Christmas ornaments don’t have to come from a box at the store. Some of the prettiest decorations on a Christmas tree are the ones made slowly at the kitchen table with scraps of ribbon, colorful yarn, buttons, felt, paint and a little imagination.
DIY Christmas balls are especially fun because one simple ornament shape can be transformed in dozens of different ways. You can create nostalgic decoupage baubles covered with vintage Christmas scenes, wrap ornaments in cheerful yarn, build delicate designs from felt, or turn leftover ribbon and buttons into wonderfully colorful decorations.
They’re also an easy way to make your Christmas tree feel more personal. Make a coordinated collection for an elegant tree, let children create an assortment that grows from year to year, or turn an afternoon of crafting into handmade gifts for family and friends.
🎄 Christmas Ball Crafts at a Glance
Project time: About 15–45 minutes per ornament
Difficulty: Beginner to intermediate
Best for: Christmas trees, garlands, wreaths, gifts and table decorations
Good ornament bases: Clear plastic balls, solid plastic baubles, foam balls and unfinished craft ornaments
✂️ Basic Supplies to Gather
You don’t need every item on this list. Choose a few materials based on the ornament styles you want to make.
- Clear or solid-color plastic Christmas balls
- Foam craft balls
- Decorative Christmas paper or paper napkins
- Decoupage medium
- Small paintbrushes
- Acrylic craft paint
- Yarn or embroidery thread
- Ribbon
- Felt
- Lace
- Buttons
- Sequins
- Pom-poms
- Craft glue
- Scissors
- Glitter, optional
- Beads or faux pearls
- Metallic cord or ribbon for hanging
A box filled with odds and ends from previous Christmas projects can be surprisingly useful here. Short pieces of ribbon, mismatched buttons and scraps of yarn that aren’t enough for a larger project can become exactly what an ornament needs.
🎨 1. Vintage Christmas Decoupage Ornaments
One of the loveliest ways to decorate a plain Christmas ball is with a tiny Christmas scene. Snowmen, old-fashioned Santas, snowy villages, Christmas trees and vintage illustrations all work beautifully.
The finished ornament has the charm of an old-fashioned Christmas decoration, particularly when warm reds, creams and golds are used together.
What You’ll Need
- Clear or light-colored plastic ornament
- Christmas-patterned paper or decorative napkin
- Decoupage medium
- Small soft paintbrush
- Scissors
- Fine glitter, optional
- Ribbon for hanging
How to Make It
Begin by choosing the part of your Christmas paper you want to feature. A single snowman, Santa or small winter scene is much easier to work with than a large complicated picture.
Cut carefully around the image.
If you’re using a printed paper napkin, separate the layers and use only the thin printed layer.
Brush a light coat of decoupage medium over a small section of the ornament. Gently position the paper on top and smooth it from the center outward with your fingers or a soft brush.
Because you’re working on a curved surface, tiny wrinkles are almost inevitable. Don’t worry about achieving a perfectly flat finish. A little texture can actually enhance the handmade, vintage appearance.
Brush another thin coat of decoupage medium over the image and allow it to dry.
For a snowy effect, add a little fine glitter around the edges while the final coating is still tacky.
Finish with a loop of red, gold or cream ribbon.
🧶 2. Colorful Yarn-Wrapped Christmas Balls
Yarn-wrapped ornaments are wonderfully cozy, and the colorful versions are especially cheerful on a family Christmas tree.
You can keep the wrapping orderly and coordinated or deliberately overlap several yarn colors to create the playful look of a miniature ball of Christmas yarn.
What You’ll Need
- Foam or inexpensive plastic ornament
- Yarn in several colors
- Craft glue
- Buttons
- Ribbon
- Scissors
How to Make It
Place a small amount of craft glue near the top of the ornament and press the end of your yarn into place.
Begin winding the yarn around the ball.
There’s no need to follow perfectly straight rows. Crossing the yarn in different directions creates a wonderfully textured appearance.
Switch colors whenever you like. Traditional combinations such as red, green and cream look immediately Christmassy, but pale blue, pink, lime green and turquoise can create a much more playful tree.
Once the surface is completely covered, secure the final yarn end with glue.
Then add a few buttons around the ball as decoration and finish with a ribbon bow near the hanger.
These ornaments are particularly nice for using up yarn scraps left over from knitting or crochet projects.
🔴 3. Button-Covered Christmas Ball Ornaments
A collection of colorful buttons can turn an ordinary ornament into something whimsical and delightfully handmade.
Use buttons in a carefully planned color palette for a sophisticated version, or combine every color imaginable for something much more playful.
What You’ll Need
- Foam craft ball or lightweight ornament
- Assorted buttons
- Craft glue
- Ribbon
- Decorative cord
- Small beads, optional
How to Make It
Begin with your largest buttons and position them at different points around the ornament.
Once you’re happy with the basic arrangement, glue them into place.
Fill the spaces between the larger buttons with smaller buttons. If tiny gaps remain, add beads, sequins or little knots of ribbon.
Create a hanging loop from metallic cord and finish the top with a small bow.
A red-and-green button ornament looks charmingly traditional, while pastel buttons can create a sweet vintage effect. Gold, ivory and pearl-colored buttons make a surprisingly elegant ornament for a more formal tree.
🌲 4. Felt Woodland Christmas Balls
Felt lends itself beautifully to little Christmas shapes. Trees, stars, snowflakes, holly leaves and tiny woodland animals are simple enough to cut by hand and look especially lovely against natural materials.
One pretty variation begins with a clear ornament filled with natural textures and then adds small green felt Christmas trees to the outside.
What You’ll Need
- Clear plastic ornament
- Green and brown felt
- Natural raffia, shredded paper or decorative fiber
- Small dried botanical pieces, optional
- Craft glue
- Narrow ribbon
- Scissors
How to Make It
Open the clear ornament and loosely fill it with raffia, decorative fiber or another lightweight natural material.
Don’t pack it tightly. Leaving a little open space allows the different textures to remain visible.
Cut several miniature Christmas trees from green felt. Vary the sizes slightly so the ornament doesn’t look too formal.
Glue two or three felt trees to the outside of the ball.
Finish with a narrow cream, gold or green ribbon.
For a more elaborate woodland ornament, add tiny pinecones, miniature wooden stars or a small piece of cinnamon stick.
🤍 5. Elegant Lace Christmas Ornaments
Christmas crafts don’t all have to be brightly colored. Lace-covered ornaments can look surprisingly sophisticated and work beautifully with white, gold, champagne, burgundy or vintage-inspired Christmas décor.
What You’ll Need
- White or cream ornament
- Narrow lace trim
- Decorative ribbon
- Craft glue
- Faux pearls or rhinestones, optional
- Metallic hanging cord
How to Make It
Decide on your pattern before adding glue.
You can create vertical lace strips running from the top to the bottom, wrap a single band around the middle or cross two pieces of trim to divide the ornament into sections.
Apply small dots of glue underneath the lace rather than coating the entire ball.
Press each piece gently into place.
Add small faux pearls or rhinestones where the ribbons intersect, then finish with a satin bow at the top.
Red-and-gold lace against a white ornament creates a particularly classic Christmas look, while ivory lace on a champagne ornament feels softer and more romantic.
🎀 6. Curly Ribbon Christmas Ball
If you have a collection of leftover gift ribbon, this may be the most joyful way to use it.
Tiny curls of ribbon in pink, purple, gold, green, silver and white can completely cover an ornament, creating a wonderfully dimensional little ball that almost resembles a Christmas present exploding with bows.
What You’ll Need
- Foam ball
- Several colors of curling ribbon
- Scissors
- Craft glue
- Decorative hanging cord
How to Make It
Cut lots of short ribbon lengths.
Curl each piece by carefully running it across the edge of scissors, just as you would when decorating a wrapped present.
Begin attaching the curled pieces to the ornament in small clusters.
Work your way around the entire ball, alternating colors and directions. Don’t try to flatten the curls. The dimensional loops are what make the ornament so much fun.
Continue until you can barely see the base underneath.
Attach a hanging cord at the top and add one slightly larger bow to finish it.
This is a wonderful choice for a colorful tree, children’s tree or a Christmas craft afternoon where perfection isn’t remotely the goal.
✨ 7. Glitter & Painted Christmas Balls
Sometimes the simplest ornament supplies give you the most creative freedom.
Clear plastic baubles can be painted from the inside, which leaves the outside wonderfully smooth and glossy.
What You’ll Need
- Clear plastic ornaments
- Acrylic craft paint
- Metallic or glitter paint
- Small disposable cups
- Ribbon
How to Make It
Remove the cap from the ornament.
Pour a small amount of paint inside. Slowly rotate and tilt the ball so the paint moves around the interior surface.
You can use one color for complete coverage or introduce a second and third color before the first has fully spread.
Try combinations such as:
- Red and gold
- Forest green and champagne
- White and silver
- Burgundy and rose gold
- Blue and white
- Pink and gold
For a marbled effect, don’t shake the ornament. Simply rotate it slowly and allow the colors to move into one another naturally.
Place the ornament upside down over a disposable cup so excess paint can drain while it dries.
Once completely dry, replace the cap and add a ribbon hanger.
❄️ 8. Snowy Winter Ornament
For a simple ornament that works beautifully on a winter-themed Christmas tree, fill a clear ball with artificial snow and create a tiny scene inside.
What You’ll Need
- Clear fillable ornament
- Artificial craft snow
- Tiny bottlebrush tree
- Miniature snowman, deer or house
- Small tweezers
- Ribbon
How to Make It
Open the ornament and spoon in just enough artificial snow to cover the bottom.
Add a miniature tree and one small Christmas figure. Resist the temptation to fill every inch—the little scene will usually look prettier with some empty space around it.
Close the ornament securely.
Finish it with a white, silver or pale blue ribbon.
You can make an entire collection with different miniature scenes: one with a snowman, another with a deer, another with a tiny Christmas tree and perhaps one with a miniature house.
Together, they’ll look like tiny snow-globe worlds hanging from the branches.
🍬 9. Candy Cane Christmas Ball
A red-and-white ornament is one of the easiest ways to bring classic candy-cane colors to your tree.
Start with a white ball and wrap narrow red ribbon around it diagonally, creating stripes from top to bottom.
Keep the spacing relatively even and secure the ribbon with small dots of craft glue.
Finish with a fluffy red bow at the top.
You could also add a tiny peppermint candy embellishment or a few sparkling white sequins.
These look especially pretty mixed with the Peppermint Meringue Kisses on a holiday dessert table before being moved back to the tree.
🌟 10. Rustic Twine & Button Ornament
For farmhouse or Scandinavian-inspired Christmas décor, skip the glitter and use simple natural materials instead.
What You’ll Need
- Foam or plastic ball
- Natural jute twine
- Wooden buttons
- Craft glue
- Red gingham or tartan ribbon
- Wooden star, optional
How to Make It
Begin at the top and glue the twine around the ornament in tight circles.
Continue wrapping until the entire surface is covered.
Add two or three wooden buttons and a tiny wooden star.
Finish with a small tartan or gingham bow.
These look particularly lovely beside pinecones, wooden decorations and traditional greenery. They’re also a natural fit for a homemade Christmas wreath.
🎨 Choose a Color Palette Before You Begin
If you’re making several ornaments for the same tree, choosing a loose color palette can make very different crafts feel like a collection.
For a traditional Christmas tree, try red, green, gold and cream.
For a woodland tree, choose forest green, brown, ivory, tartan and natural wood.
For a winter wonderland, combine white, silver, pale blue and clear glass.
For a vintage Christmas look, try burgundy, dusty rose, antique gold, cream and muted green.
And for a bright family tree, there really doesn’t need to be a palette at all. Mix turquoise, pink, lime, red, purple and yellow and let every ornament have its own personality.
👨👩👧 Make Christmas Ornaments as a Family
Homemade Christmas balls make an easy seasonal craft because everyone can work from the same basic ornament while creating something completely different.
Set out containers of ribbon, buttons, felt shapes, pom-poms and yarn and allow everyone to choose their own decorations.
Younger children can work with larger pieces and child-appropriate adhesives, while older children and adults can tackle more detailed projects such as decoupage and lace.
Write the creator’s name and year somewhere inconspicuous on each finished ornament.
Years later, those little details may become more precious than the decoration itself.
🎁 Turn Handmade Ornaments Into Christmas Gifts
A single handmade ornament can make a lovely small Christmas gift.
Tie one around the ribbon on a wrapped present instead of using an ordinary gift bow. After the package is opened, the ornament becomes a second gift that can be hung on the tree.
You can also make sets of three or four coordinating ornaments and place them in a small gift box lined with tissue paper.
Personalized versions are especially meaningful. Add a name, initials, wedding date, baby’s first Christmas or the year a family moved into a new home.
Handmade ornaments also make thoughtful little gifts for teachers, neighbors, coworkers and holiday hosts.
🎄 Decorating the Tree With Handmade Christmas Balls
You don’t have to replace your existing ornament collection with handmade decorations. In fact, DIY ornaments often look best mixed among familiar baubles, family keepsakes and twinkling lights.
Try distributing your handmade pieces throughout the tree rather than grouping them all in one area.
Use the larger or more colorful ornaments deeper among the branches where they can fill visual gaps, then reserve delicate ornaments for prominent branch tips.
Ribbon can help unify everything. If you’ve used red velvet, tartan or metallic ribbon on your ornaments, repeating the same material in your tree bows creates a lovely connection. Our Ultimate Guide to Creating Stunning Christmas Tree Bows has plenty of ideas for incorporating ribbon throughout the tree.
🏡 Christmas Balls Aren’t Just for the Tree
Once you’ve made a collection, there are plenty of other ways to decorate with them.
Fill a clear glass vase or large bowl with handmade ornaments for an easy centerpiece. Hang several at different heights in a window. Tie them onto a garland running along the mantel or staircase.
Small ornaments can be wired into your homemade Christmas wreath, while larger ones can be gathered in a decorative basket beneath the tree.
You can even suspend several ornaments from a chandelier or ceiling hook at varying heights to create a floating Christmas display.
The same little craft project can end up decorating almost every part of the house.
❤️ Christmas Decorations With a Story
The greatest appeal of handmade Christmas ornaments isn’t that they’re perfectly shaped or professionally finished.
It’s that somebody made them.
The slightly crooked ribbon, unusual button combination or little wrinkle beneath a decoupaged snowman becomes part of the ornament’s history. A decoration made by a child this Christmas may still be hanging on the family tree decades from now.
So gather a handful of plain Christmas balls, pull out the ribbon scraps and open that jar of buttons you’ve been saving for something.
Paint them, wrap them, cover them with yarn or turn them into tiny snowy worlds.
By the time the tree lights come on, you’ll have created more than Christmas decorations—you’ll have a collection that couldn’t belong to anybody else’s tree.
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