DIY: Ornaments and More
Y’all, Christmas is in literal days and I seriously am not ready. The holidays have already begun – Hanukkah is off to a rip-roaring start – the season is staring me in the face but I’m just not feeling it yet. I know I’m not the only one either; three of my friends remarked the same thing to me today “It just doesn’t feel like Christmas.” If you’re not quite feeling the holiday cheer, maybe some decorating will help. (Pro Tip: eggnog will definitely help here too).
If, like me, you live in an evergreen state, consider decorating with snowflakes. Grab a handful of coffee filters, fold ‘em up, snip snip, unfold and you’re walking in a winter wonderland. Or, follow the slightly more complicated instructions and go for the 3D version (handful of white paper, fold up, snip snip, unfold, roll into tubes and attach with tape). There are a few versions of that, too, so you can alternate paper types and sizes and shapes.
Likewise, simple star shapes mounted on a board or drawer come out looking pretty classy. Just tack in some nails and crate the shape by pulling tight a length of string – or several lengths of different colors.
If you need to decorate a tree, get together your roomies and have an ornament-making party. We’ve got your coke can versions, your straw versions, your Qtip versions, your jewelry versions, your repurposed versions and your paper versions. For the coke can ornament, wash and dry your can, cut it open, trace your shape and carefully cut it out. Wrap the edge and back in felt and ribbon and punch a hole to hang. For the straw version, cut straws to size, dip into glue and insert into Styrofoam ball. Use a craft hook to hang. It’s pretty much the same deal with the Qtip version, but consider edging that in glitter or fake snow.
For jewelry version, collect old necklaces, earrings and the like, grab some dressmakers pins and a stryofoam ball. Take apart the jewelry and reconstruct using the dress pins, and pin in following these instructions. There’s some ribbon and glue involved but it’s mostly painless. There are a few paper versions: book pages (folding, glitter, glue), paper strip ball (tearing, weaving, sealing), border punched (punch, fold, staple) to choose from as well.
If you don’t have a tree, you can throw one together right quick – either by stacking books, or stacking cupcake liners, opening an umbrella in a stand, or repurposing paper in strips. Starting to feel a bit more festive already right? Or, maybe that’s just the eggnog talking.
Images courtesy realsimple.com, blog.craftzine.com, dollarstorecrafts.com, recycledcrafts.craftgossip.com, and realsimple.com (again).
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