12 days of ornaments: day 1

Good morning and welcome to Day 1 of the 12 Days of Ornaments! If you've seen Scrapbook & Cards Today's winter issue, then perhaps you've see the pop bottle crate filled with ornaments on page 5. I had so much fun creating this project using Simple Stories' new holiday collection. :)

Since I've had so many requests for how-to instructions on the ornaments, I thought I'd post one set of instructions each day to run in tandem with SCT's annual "12 Days of Holiday Giving." You won't want to miss out on these great give-aways, as they are always so wonderful and generous!

To get started, you will need the following supplies to create the entire project (bottle crate, 12 ornamaments, tree and jingle bell). In parenthesis, I have indicated what brand I used on the original project. If no company is listed, then they were basic supplies from the craft store. Sorry for the long list, but I think you'll discover that you have most of these items on hand! :)

cardstock (Bazzill Basics) patterned paper (Simple Stories) die cut shapes (Simple Stories) transparency (Simple Stories) word stickers (Simple Stories) star pins (Maya Road) pearl head pins (Dritz) border punches (Stampin' Up!) snowflake dies (Spellbinders) pennant dies (Spellbinders) pine branch die (Papertrey Ink) five-leaf paper punch (Martha Stewart) holly leaf paper punch (Martha Stewart) wooden spools (Darice) chunky clear glitter (Martha Stewart) red and silver glitter (Martha Stewart) cream twine (May Arts) waxed linen (Montana Misfits) 2”-2½” white doilies (Martha Stewart) styrofoam balls

styrofoam tree 3" glass ornaments tiny jingle bells 3” jingle bell small red brads (BasicGrey) red binding tape (Flourishes) chevron 1/2” ribbon (May Arts) 1/2” black ribbon tiny red pom pom trim large & small buttons (BasicGrey) gems, pearls (Queen & Co) German glass glitter acrylic paint (Delta) crackle medium (Delta) brown ink (Tim Holtz) scoring board (Stampin' Up!) small white pom poms wooden pop bottle crate (sodaemporium.com) wet and dry adhesive basic craft tools (trimmer, scissors, etc.)

Today's ornament is the glass Santa's Belt in the upper, left corner of the crate. It's sparkly, festive and oh-so easy to make!

1. Trim various narrow widths of red patterned papers and cardstock (1/16" to 1/8" wide) and 6" long. I used about 30 strips on this ornament.
2. Wind each strip around a pencil and hold it in place for a few seconds. Because paper has memory, when you slide the strip off the pencil, it will maintain a curly, corkscrew shape.
3. Remove the cap from your ornament and slip each curled strip into the hole, one at a time. Shake the ornament occasionally to mix up the direction the curls are going. When you are happy with the fullness of the ornament, replace the cap.
4. Cut a length of mini red pom pom trim and glue it around the perimeter of the ornament cap.
5. Use a scrap of paper to measure and mark the circumfrence of your ornament. Add 1/4" inch to the measurement and cut a piece of 1/2" black ribbon to that length.
6. Run a piece of two-sided tape across the back of the ribbon. If your tape does not have release paper, place it on a piece of waxed paper temporarily.
7. Cover the front of the black ribbon with a strip of double-sided tape. Shake black glitter over the entire surface and rub it into the ribbon in a circular motion. Shake off the excess glitter.
8. From a scrap of chipboard, cut out a ¾"wide by 1" tall rectangle. Cut out two slits, side-by-side, from the center as shown.
9. Run a silver pen (or silver paint) around all of the cut edges.
10. Cover the piece of chipboard with two-sided tape, trimming out the two slits. Shake silver glitter over the entire surface and rub it into the tape in a circular motion. Shake off the excess glitter.
11. Thread the black glitter ribbon through the slits in a under-over-under direction as shown. Remove the release paper from the double-sided tape and apply it to the center of the ornament, overlapping the ends at the back.

That's it, your first ornament is done! See you tomorrow with ornament #2!

Becky