Top 6 DIY Christmas Decorations

Amber Xiao, Reporter|November 29, 2017

 1. Mason Jar Christmas Tree

This cute idea is perfect as a centerpiece on the mantle or the dinner table. First, buy 6 of the same canning jar. Next, fill it with ornaments, tinsel, whatever you want! Assemble the jars with three on the bottom, two on the next layer, and one on the top, like a pyramid. Finally, wrap it with a shiny garland or some of your leftover tinsel and top it with a sparkling star!

 

 

 

 

 

 

2. Holiday Salt Shakers

Here's one Yuletide idea that's definitely worth its salt: Turn under-a-dollar shakers into mini winter wonderlands by nesting toy evergreens and deer atop iodized "drifts." What you'll need: salt shakers ($13 for 12, amazon.com); mini trees ($12 for pack of 24,amazon.com); reindeer ($1.67 for six, hobbylobby.com) You can turn these under-a-dollar salt shakers into mini wonderlands by nesting fake reindeer and mini evergreens atop iodized “drifts”.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3. Upgrade a Plain Glass Ornament

At around a dollar each, these empty orbs offer an affordable catalyst for creativity. Fill one with small wooden chips, another with a single stunning peacock feather (attached to the ornament's top with hot glue). Or compose a more obvious Christmas scene by dropping a model fir tree into a globe dusted with artificial snow. You can also use tweezers to position branches inside and even hot-glue a tiny cardinal in place. What you'll need: ornaments ($7 for pack of 12, amazon.com); peacock feathers ($7 for pack of 30, amazon.com); artificial snow ($9, amazon.com); wood chips ($4, amazon.com)

These clear plastic ornaments are around a dollar each on amazon. These ornaments can be separated into two pieces and put back together- making them the perfect candidate for a renovation. The rest of the steps can be left to your own imagination. In the photo on the left, one of the ornaments has been filled with wood chips. Another one has a mini evergreen sitting on top of a pile of fake snow. You could even hot-glue a peacock feather to the top of an ornament. Or use tweezers to position fake branches and hot-glue a tiny cardinal to them.

 

 

 

 

4. Homemade Bird Seed Ornament

Attract blue jays and goldfinches in winter with this frozen birdseed ornament, adapted from Ernst Kirchsteiger's Swedish Christmas Traditions. Get the tutorial here. STEP ONE: Lay a greased, bird-shaped metal cookie cutter ($1.50; amazon.com)atop two layers of aluminum foil. Tightly wrap the foil up to cover the cutter’s sides.

STEP TWO: In a pot on medium heat, melt 1 cup coconut oil ($6.99 for 14 ounces; wholefoods.com for stores). Stir in ¼ cup chopped nuts (any variety will do) and ¼ cup birdseed. Let cool to a thick but pourable consistency.

STEP THREE: Place one end of an 8-inch-long twine string into the cutter, so that most of the twine sticks out from the very top of the wing. Then slowly pour the seed mixture into the cutter until it almost reaches the top. Let harden at room temperature, then freeze for an hour. Pop the shape out of the cutter and hang outside.

 

 

5. Giant Christmas Wreath

Believe it or not, this oversized wreath form is actually a hula-hoop wrapped in twine. Get the tutorial at Homemade Ginger.  Believe it or not, this is actually a hula hoop wrapped in twine and decorated in leaves.

Materials: Hula hoop, twine, wood letters, gold spray paint

Step 1: Spray paint the hula hoop gold with the gold spray paint.

Step 2: Wrap the twine RANDOMLY around the hula hoop.

Step 3: Wrap the fake leaves/ fake branches around the hula hoop and tie them on with twine

Step 4: Hang the letters in the middle of the hula hoop to spell whatever holiday word you want. You could even spray paint them like the picture on the left. Also, if you don’t want the letters to fall forward, hot glue them to pieces of twine hanging down from the top.

6. Glitter Candles

You always need candlelight during the holidays! This votive craft is so simple, you'll want to make new ones every year.  Get the tutorial at Two Sisters Crafting.   If you’re a big fan of candlelight during the holidays, why not decorate those candles with some glitter?

Materials: Set of plain candles,  Glitter (any color, but in the picture it’s red), Mod Podge, Crafting Brush, Clear Sealer Spray, and Painting Tape

Step 1: Use the Painting Tape to mark off the area that you want the glitter to be in.

Step 2: Using a crafting brush, paint on a layer of Mod Podge on the area that you want to cover with glitter.

Step 3: Then, sprinkle glitter over the candle until all of the Mod Podge is covered.

Step 4: Let them dry for a day, then use the clear sealer spray on the glitter to keep the glitter from flaking off later.