Ornaments can be pricey, especially for beautifully designed ornaments. That's why making your own ornaments is a great way to decorate your tree for Christmas within a budget. These upcycled DIY Christmas ornaments are an easy craft to take old ornaments and give them a brand new look.
DIY and Update Your Old Glass Ball Christmas Ornaments
Glass Christmas ball ornaments are traditional and common. I inherited a number of red glass balls, too many of the same color, size, and type. I didn't want to just throw them away so I figured out a way to upcycle them and give them new life!
Why Upcycle Old Glass Ball Ornaments?
Maybe you have changed your Christmas décor, maybe you have too many of the same glass ball ornaments (like me), or maybe you need an easy, budget friendly gift idea for Christmas. There are many reasons to take your old glass balls and give them a beautiful new life. Best of all, this keeps those ornaments from ending up in the trash.
Related: DIY Rustic Pine Cone Ornaments
What You Need to Get Started
- Old Christmas Ball Ornaments - You can buy some if you don't have any, but the idea is to find old or outdated Christmas ball ornaments you no longer enjoy. The size and color don't matter, just be sure they aren't chipped or broken. I used red ball ornaments with glitter.
- Christmas Ribbon, Rope, Lace or Pearls - You can purchase these at a craft store or even online. However, I used leftover wrapping material from past Christmases. For this example, I used jute cord, Christmas rope, Christmas ribbon and decorative strings of pearls.
- Hot Glue Gun - You can find these at any craft store. Or, feel free to purchase on online.
- Spray Paint (optional) - In this example, I spray painted the tops of the ornaments so that they were no longer gold.
How to Prepare the Christmas Glass Balls
When picking out old ornaments, make sure to choose ornaments that aren't broken or cracked. Size and color don't matter much as you will be covering the ornament in different materials. Larger ornaments will need more material.
Once you have picked out your ornaments, make sure they are clean. Remove all dust, dirt, spider webs, glitter, mainly anything that could prevent glue from sticking to the ornament. If you have a glitter ornament, just wipe off any loose glitter, you don't need to scrape the glitter off.
Be sure to remove the tops of the ornaments before starting.
Using Rope or Jute Cord to Upcycle Your Ornaments
Using rope, twine, jute cord or even macramé cord, begin at the bottom of the ornament. Glue the end of your rope with a small amount of hot glue. Then slowly and carefully begin adding glue and wrapping the rope in tight circles around the ornament.
This is a slow process. With hot glue you have to be carful to only use small amounts. Too much hot glue will squeeze through the rope and look messy once dried. You can always substitute tacky glue in the place of hot glue, it just doesn't dry as quickly.
Continue until the entire ornament is wrapped. Allow the ornament to dry for a few hours before handling.
Using Ribbon to Upcycle Your Ornaments
Ribbon gives a beautiful farmhouse feel to your ornaments. Be sure to use cloth ribbon to get a nicer appearance. When using ribbon, it's easiest to wrap ribbon from the top, going down and around and then back up to the other side of the Christmas ornament.
Glue your ribbon in sections as you make your way around the ornament. Layer the ribbon so that no part of the glass ball comes through. Tie a bow on the top to hide any imperfections from the ribbon. For this example I used Macramé cord for the bow and buffalo check cloth ribbon for the ornament.
Painting the Tops of The Ornaments
In this example, I spray painted the tops of the ornaments. They originally came in shiny gold. For a more rustic look, I chose to spray paint them in matte black. After spray painting, I allowed them to dry completed and re-attached them to the finished and dried ornaments.
Be sure to tie a piece of matching twine, rope, or ribbon to the ornament for hanging.
Cable Knitted Christmas Ornament
If you like knitting, you can also turn an old set of mismatched ornaments, into a lovely set of cable knitted ornaments instead!
Since the cables cover the whole ornament, it doesn't matter what you start with. They will all look the same in the end! Use different colors of yarn to create a jewel tone tree, or whatever color set you'd like!
💖 GET THE CABLE KNIT ORNAMENT PATTERN HERE
Gifting
These beautiful DIY Christmas ornaments make great gifts! Make them in the color, theme, or fashion that best suites your décor, or the décor of the person you're gifting. These ornaments can be as fancy or as simple as you desire. Add bows, glitter, lace or whatever else you want to really make them your own!
Want more Christmas ideas? Check out this adorable Christmas Deer Cross Stitch Pattern. You may also like these 6 Simmering Stove-Top Potpourri Recipes Perfect for The Holidays!
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