Christmas Ornament

Made with Love, Little Man

Before we get too far past the Christmas Season (sniff, sniff) I wanted to share the Christmas Ornament Little Man and I made!  We made three, one for each set of Grandparents, and one for us.  They were super easy to make - and very inexpensive!

First off, let me say what a saga this was finding the perfect "canvas" to put Little Man's handprint on! 

First, we went to Painted Earth, a place where you can paint and fire your own ceramics.  They were out of the one we wanted and only had some really, really heavy plate things left.  Not so good for hanging on a tree!  They had some other bulb ornaments that may have worked, but they were about $15 a piece, plus we would have paid $7 each for The Hubs and I to sit down to help Little Man.  No thank you!

Sent The Hubs to Michaels to see if he could find some ornament to put Little Man's prints on..he came back with already glazed ornaments that were too small for Little Man's hands.  Nice try, Hubs. 

Then I decided to try making Salt Dough and bake them in the oven.  I don't know what happened,  but they blew up like biscuits!  Tabitha made some, and hers came out just fine.  Who knows??? Would have been cute though, I even got one of Charlie's little paw prints. 

Then I went to the hobby lobby, and it was closed (see, told ya it was a saga)

Finally to Michael's, where I didn't think I would have any luck because The Hubs already tried looking there.  I really did trust that he looked really hard.  (But really, I think men don't know their way around Michael's like women do....it'd be like sending me into an autoparts strore.  I get it.) 

I just happen to find the last set of wooden cutouts!  Then, because I'm a Libra and can't make up my mind to save my life, I looked at paints forever, then ended up just using leftover paint I already had. Go figure. 

The Cost:
1.  Four ornamates:   $1.79
2.  Acrylic Paint (2): $.79 each (I already had mine)
3.  Glitter Paint: $1.19
4.  Ribbon:  $.79

So if I had paid for it out of pocket it would have cost me $5.35 total.  I already had everything but the wooden cutouts, so it costs me $1.79. 

To make:
1.  Paint entire circle the color you want.  I ended up adding several coats.  (works good with a dark color incase you mess up the handprint.  That way it's really easy to repaint over it and try again)
2.  Paint your little one's hand using a paintbrush.
3.  Stamp their hand on the cutout - making sure not to take too long (they'll wiggle their fingers around too much!)
4.  Wait until it dries.
5.  I painted around his handprint with glitter paint.  You can omit if you wish.
6.  I wrote Little Man's name, age, and the date on the back of the ornament.  
7.  I sprayed a clear varnish around it.  But you probably don't really need to.
8.  Used ribbon to make a loop in the back so we could hang it on the tree.  I guled it with super glue
9.  Made a bow and superglue it to the front of the ornament. 

Little Man had a great time making these.  We did end up redoing the handprint a couple of times.  At first he didn't really get the concept (he's 15 Months) but once we did it a few times he knew to hold his hand out flat.  He would also let me paint his hand and would sit very quietly while I did so.  After I showed him the print on the cutout, he got really excited about it!  For a younger baby, a footprint might be better. 

This will make a very nice keepsake that I know I'll enjoy seeing in the years to come!