Thursday, December 16, 2010

Treasure Ball Ornament Tutorial Christmas D.I.Y. Day Eight

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I made these treasure ball ornaments for my daughter to give as party favors at our recent little elf holiday party.  They are fun to make, and fun for kids to unwrap. 
To make them you need:
Rolls of crepe paper streamers
Trinkets to hide inside the ball
Ribbon
Tape
Gift Tag (optional)
Ornament Hanger (optional)
Step 1 – Gather little trinkets to hide inside your ball.  We were having a little elf party, so I picked mini sized trinkets.  Since the purpose is to hide everything within the ball, you want a good mix of only 1 or 2 larger items and then a bunch of smaller items.  For this treasure ball I used mini play-doh, mini nail polish, mini body glitter, mini activity book, ring, silly bands, eraser, nail stickers, and a tattoo.  Obviously, I was making these for little girls, but the possibilities of trinkets are endless.  A tip – to cut down on the cost, look for packs of multiple items that can be split.
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Step 2 – Begin wrapping the first item with the crepe paper.  My strips were approximately 3 feet long, but there is no exact science to this and mostly I just winged it because that’s how I craft. 
I used the biggest item for the center to give me a good foundation for the ball shape.
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Pull the streamer fairly snug around each item.  Manipulate the paper so that it wraps on all sides of the item.
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Step 3 – Continue adding items, alternating the direction of your wrapper.  Ideally, you’ll want one streamer wrapped per item, but some items might take 2 streamers to get good coverage,especially if it’s a heavy item like the nail polish I used.  Roll with how you think it’ll work best.  Not one to skip over the obvious, but wrap in a ball shape.
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Step 4 – Now that you’ve wrapped all of your items inside nice and tight, take one or two additional streamers and wrap the outside of the ball.  When you get to the end, add a little piece of tape to secure it.
Step 5 – Add a ribbon for cuteness.  Also a nametag if you want.  You’re done and now you have a super cute party favor that can be tailored to any kind of celebration.
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Step 6 (optional) – Add an ornament hook, and hang from the tree.  This would be fun to hide in the tree for your kid to find.  Or your wife if there is diamond jewelry inside *ahem*.
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Step 7 – Make the kids take them home to unwrap, otherwise you’ll have quite a mess to pick up.
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Happy Holidays DIY’ers!
~julee~