Oh Christmas Tree: Six Affordable Handmade Ornaments

Not in the mood to thread popcorn for your Christmas tree garland? Don't worry, there are lots of options for decorating your living room spruce this year. Jazz up the old Christmas tree with some handmade ornaments.

State Love Ornament Whether you're from Wyoming or have roots in Rhode Island you'll love this handmade ornament. Take a small embroidery hoop, felt and thread to create what Craftsunleashed.com calls the State Love Ornament. It would also make a great gift for your long distance friends.

Cookie Cutter Ornament
Once you're done making that batch of sugar cookies, why not use the cutters to make a batch of cute ornaments? Martha Stewart suggests gluing patterned paper or photocopied photos to the back of a cookie cutter. Attach ribbon at the top to complete this project.

Monogram Ornaments
These lovely handmade Monogram Ornaments can play double duty as name tags on gifts. Roomag.com suggests purchasing wooden letters from the craft store and embellishing them with patterned paper for an inexpensive way to personalize your tree.

Painted Logs
Take a cue from Etsy artist Rabbit Portal and use slices of wood as your canvas for tiny paintings. Drill a hole and thread through some festive ribbon for a truly unique ornament.

Santa's Belly Ornaments
Plain clear ball ornaments are transformed into Santa's belly with this cute tutorial from acraftyb.com. Curl strips of red paper and place them inside the ornament. Then draw on a belt and buckle using black and silver puffy paint.

Yarn Wreath Ornaments
This handmade ornament is so easy your kids could even help, according to christopherandtia.blogspot.com. Wrap mini Styrofoam wreaths with a selection of yarn in your favorite colors. Attach small pine cones or trinkets for a no-sew, no-glue project that will have your tree looking cozier than ever.

By Alison Storm

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