wooden spools laying around. Give them some new life and turn them into a fun keepsake ornament. You can make it as complicated as this one with buttons and cardstock or you can keep it simple and just add some fun paper around it.
Stuffed Felt Ornaments
If you have ever had young children around for Christmas, you know how dangerous those glass ornaments can be. This is the perfect alternative! You can still decorate your tree with beautiful, meaningful ornaments and the best part is, they are shatterproof! All you need is felt, a little bit of fiberfill to give them some dimension, and sewing materials.
Mini Shadowbox Ornaments
This is one of the cutest ideas out there. You can make your own special shadowbox ornaments from old jar lids or mini cardboard jewelry boxes. Just add some cardstock and your own tiny treasures. The possibilities are endless for decorating the inside. Use sentimental photos, movie stubs, or even little hobby miniatures.
Scrabble Ornaments
There are a lot of fun things you can do with Scrabble tiles, but this might top the list. You can use a simple wooden ruler to glue the pieces on to, or a nice ribbon cut to the right size. Make festive ornaments or you can make them into labels to add to your gifts as a fun, personalized embellishment.
Steampunk Gear Ornaments
Are you into steampunk style? If so, this is the perfect ornament idea for you. The best part is that it's super simple. You just need a variety of steampunk gears. If you want to, you can spray paint them to match your favorite color scheme or you can leave them natural. To get really fancy, connect a couple gears with jewelry chains.
Tea Cup Ornament
Create your own elegant, tasteful ornaments by using some old tea cups and saucers. These are found easily at thrift stores. Simply glue the bottom of the cup to the saucer it goes with and add a ribbon to the handle. These are perfect for a country cottage-themed Christmas.
