Looking to replace your ornaments for your tree but you’re having a hard time finding some you like? Here are 10 must try DIY Christmas ornaments that you can make today!

Finding just the right Christmas ornament can be challenging.

They’re either not the color that you want or way too expensive!

Every year I end up doing some sort of DIY ornament or craft for the Christmas season.

This year, there are two new ornaments that I have created for our tree. I will feature at the end of this post.

But I thought it would be fun to share the other creations that I’ve made over the years – sort of like showing time capsule ornaments we’ve made over the years.

So I hope this helps you with some different ways and ideas to create homemade ornaments if you don’t know where to start.

10 Must Try DIY Christmas Ornaments

(Some affiliate links are provided below. Full disclosure here.)

1. Paper Ornaments

handmade paper snowman ornament using sheet music and old dictionary pages

So I’m going to go back in time a bit – all the way to when we lived in Vegas. We had just bought a house. Christmas came but we did not have enough money in the budget to totally trim our tree. We only had enough to buy a tree.

This was when my boys were younger and I had lots of craft supplies and scrapbooking supplies around our house.

So I gathered the paper and the glitter glue and we had fun making handmade, paper ornaments.

We cut out Christmas trees, snowmen, partridges to put in the pear tree – and we pasted them together and added a little bit of glitter glue to the edge to make them look a little more festive.

Handmade paper bird Christmas ornament hanging on a tree

To hang these paper ornaments we simply poked a hole into the top of the ornament and strung a piece of colorful yarn for hanging.

Surprisingly it worked! Such a fun way to create a Christmas craft with your kids.

This is a great ornament craft for kids of all ages! If you aren’t good at shapes, use holiday cookie cutters for your template!

It was very affordable and a fun memory that I hold dearly in my heart that I shared with our boys.

And it was so neat that they were able to look at the tree and be proud of what they created.

2. Fabric Covered Ornaments

This is from the same timeframe in Vegas. I did have some old ornaments on hand but they were not anything that I wanted to hang on our tree!

I had extra fabric and some more of that yarn.

So all I did was cut a circle, wrap the fabric around the ornament, and tied it around the top with the yarn.

It was simple! I finished very quickly and I was able to hang it immediately on the tree.

Now the good thing about this is if you did ever want to revert back to the original ornament, you just untie the yarn and your back to the old ornament.

Here’s another variation if you just wanted to use yarn and hot glue.

silver ornament with a tinsel yarn topping

This is called tinsel yarn it’s got this fun, flamboyant flair – it almost looks like feathers!

Simply hot glue this around the top and hang it to the tree.

This is another great option to embellish a simple ornament that you already have to fit the theme that you’re wanting for this year.

Since we’re on yarn and fabric and all of that fun stuff, the third ornament that I want to share with you is another yarn creation.

3. Yarn Covered Ornaments

chunky knit yarn covered ornament with ribbon hanger

Now this is one of my most popular videos that you can watch on YouTube. I’ll make sure to share a link for that.

I made this yarn covered ornament last year.

It is basically a foam ball that I got from a craft store or dollar store.

I hot glued circles around the outside of the foam ball and attached chunky knit yarn to create a yarn covered ornament.

making a diy chunky knit covered yarn ornament

For the hook, I poked a hole using a skewer and put some hot glue in it and then stuffed a ribbon creating a ribbon loop.

It’s pretty strong and adds that perfect, custom touch.

Number 4 and number 5 on the list are the most affordable if you are going to purchase some ornaments.

4. Gift Box Embellishments

gift box embellishments used as Christmas ornaments

You see these all the time in the wrapping paper aisle during the holiday season.

They’re usually small and flat and they help make a present just look that much more special.

A few years ago I did a Tartan plaid themed Christmas tree in our dining room I was so excited when I found these small Tartan gift box embellishments with snowflakes and Christmas trees.

I was able to just simply modify them enough to where I could hang it on my tree.

I’ve also used plastic snowflakes, miniature wreaths, and wooden elements.

So there are all kinds of small tiny things that you can repurpose from using it as a gift box embellishment to hanging it on your tree.

And the greatest thing about it is that they are very affordable!

5. Gift Card Holders

We’ve all seen them when the checkout lines – especially at the big box hardware stores. They usually have fun little tool boxes that you can put your gift cards in when you give those as a present.

Well there are lots of fun ideas that you can find!

One of my favorites are these knit Santa overalls, hanging on a hanger as if they are ready to go for Christmas Eve! A unique way to add a rustic look to your tree.

knit overall Christmas ornament hanging on a tree

I’ve used this many years ago on our Buffalo Check Christmas Tree.

It’s a fun little way to add some whimsy to your tree!

6. Denim Covered Ornaments

One year I was wanting to create a comfortable tablescape in our dining room that would have everyone want to sit around and linger.

For me the most comfortable thing to wear is a T-shirt and blue jeans.

I thought, well why don’t we use some denim! But I couldn’t find denim ornaments anywhere!

I simply created these denim ornaments using what I had and it from a pair of left over jeans that my boys have outgrown.

If you have any extra pair of blue jeans around, this is a fun and easy craft that you can do!

Simply taken old ornaments that you don’t want to use anymore and you cut the denim into strips.

You attach the jeans to the outside of the ornament using hot glue.

It is super simple to do!

7. DIY Tarnished Ornaments

Since we’ve been talking about tablescapes, I will share with you one of my very favorite Christmas tablescapes that I had created using sheet music, tarnished silver trays as chargers, and beautiful hints of crystal here and there.

tarnished silver Christmas table setting

For the tree in the corner, I could not find any tarnished silver ornaments.

So here’s what I did.

I took a simple plastic silver ornament.

I used some antiquing glaze to create this old tarnished look.

It’s such a unique ornament that I still use on my tree today.

8. Jewelry/Charm Ornaments

If you like to make your own jewelry, you can use the larger beads to create you own fun ornaments.

chandelier with greenery and tarnished silver ornaments and crystals

I created these crystal ornaments the same year that I made the DIY Tarnished Ornaments.

I made these by using some crystals that I had on hand along with some jewelry making supplies. Check out our video to see a few more that I have created!

These last 2 ornaments are the newest ones I’ve created this year and will be sharing a full tutorial on how to make these next week, so stay tuned!

9. DIY Faux Matte Ornaments with a Glitter Top

diy faux crushed velvet ornament with a glitter top

I started with glitter ornaments as a base.

It was a surprise that I actually bought glitter ornaments because I really don’t like to handle them. All that excess glitter seems to magnetize to me!

But what if I painted them?

It ended up being so beautiful because the acrylic paint actually makes it appear as if it’s crushed velvet!

I used a matte colored acrylic kind of paint in a beautiful neutral beige color.

You can use any extra paint you have. Just think of all the different colors you can create!

But sitting as itself – it was just kind of bland. So it needed a little bit of bling!

I used some tacky adhesive and added the glitter to the top.

I will share a tutorial in a blog post on how you can make these soon.

10 DIY Rust Ornaments With Glitter

diy rust covered ornament with gold glitter

I have to say this is one of my favorite ornament DIYs that I have done!

Rust-Oleum makes this rust kit that you can purchase and it’s a three-part process.

You start with a primer base, then you add the top coat, and finally there’s an activator that actually creates the rust finish.

I will share all the details next week in a blog post so you can easily recreate these ornaments!

I used same technique as number 9 to attach the glitter to the top.

Other Handmade Ornaments to Consider

Filled Clear Plastic Ornaments: Clear plastic ornament balls are easy to find. Simply take off the top and fill the inside of the ornament with all kinds of stuff. Glitter, artificial snow, pom pom balls – all kinds of stuff you can add to a fillable ornament!
DIY Sea Glass Ornaments: If you are wanting a coastal feel, check out this tutorial from my friends at Charleston Crafted.
Gold Leaf Glass Ball Ornaments: If you have some clear glass ornaments, use mod podge to add gold leaf around the outside of the ornament. Here’s a great tutorial on how to create your own from my friend Roxanne from The Honeycomb Home.