DIY striped paper ornament

My Christmas tree needed more orange (of course), so I made this little thing. It appears to be a spaceship which has crashed into a circus tent. To make your own circus spaceship, you'll need two colors of regular paper, scissors, needle, thread, pencil, ruler, and two beads.

1. Cut the paper into strips that are 3.5" long and 0.5" wide. (This makes a small ornament about 3" in diameter.) Cut 9 strips of each color. Cut two 0.75" circles. Tracing around a penny works nicely.

2. Fold the paper strips in half. A crisp fold isn't needed; just a light crease will do.

3. String a bead onto a length of thread. Then push both ends of thread through the needle so the thread is doubled.

4. Poke the needle through one of the circles to string it next to the bead. Then string on all the paper strips near one end, alternating colors.

5. After all the paper strips are added, begin threading the opposite ends onto the string. To do this, start with the strip you put on first (the one next to the paper circle). Take its loose end and push the needle through it. Continue threading on the paper strips in order. They'll naturally begin to fan out as you go.

6. Add the second paper circle.

7. Pull the needle off the thread. Feed the bead onto one of the loose ends of thread, then tie both ends of thread in a knot to hold the bead on next to the circle. If your ornament hangs a little crooked, thread the needle again and push both ends of thread up through the underside of the bead and out through the top so both ends of thread emerge. Tie off a loop and hang that spaceship.

My ornament has a bit of a gap on one side where the papers meet at different levels. I'll put that toward the inside of the tree, and no one will be the wiser. You could also try stringing a piece of a drinking straw inside of the ornament to act as a spacer and help it keep its shape, as suggested by a smart commenter!

How to make 25 paper Christmas ornaments

Here's a roundup of ornaments you can make from paper.
Above left: I made with these instructions
Above right: I made with these instructions

(Update: this is now an old post; some of the links no longer work.)

More:
Printable snowflake 1
Printable snowflake 2
Paper snowflakes stapled together into something 3-D
Not 3-D, but nice snowflake cutting templates

Origami star
Ornament made with circle cut-outs
Flower ornament
Ball-like star
Ball-like... ball
Flower ball
Geodesic ball
Multi-colored balls made this way, but fastened with wire
Many-pointed star
Mini star-shaped booklet
Glitter star ornaments
Moravian stars
Recycled paper ornament
Crystal ornament free download plus a gallery of inspiration
Huge spiky starOrigami Christmas tree 1
Origami Christmas tree 2
Kirigami Christmas tree 3

Happy folding!

DIY modern paper ornament

I love spiky starburst shapes, so I attempted a version of the traditional Polish porcupine ball. Here's how to make this cool 3D ornament—great for Christmas or decorating any time. I can imagine jumbo sized versions hanging at parties or weddings. They take awhile, though, so you'd better start making them five years before you plan to get married.

You'll need: Paper, scissors, a circular object for a template, a ruler, pencil, needle, thread, rubber band, and glue.

1. Cut out ten paper circles, using a jar lid or CD for a template. (My circles are 5" in diameter. I stacked sheets of computer paper and cut out several circles at once.)

2. In each circle, cut eight evenly spaced slits toward the middle, stopping about a half inch from the center point.

3. With a pointed pen or sharp pencil, curl each tab into a cone and secure with a dot of glue. If you can pull off a tightly rolled perfect point, congratulations. I was running a little low on patience and settled for "sort of pointy," which I think also looks nice.

4. Cut two small pieces from a wide rubber band. These will hold the ornament together at each end.

5. Thread a needle and knot the ends of the thread together. String on one of the rubber band pieces.

6. Push the needle through the centers of five stars with their flat sides face down. Turn over the remaining five stars so their flat sides are facing up and thread them on, followed by the second rubber band piece.

7. With a chopstick or pencil, push down on the rubber band to compress the stars into a ball while pulling upward on the string with your other hand. The rubber should hold the stack together without requiring a knot. Adjust the paper cones as needed to make a pleasing shape.

8. Tie a loop in the thread for hanging if desired.

Craft project: Retro ornaments from foam

I had a few sheets of that strange craft foam lying around, so here's my attempt to make something out of it. You can download the template I whipped up right here.

You'll need: Foam sheets, sharp scissors, X-acto knife for cutting out holes, craft glue, string for hanging, and tape.

What to do: For each ornament, cut out two "frame" pieces, one solid ornament piece with the center intact, and whatever doodads you want to stick in the middle. Form a loop with your thread and knot the ends. Tape the knotted end to the top of one side of your solid shape. Then glue your frame pieces on each side like a sandwich, hiding the ends of the string. Glue some doodads to the hole in the middle. Place it under a light book while you wait for the glue to dry.

Tips: Cut your shapes very carefully. Make the inner solid piece a tiny bit smaller than the frame pieces so it doesn't poke out around the edges. Once it's glued together, don't try to trim the edges further. It will end up looking like your dog chewed on it. Cut it well the first time.

A gift from C. Wonder

As a kid I always hoped the mailman would bring what we referred to as a Wonderful Surprise: something unexpected and delightful that comes out of nowhere. Our mailbox on the farm was at the end of a long driveway, and Mum or I would trek down and open the box. Of course it usually contained junk mail; Wonderful Surprises are rare and elusive, as everyone knows. But the other day I got one!

Now if you want to get technical, it wasn't 100% a surprise. I was aware that some unknown thing was coming, but then I forgot about it. C. Wonder, a retailer I remembered seeing on an episode of The Pitch, had emailed days before and offered to send a gift. Very mysterious. I love mysteries, and if their name is C. Wonder, it could possibly be a Wonderful Surprise.

Yes. It was a box inside a box containing a handmade paper ornament containing... cashmere penguin gloves. Hee, so cute! (Update: the colored fingertips work on touch screens; nifty!)

I looked up C. Wonder's website to find out what else they offer. Apparently they sell happy things.


A selection: Fox sweater, zebra plates, gold ikat plates, zigzag mug, dotted bowl, chevron gloves, bow buckle belt, and orange throw (didn't see that one on my quest for orange blankies). They do lots of monogramming for personalized gifts, too. Browse here!

How to make 3D paper ornaments

Here's a Christmas ornament you can make with colored papers or magazine pages. I'm not sure what to call it. A funnel ball? The instructions:

1. Cut out 10 paper circles (any size, as long as they're all the same). Text weight paper will be easier to work with than cardstock.
2. Cut each circle along the radius.
3. Put a small piece of double-stick tape on each side of the cut near the edge of the paper.

4. Flip the circle over so the taped side is down; then pull each flap across the circle toward you and twist to form a cone. Press the taped ends down to secure. You should end up with two cones that look vaguely like a fortune cookie. Do this to each of your 10 circles.

5. String the double cones together with a needle and thread. Make sure they're gathered snugly in a ball and tie a knot. Use the trailing ends of the thread to make a loop for hanging.

Here's one made from magazine pages. If you like recycled crafts, give it a whirl. Or try a felt version!

How to make felt ornaments

If you're in the mood to make some felt ornaments, here's a round-up of cute tutorials to keep you busy:
Ice skates (shown above) at Better Homes and Gardens
Ball ornament at Zakka Life
Christmas owls at Diversions
Bird in a cage at Felt-o-rama
Retro-inspired ornaments at Fantastic Toys
Polaroid pictures at Katie Cupcake
Peppermint candies at Better Homes and Gardens
Jingle mouse at Pimp Stitch
Rosette wreath at Domestifluff

Spray painted planter

Over the holiday break I traveled a bunch— first to Alabama and then to Minnesota for Christmas with my family on the farm. One day involved making Christmas ornaments with my little niece. We sold our products at an ornament stand in the living room. She set the price at 2 pennies each and we split the profits. I took my nine cents and went thrift-store shopping when I got home. Fortunately I had a little extra cash in my bank account, which enabled me to buy a dresser on Craigslist which I plan to paint for the dining room, and a couple of vases for the parlor mantel.


I loved the shape of this mid-century planter (maybe McCoy?), and the green-gold color was kind of cool, but I decided it should be pink to match the parlor chairs. I spray painted it with Krylon ColorMaster Mambo Pink Gloss, and now it's quite happy looking.

I stuffed a plastic bag inside the pot to shield the interior and taped the opening to the rim with blue painter's tape to get a clean line. A cardboard box made a good spray booth in the basement; I painted near the outside door which was open for ventilation. The key when spray painting is to apply lots of thin, light coats, and you'll get a lovely result.

Controversy in the Jones house

This (fill in the blank) has been a cherished part of Alex's Christmas memories; IT's older than he is. We have inherited IT. But what is IT? Without naming names, one of us insists IT is a cute Christmas elf. The other is certain IT is a creepy gnome lawn ornament. The debate rages. Could you guys help us settle this once and for all? PLEASE vote: elf or gnome? Creepy or charming?

How to make 3D paper ball ornaments

I love 3D paper things. Love. And when I saw a little picture of what appeared to be paper balls in a CB2 catalog, I thought, "I am going to make those."

So the other day while Alex was writing a paper about mysterious things like polymers and flexible films and tactoids, I made a paper ball. Then I proudly announced I had created a tactoid and it was sitting on my desk. He giggled. Apparently a tactoid is not a paper ball.

These are made from 12 slotted flower shapes that fit together to form a sphere. No adhesive needed; the only ingredient is paper. I made a template in Illustrator and cut out the shapes with my Silhouette machine, but you could also print out the pages and cut by hand instead.

Download the PDF templates here:
Large ball (10")– print/cut 12 sheets
Medium ball (5")– print/cut 2 sheets
Small ball (3")– print/cut 1 sheet

Download a Silhouette .studio file here:
Small ball (3")– unzip the file; cut 1 sheet. (The shapes can be scaled up or down in Silhouette Studio if you'd like to change the size.)

If you want to hang your ornament, you might like to add the string before assembling the ball. I placed a piece of tape on the back of one flower so the hole wouldn't tear, then used a needle to pull string through, forming a loop on the front side. I secured the ends of the string on the back side with another piece of tape.

Use the slits to join petals together. Keep adding shapes, connecting as you go, so that every petal is connected to another petal on a neighboring flower.

It might be helpful to think of the first piece as the "north pole," and then add a row of five flowers encircling it. At this point, the ball is half finished.

Here's what it looks like upside-down:

Attach the next row of five flower shapes, and finally, add the "south pole" piece to finish the globe.

The colored balls are made from regular-weight computer paper (Astrobright from Office Max) and the white balls are made with cardstock. The big sphere is the size of a basketball; the little one is approximately a baseball. And the medium-sized guy is maybe a large grapefruit.

DIY paper teardrop ornaments

I made a few more ornaments for my mostly paper-decorated tree. It's been super gloomy outside, so the corner of the living room with the tree is too dark for picture taking. Imagine these on a silver Christmas tree, instead of hanging from the wooden skewer I taped temporarily to the window sill to obtain maximum natural light. Ha!

To make these paper teardrops, download the template and print it on colored paper.

Cut out the drops, then fold them in half lengthwise with the printed side facing out. Cut out the hole in the middle.

Align the sides of two pieces and glue them together. Keep gluing in more pieces until the ornament is as full as you like. I used 16 pieces for these, but you could add even more. Then string the ornaments on thread.

How to make wall art with paint pens

I stumbled on a half-finished, abandoned canvas in a drawer the other day. Poor thing. I felt sorry for it, so I turned it into a DIY tutorial. If you've got some wall space to fill, here's a way to use transfer paper and paint pens to make your own decorative art.

Paint some abstract stripes on your canvas with acrylic paint. No need to be too careful. Be free!

Choose an image you'd like to reproduce, and size it for your canvas with a photocopier or printer. Tape sheets of paper together if needed. This Victorian ornament is from one of Dover's electronic clip art books. You could also search this vintage clip art library, or draw your own if you're good like that.

Cut a piece of graphic transfer paper to the size of your image. This stuff is found at art stores. Be careful when handling it or your fingers will turn gray. Place the paper graphite side down on the canvas. Place your image on top, face up. Use a few pieces of tape to fix the stack in position.

Then trace over your image with a pencil, being careful not to rest your hand heavily on the paper or you'll end up with unwanted graphite smudges. Remove the papers.

Trace over the transferred lines with a permanent paint marker. I like DecoColor markers, which come in various tip widths and tons of colors. They're available at most art stores. I've used Sharpies before, but they tend to dull and dry up quickly, and it's hard to get even coverage. As you're tracing, keep a blank sheet of paper between your hand and the canvas to avoid smearing the graphite lines. The paint marker will dry almost instantly.

If the paint marker lines look too shiny to you when you're finished, give your painting a coat of clear acrylic gel medium to even out the shine difference between the matte acrylic paint and the shiny marker.

How about orange ornaments?

Here's a paper ornament I made the other day during a coffee break with my downstairs neighbor. They're hanging in my office windows. The ornaments are, I mean—not my neighbors. That would be creepy. To make your own:

1. Download the template here.
2. Print it on colored paper.
3. Cut out each shape, score it on the dotted line, and fold it in half so the printing is on the outside. (It's easiest to cut out the middles after the shape is folded.)
4. Use a glue stick to adhere the side of one piece to the side of the next piece, and so on.
5. Trim off any parts that hang over or don't match up properly.
6. Poke a hole through the top and thread some string through to hang.