This is the first time we've had a real tree in 11 years. The first year we were married we had one, and it was such a disaster that we bought a fake one the next year to save our marriage. But this year we got a real one (out of necessity) and it has been so fun! I mentioned a while ago that I was making all the ornaments for my tree this year since my real ornaments are in storage. Well, except for a few glittery snowflakes from Hobby Lobby, I did it! Here are a
bunch of quick and easy ornaments you can make to decorate a tree or use as gift tags, gift toppers, etc. this year, or pin them for next year! Read on!
The Vintage "Tag" or "Greeting Card" Ornament
All of these are made from scrapbooking supplies, and could easily double as gift tags! The idea came from this beautiful vintage postcard ornament (below) I received from my friend
Bethany of
Ribbon, Glitter and Glue a couple of years ago. You could easily re-purpose greeting cards, old postcards, or vintage bingo cards to come up wth 5-minute-or-less ornaments and gift tags!
Just punch a couple of holes in the top corners of the card, add some ribbon, tinsel, baker's twine, jingle bells, buttons--whatever Christmasy bling you have around. I also added some Stickles Glitter Glue around the edges of a couple to finish them off like
Bethany did.
Real gift tags work great as ornaments, too! I used a couple from a gift tag exchange I did with friends last year (I couldn't bear to part with some of them, like this one by my friend
London of
Such Sweet Tierney who sells these cute
mustache chipboard buttons as well as
vintage-inspired resin buttons that I love!).
And this one by my talented friend Marilyn.
I used the same
paper star tutorial I showed you last year for my
paper star wreath to make some filler ornaments using cute patterned paper. I also used these as gift tags this year.
Jute and Light Bulb Pear Ornaments My friend Kerri turned burned out "old fashioned" (not the new energy efficient type) lightbulbs into darling pear ornaments with a little jute and hot glue! I loved that she had her kids help--then they gave them to their teachers as Christmas gifts with a tag that said, "You're a "Pear-fect" Teacher! So sweet!
To make these, start hot gluing jute to the bottom of a lightbulb in a spiral motion.
Continue until it is covered.
Add a piece of a twig from your yard on top and glue a piece of jute or ribbon for hanging on the tree. Cute! She said they dropped these to see if they shattered, and luckily the jute provided plenty of protection--they didn't break!
Wooden Tag Ornament Our friend
Melynie of
Life Is So Delicious turned wood tags from
Pick Your Plum into gift tags that double as ornaments for neighbor gifts.
First she painted them with acrylic paint and wiped off the excess paint to make it look aged. After letting it dry, she stamped the word STAR onto the bottom of the tag. (line up alphabet letter stamps and tape them together to keep them straight). She cut out a star from the metallic paper and glued it on. Last she cut 8"-9" of baker's twine and thread through the hole and tied a 5" strip of ribbon to the twine on the front of the tag. Knot the ends of the twine to form a hanging loop and you've got another cute (and quick) tag ornament!
Glittered Chipboard Snowflake Ornaments 
After putting together a craft night for 40 of my friends from church to make these chipboard snowflake ornaments (also fun but they take more than 5 mintues!), I had a few pieces of chipboard leftover. So I sprayed them with spray adhesive and covered them in glitter. I added a piece of ribbon, a jingle bell, and a "Peace On Earth" tag and voila! Less than 5 minutes for a pretty ornament or gift tag.
Paper Filled Glass Ball Ornaments
Well I found some flat glass ornaments on sale at Michael's and made up a few more similar ornaments using die cut stars. These were even faster than the curled paper! Punch or die cut shapes of your choice out of book pages, sheet music, or patterned scrapbook paper and carefully insert them in the top of the ornament. Replace the top, add a bow, and you're done! I also added some red sequins inside for extra shine.
Covered Glass Ball OrnamentsI also made a few of these
sheet music covered glass ornaments for a guest post over at
I {Heart} Nap Time for
Jamielyn's Crazy Crafters Christmas extravaganza. I think these might be my favorite ornaments on the tree!
Pine Cone Ornaments Of course pine cones are always gorgeous on a Christmas tree (since they kinda belong there anyway). I added a little twine, ribbon, and a glass jewel to pine cones from my yard for a quick ornament. If I would've had more time, I probably would've glittered them, but I think they are a nice contrast to the rest of the glitter on my tree (and my hubby agrees).
Paper Star GarlandsLastly, I made star garland with book pages and my sewing machine. First I die cut hundreds of stars with my Sizzix machine and the Stars 2 die. Then I layered 3 stars and stitched down the middle with my machine. To make a garland, hold the first star piece and pull gently away from the needle while running the machine to create chain stitches. Then stop and feed another group of three stars under the needle and repeat until desired length. Separate the stars with your fingers. Instead of wrapping these around the tree, I hung them vertically from top to bottom. So easy, cheap, and cute!
Whether you're still trying to finish your tree or looking for gift ideas, all these quick and easy ornament ideas could definitely fill the bill! If not, pin them for next year!
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