Naptime DIYs : three easy baubles
Baubles are the classic Christmas decoration. It isn’t Christmas until you’ve got a lovely big tree dripping in baubles, sometimes gaudy, sometimes sparkly, always festive. This year, I’ve decided to go for quite a minimal style for our tree, lots of neutral colours, natural elements like plants and wood, and a bit of something quirky and abstract.
But it turns out it’s incredibly hard to find affordable baubles that aren’t in the traditional Christmas colours, and that are matte and neutral. Thankfully, baubles are incredibly easy to DIY, and with the help of a few simple craft supplies, I’ve come up with three different designs that take no time at all.
Glass baubles filled with foliage
For these, I used glass baubles because it’s more sustainable and (I think) more beautiful than plastic, but if you’re on a budget, fillable plastic baubles can be found at loads of good craft stores. You’ll need to use artificial foliage if you want your baubles to last beyond a year but if you’re worried about sustainability you could use preserved foliage - eucalyptus works particularly well. It probably won’t last more than a year but will at least get through the festive season without wilting. Don’t forget that you need to choose foliage that will fit through the neck of a glass bauble - I thought about using dried orange slices before I realised there was no way to get them in! In the end I opted for eucalyptus and mistletoe.
You will need:
Foliage of your choice
Twine
Glue
Cut a small piece of foliage to fit your bauble. Tie a small piece of twine around the end of the stem, with a small tail.
Open your fillable bauble. If it’s glass, this is usually done by gently pulling off the metal hanger at the top.
Feed the tail of twine on your foliage through the small gap in the metal hanger. Add a small blob of glue to the top of the hanger and press the twine onto the glue. You might need to hold it there as the glue dries.
When the glue is dry, gently tuck the foliage through the neck of the bauble and reinsert the metal hanger.
Abstract angel face baubles
I think this is about as easy as a DIY can get! While I decided to draw my faces onto ceramic baubles, you could also use this technique on old plastic baubles - it would be a fab way to upcycle baubles you’ve got bored of. Check out Pinterest for ideas on the kinds of faces you can draw. The beauty of these is that you can make them exactly to your style.
You will need:
Sharpie markers in colours of your choice
Draw a face onto your baubles. And that’s it!
this must be the easiest diy ever…
Painted ceramic baubles
I was incredibly picky about the exact shades of paint I wanted, so ended up using two different types of paint - acrylic craft paint (Pebeo in Powder Grey) and chalk furniture paint (Rustoleum in China Rose). Both turned out well so you can try either! You could also use spray paint.
I used masking tape for my baubles, but if (and when!) I make more, I’ll use painters tape instead. The curve of the baubles means that masking tape doesn’t sit completely flat and a little bit of paint slipped underneath, giving me a less clean line than I’d have liked.
You will need:
Acrylic or chalk paint in the colours of your choice
Masking tape or painters tape
A foam brush
Use your tape to mark out the line where you’d like your paint to stop. Try to stick it down well so you end up with a clean finish.
Use your foam brush to paint on a layer of paint. Wait for this to dry, then reapply until you have an opaque finish. I needed three coats of furniture paint but four of the acrylic paint.
Leave to dry completely, ideally overnight, then remove the tape.
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