By Guest Blogger Sandy Harper
Since the weather has turned colder and wetter (thank goodness), I have been trying to find creative, holiday-related activities for my three year old son and I to do. He is thrilled by all things Christmas tree related so I decided to help him make his first ornaments. Though there were a few steps he couldn’t do, he enjoyed the activity.
I hope you and your family have as much fun making these as we did!
Cinnamon Stick Christmas Tree
This one is simple, but be prepared to get a bit sticky.
You will need a few twigs of a short needle pine tree. I went to a Christmas tree lot and just asked for a few of their scrap pieces. They were kind enough to give them away for free.
The other materials you will need are: twine, hot glue gun with glue, cinnamon sticks and anything you would like to decorate your trees with. A few ideas are: buttons, sequins, small pompoms and beads.
Cut three pieces off of the pine tree twig. Cut them as 1”, 2” and 2 ½”. Prior to gluing them to the cinnamon stick, I found I needed to trim the needles on each piece to make them a bit narrower, so they fit better on the stick.
Glue the three pieces of pine to the cinnamon stick with the 1” piece at the top, then the 2” and finally the 2 ½”.
I made a loop with a piece of twine and knotted it together. Then I glued the knot to the backside of the cinnamon stick.
Now it’s time to decorate! Be creative and have fun. This was my son’s favorite part.
Ribbon Stick Christmas Tree
This is another quick and easy ornament to make. Yet let me warn, if you are even a bit OCD you may find yourself trying to get the ribbons to lay just right. But there is no need because each one looks unique and special.
All you need is a small stick. I literally found one out in my yard. I cut mine down to 6” but you may find once you’re done you’ll want to trim it more.
You will also need some scrap ribbon. I used five different colored ribbons but you can choose more or less colors.
Lastly, you will need a piece of twine and a hot glue gun with glue.
First, I made a loop and tied the twine to the top of the stick. Then I glued it so it would stay in place.
I decided what pattern I wanted my ribbon colors to make and proceeded to tie pieces onto the stick, starting at the top. I tied sixteen pieces of ribbon onto my ornament but you can choose to do more or less. It just depends on how small or big you want your ornament.
Finally, I trimmed the ribbon ends so that the top ribbon was the shortest and the bottom ribbon was the longest. This shaped it more like a tree.
If you do not want your ribbon ends to fray, you can use a match or lighter to slightly burn the ribbon ends.
Now have fun with these crafts and Merry Christmas to you all!
