Where has this year gone? Seriously, how can it be December already? Christmas is going to be here before we know it. I used to think it was too early to be thinking about buying presents in October and November, but as I’ve gotten older, I’m realizing 25 days isn’t much time at all.  I have a few handmade items in the works for Christmas presents and wanted to share a DIY tutorial if you’re also looking to give a handmade gift this holiday season.

About 10 years ago, I gave my sister and brother-in-law a set of several glass ornaments that I made using their wedding colors (blue and silver) for their first Christmas together. Fast forward to 2009 when I started this business to make similar cherished items that represent special moments in time. I’ve always liked the idea of giving a bride and groom an ornament for their first Christmas as a married couple. I usually do this by making square glass ornaments using invitations, programs, etc. like this:

These ornaments work well the majority of the time, but when an invitation or program contains a lot of text or is really simple with little design or color, I think there’s a better solution. For example, my sister recently asked me to create an ornament using a 4 page all text program.  We worked on it together using the program, ribbon from the program, the couple’s save the date photo, a heart charm, and some heart confetti and this is what we came up with:

Glass Ornament DIY Tutorial

This ornament can be created quite simply. All you need is:

• a glass bulb with a removable cap like these (they can be found at any craft store and often come with a gold or silver metal cap and a variety of sizes)
• a paper cutter, or scissors and a ruler (a paper cutter makes the job easy and quick)
• material to cut and put inside ornament (this could be a wedding invitation, program, save the date, announcement, shower invitation)
• ribbon or strip of fabric (it’s neat if you can use something that’s special to the couple)
• round pencil
• optional items: glitter, confetti, paper punch, color coordinated paper, photo of couple, any additional text you’d want to include such as a Bible verse, their wedding date if it’s not on any of the materials you’re already using

Once you have all of the supplies, the first step is to decide what text/images you want to include so take a look at each item you have and mentally plan out the strips you’ll cut.  Use the paper cutter or scissors and ruler to cut straight sections out of the materials.  I prefer to have varying heights, but cut them however you’d like.  Try to cut long strips so they’re easier to make into spirals or curl in the next step.  Once you have the pieces cut into strips, take the pencil and begin wrapping the paper around it to create different spiral shapes or curl them with your fingers to have a variety of different styles.

Now you can start dropping the spirals into the glass ornament, arranging them however you’d like.  Of course, by shaking the ornament, the paper will shift but you do have some control over how the spirals lay inside the glass.  Depending on how large the ornament is, you may be able to reach your finger into the opening and move pieces around or you can use the eraser end of your pencil to shift the pieces around as you drop them inside the ornament.

If you like the way it looks, you’re almost done.  If you think it needs more color or it’s missing something, feel free to throw some glitter, confetti, paper cutouts, etc. into it.  You can also cut thin strips of colored paper and wrap them around the pencil to create spirals and drop into the ornament.  Another idea would be to fold the strips into small accordion shapes and drop them into the ornament.  Once you’re happy with the way the ornament looks, place the metal cap back on, tie a ribbon or piece of fabric around the loop on the cap and it’s done and ready to be gifted or hung on your tree!

Here’s another example of an ornament using a wedding invitation, purple floral scrapbook paper, ribbon, and a heart charm:

This concept could be used for a baby’s first Christmas as well by using an ultrasound image, a baby announcement, a baby shower invitation, etc.

I think this is a fun project to complete, but I know many people aren’t crafty or just have no desire to mess with creating items like this so Remaking Memories will gladly create an ornament for you to keep or give as a gift this holiday season.

If you create a similar project, I’d love to see it – feel free to post a link in the comments.