Easy Christmas Ornaments to Make with the Kids!

Each Christmas, I love pulling out the many handmade ornaments I've collected over the years. Ornaments I made in elementary school, stars I made with my mother, a handpainted ball made by my sister-in-law for my son's first Christmas, simple ornaments from little school friends, my own childrens' first artistic attempts at making ornaments - each has a special meaning and a special place on our tree.

Take the time to make a few special ornaments with your kids or grandkids and I assure you that, down the road, these will be your most precious ornaments.

Here are some simple ideas:

1. Foil paper stars: Cut a 4-inch-wide strip of foil paper to a length of 15 inches or so. (All of these measurements are may vary depending on what size star you'd like. Play around until you find the size that works for your tree.). Fold the paper accordion-style. Stitch one end with a needle and thread (same color as your foil) - this will be the center of your star. Fan the accordion folds around until they meet - you've made a circle now. Glue the ends together with rubber cement or other paper glue and hold together until dry. Attach an ornament hanger or a thread loop to the top of the star and hang on your tree! (Note: you can cut tiny notches into the folds as we do when making paper snowflakes for an even prettier look.)

2. Beaded candy cane: Make a little ball at the end of a pipe cleaner to provide a stop for the beads that wil be threaded. Thread red and white pony beads or similar on the pipe cleaner, stopping when you like the length. Cut off any excess pipe cleaner except for maybe a half an inch or so. Ball this remaining pipe cleaner or fold it over to make another stop so that your beads don't slip off. Bend the pipe cleaner into a candy cane. Hang as is or tie a nice ribbon on it as a hanger.

3. Straw stars: Use clean light-colored straw for this ornament. Slice or pull apart a piece of straw to form flat lengths. Cut and assemble the flat segments into a star or snowflake shape by having all of the straw segments cross each other in the center. Stitch through the center with a needle and straw-colored thread, making sure to "hit" all of the straw segments that overlap. Stitch a thread loop to one "point" of the star as a hanger.

4. Pine cone snowman: Collect pine cones, little twigs, and acorns in the yard. Assemble your snowman by having the pine cone as the body, the twigs as arms, and the acorns as the head. You might also use an uncracked nut for the head. Glue (or have an adult hot-glue) the components in place. Decorate if desired by rolling in glue and glitter, painting the tips of the pine cone with white paint, or drawing a face on the acorn or nut. You might even add a hat, mittens, and a scarf with tiny scraps of felt or other material. Attach an ornament hanger and hang!

5. "Mosaic" balls: You may use styrofoam ornament balls or plain glass balls for this project. Cut very small "mosaic" square in various colors of tissue paper. Use a decoupage glue such as Hodge-Podge to attach your mosaic pieces randomly or in a pattern. Then put a final coat of this decoupage glue over the entire ball as a sealer.

6. Painted glass balls: Glass ornaments may be handpainted very nicely using regular acrylic paints. Paint a seashore scene on a clear ball if you live by the beach and put some sand and tiny seashells inside. This creates a special memory of a special place! You can get the same effect by painting a snowman and inserting tiny white styrofoam pellets or other white material (sea salt?) to look like snow.

7. Flower pot bells: Buy the tiniest size of clay flower pot at your local craft store. Paint the pot as desired. The upside-down pot will be your bell. String a jingle bell on a cord and thread through the hole at the bottom of the pot. Make a knot at the top so that it doesn't slip out. Let it dangle enough to be able to jingle. String a ribbon loop through the hole the other direction so that its knot is on the inside of the pot and the loop is on top. This is your hanger!

8. Handprint reindeer: For the tiniest crafters, buy some craft foam in reindeer colors! Trace your little one's hand and cut out. The thumb will be the head of the reindeer and the four fingers will form the legs. Glue some antlers made out of craft foam to the thumb. Let your crafter decorate the reindeer with glitter paint, markers, or whatever strikes their fancy! Attach a hanger or ribbon at the middle of the back so that the deer hangs nicely. Imagine pulling out that little handprint when your "baby" is 25!

There are endless projects you can do with your young ones to add some real sparkle and love to your tree! Take the time to pick up a few supplies, turn on the carols, and have some cookies and hot chocolate while you enjoy a fun and peaceful day together! Happy holidays!