I’m so excited to share today’s fun with you! We love finding things to do together as a family andĀ Christmas crafts for kids are no exception. They are even better when they are fun for not just the kids but for the adults as well. Even better still when they involve glitter! We tried just such a fun craft last week. We had the best time AND we made some gorgeous ornaments for our tree this year. That equals perfection to this mom!
So, I’ve always wanted to have a tree with a theme. It seems like it would be so expensive to have a tree with a theme. This year since my girls are old enough to not destroy ornaments or a tree, I decided I was going to find a way to have a theme on a small budget.
Elmer’s had also asked me to do another post as part of my participating in the Elmer’s Craft-It-Crew this year. They sponsored this post and sent me the glues we used for our ornaments. I realized as I was thinking about what fun to make with Elmer’s, I could have my theme this year on a small budget AND I could create a fun craft for my girls and I to do together.
Last week Snowflake had a half day of school. Snowflake, Pumpkin, and I spent the afternoon making ornaments. It was so fun! We all thought it was just like dying Easter eggs, which we always have tons of fun doing. We enjoyed an afternoon together, had some laughs, and made pretty ornaments that are in the color theme I wanted this year. Yay!
Let me show you how we made our ornaments. They were super easy. Ā
Supplies:
- Elmer’s Craft Bond Quick Dry Glue
- Elmer’s X-TREME School Glue
- Glass ornaments
- Glitter (fine and chunky in each color you are using)
- Paintbrush
- Twine or string
We had fun creating our own designs for the ornaments. I didn’t give my kids any rules for this craft. I only put out the two colors of glitter that I wanted us to use to match my color theme. We just went with what was on the table and everyone got to create their own designs.
I started things off with the Elmer’s Craft Bond Quick Dry glue. It is a thick glue. Perfect for these ornaments. I placed a couple of rows of glue at the top of the ornament.
I then used my paintbrush to paint the glue down the side of the ornament. Then is it just adding the glitter of your choice.
This is the effect that you will get with this technique. So pretty!
Next up, I wanted to see what the Elmer’s X-TREME School Glue would do. I placed a row at the top of this ornament. As you can see, this glue is a thinner glue and runs much more easily.
Just keep your ornament angled or move it as necessary to get the kind of glue drips you want and add glitter.
This is the effect you will get using this technique. Another very pretty look!
Snowflake enjoyed trying all kinds of techniques. In this picture, she was creating rows on her ornament using the Craft Bond Quick Dry glue.
This craft can get a little bit messy with all of the glitter. If you have empty boxes you can use those as trays to help contain the amount of glitter, as you can see we did above.
My favorite ornament that Snowflake made is this one that we call the Disco Ball ornament. Love it!
Pumpkin created so many great creations as well. In this picture, she used the Craft Bond Quick Dry glue to make large polka dots on her ornament.
It turned out so pretty!
At first I thought we would be able to use the trays that the ornaments came in to allow them to dry, but as we created, I quickly realized that we were using most of the surface of the ornaments and they would get ruined drying in the trays. Instead, we used the bar in our kitchen and threaded the ornaments with twine and hung them to dry. I did place a mat under them to catch any glue drips and lots of glitter as well.
We created so many pretty ornaments! I just wanted to show you a few more ideas. This one was created by Pumpkin and used the Craft Bond Quick Dry glue.
I think this one was also made by Pumpkin and used the X-TREME School Glue. Snowflake made one similar to this using the same glue. It is pictured in the first picture in this post.
I made this one using Craft Bond Quick Dry glue. I ā„ polka dots!
I think this may very well become a new Christmas tradition in our house to make new ornaments to a color theme every year. It was so much fun! I love the creativity both my girls and I had and what seemed to be the endless number of ideas we could come up with for the ornaments. We have talked about going and buying more ornaments to make more. We loved how the ornaments looked hanging to dry on the bar and thought it could be really pretty to decorate our mantle that way…plus this was just a fun craft. š
What are your favorite Christmas crafts for kids (and adults)? Leave a comment below.
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That is such a fun idea! My son would love making these!
Thanks! I bet your son would have a great time. I know we did! My girls were really bummed when we ran out of ornaments. Buy plenty if you decide to give them a try!
They’re all so very pretty! I’ve put glitter inside an ornament but never really on the outside. I’ve always been afraid the glitter would shed everywhere and make a mess. however it might just be worth it for beautiful ornaments like those.
Thanks so much! We have used these ornaments for two years now and they still look great, so I guess it works to put it on the outside. It is funny, I never really thought about it until I read your comment. Phew…at least it worked out. š