DIY Modern Wooden Ornament
As the holidays are, yet again, upon us, our budget always gets super tight trying to make it through the season. While we’re out buying many gifts for our friends and family, it’s difficult to also budget for some holiday cheer and festivities for ourselves. For example, decorating the tree.
BUT WAIT…!
As the young couple that we are, we have zero ornaments to decorate our Charlie-Brown tree. I couldn’t go another year with an empty tree on displa, and that’s why I made a challenge to myself to only use items I had lying around the house and in my studio to create our ornaments. That’s right! I’m attempting to pull the workings of my creativity beyond our frugal budget and into pure resourcefulness. Look at me go! Insert clever hashtag here. Also, we all know I love a good up-cycle.
After working one of my contracting shifts, I grabbed a long, thin scrap of pine from the trash pile, and saw not one but TWO DIY’S with this guy (stay tuned for next week).
Supplies You’ll Need:
Wooden pegs 4 x 3/4 x 1/4”
Painter’s tape
Modge Podge
Acrylic paint (neutral colors)
Small eye ring screws
Ornament hook or string
I brought out the miter saw, and chopped this baby up into 4-inch blocks. Honestly, you could use a handsaw too if power tools aren’t your thing. Or find something similar at your local craft store. Try to stick to a softer wood like pine or balsa wood.
I also gave my wood a little sanding to make sure my ornaments were splinter-free.
This was a trick I learned in art school to have clear, straight lines when I paint, as sometimes painter’s tape won’t stick to its surface the way it’s suppose to. Then, when you peel back the tape, you have a jagged line where some of the paint ran underneath the tape. The Modge Podge helps protect the straight edge of the tape so you have crisp, beautiful lines.
Luckily, I had a few of these screw left from a picture frame hanging kit. I’m that person that saves every screw, nail, and tac because you never know when you need a spare. However, these should be fairly cheap at the hardware store. And choosing that softer wood to work with comes in handy with this step. I was able to easily hand screw them in.
Next, I used painter’s tape to create a beautiful diagonal line. You might have to cut the tape if you want your diagonal line to be parallel on either sides. Meaning, if you only wrap the tape around the wood, it will spiral as opposed to making it appears to be “dipped into paint.”
Feel free to get creative here. This is the fun part! If you like that modern, minimalistic style, definitely try to stay with neutrals, and only a couple colors. I just used a light blue white, and black.
Also after the paint has dried, if you would like your paint to have a gloss to it, put a coat of Modge Podge on top. It goes on white, but I PROMISE, it dries clear.
I also had a pack of ornament hooks I’ve never used. However, if you don’t have any on hand like I did, you can always use string or hooks from ornaments you no longer use.
I absolutely adore the minimal look and simple style this adds to our tree.