Christmas Ornament Decorating Party Invitations

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I found my inner-crafter about a few years ago while recovering from a back injury. My friend Maria would come over to keep me company while I recovered and indulge me in my aspirations to re-create Michaelangelo's David out of wine corks. Just kidding on the David but she absolutely did indulge me in frequent craft time!

I love to create! Even if the end result is not what I hoped (I've definitely had my share of Pinterest fails!), I still enjoy the process of creating.

This year I decided to have a DIY ornament party with a couple of friends and family. A crafternoon is like coffee, it's even better when shared!
We had so much fun, and it really felt like an official kick off to the holidays. It's so fun to get some friends together and enjoy each others company while stretching our creativity muscles!

Want to host your own DIY Ornament Party? Here are the easy steps!

1. DIY Ornament Party Invitation

I love using Evite for party invitations. People check their email much more frequently than they do their mail boxes, and they're so quick and easy to send out! There is a message section where you can offer your guests more details.

2. Provide creative inspiration for your guests

I created a Pinterest board titled "DIY Ornament Party" (you can check it out here for inspiration!) and invited my guests to pin to it (for how to do this click here). It was fun to look at all if he additions in the week leading up to the party. Encourage your guests to print out pics of the ornaments they plan to use as a blueprint. Here is a sampling of the beauties my friends and family made!

3. Stock up for the DIY Ornament Buffet

My favorite places to get holiday decorations on the cheap are Hobby Lobby (all of their Christmas decorations are 50% off right now!) and Dollar Tree. After pulling out supplies from my existing craft stash, I hit up those 2 spots to gather the remainder of the supplies I wanted.

Here are some ideas to choose from for your DIY Ornament Buffet:

A few pairs of scissors (you can pick up extras at Dollar Tree)
Glue gun (with extra glue)
Glue sticks
Superglue
Mod Podge
Glitter
Embossing heat tool
Embossing powder
Stamps
A variety of Christmas-y ribbon
Bells
Letter stencils and stickers
Glitter
Wine corks
Pine cones
Beads
Clear ornament bulbs in a variety of sizes
Colored glass ornament bulbs
Buttons
Clothes pins
Wire
Scrapbook paper
Styrofoam balls and pins (you can get these in the floral section at Hobby Lobby)
Craft paints in a variety of colors
Pencil erasers and tooth picks (great for making dots with glue)
Did I say glitter?
Foam paint brushes
Small picture frames from Dollar Tree
Small paint brushes for detail work
Sharpies
Glitter glue
Clippings from holiday floral and bead branches
*GLITTER!

Other key supplies:

An extension cord
Shower curtain liners (I'll explain in a minute)
Containers to house the decorations for the table (I used a muffin tin to keep all of the small pieces wrangled)

4. Set up for your DIY Ornament Party!

Lay out all of the ornament supplies, buffet-style. I set out the ornament foundation supplies (the bulbs, corks, clothes pins, foam balls, etc.) on the kitchen counter, and then what would be used to decorate the foundations on the table where we would be sitting.

Notice the * by GLITTER? Beautiful on the ornaments? Yes! Messy? Absolutely! Wrap that baby up like a crime lab!
I bought shower curtain liners from Dollar Tree and covered the table. Learn from my mistake! Also put liners on the floor and chairs (if you're using upholstered ones). Since I failed to do this, I'm pretty sure that Tootie will track glitter through the house for years to come!

5. Fuel your guests' creative juices!

This is where the food, drinks and music come in! 🙂
I served hors d'oeuvres (of course, some holiday themed), mulled wine (check out the recipe here from The View from Great Island, I didn't have Brandy, but it's delicious with or without!) and hot cocoa with mini candy canes topped with marshmallows. And of course we listened to Christmas music on cable!

6. Have fun!

We sure did! Even through a near Pinterest fail. Whew! Crisis averted. 😉

To see more of my guest's DIY ornament masterpieces, check them out on my Facebook page or Instagram.

Thanks for reading!