As we were putting up the Christmas tree this year, I noticed several ornaments my children have made over the years that have lasted for years. And the other thing I realized about them was that each one of them was made by a child of mine when they were young.
While I wasn’t involved in all of the processes that went into making them, I hope my pictures will help you know what to do. The first two ornaments were made by my children during a church project. The other one I made with my child at home.
I happen to know when each of the ornaments was made because I always date them. This is something I’ve done since my first Christmas with my hubby back in 1974. If you don’t date your ornaments, may I encourage you to do so. Knowing when your child made a particular ornament and how old they were when they did, will bring a sweet memory and a smile to your face.
Ornament #1
This first ornament was one that Faith made when she was seven years old. It dates back to 1984 and was one that she made during a church activity.
It is composed of three clothespins that do not contain the springs–two of them are glued side by side to form the body, and the third one is turned and glued upside down to form the head and antlers.
As you can see, there are tiny eyes glued on the sides of his head, along with a tiny bell that is placed under his mouth and tied around his head once the glue is set. 
(I suspect a glue gun was used for the gluing part of this project.) The bell was tied on with a thin piece of white string so it is difficult to notice.
Finally, small pieces of red and green felt were glued over the body, a small white ball glued on for his tail, and black felt markers used to color his hooves.
And by the way, this little reindeer is extremely easy to “clip” onto the Christmas tree. 
Ornament #2
This cute little bird ornament was made by my son Danny when he was only three. Now, I suspect he probably had some help with it, but it was simple enough that he was able to actively participate in its creation.
As you can see, this little bluebird was made from a pine cone. Here in Georgia, pine cones are plentiful. However, if you don’t have very many where you live, you can certainly buy them at a craft store.
Basically, it consists of a pine cone for the body, a small styrofoam ball for the head, a firm piece of cardstock for the beak, and another piece of cardstock for the tail.
If I were making this myself, I would start by cutting off the rounded part of the head that sits on the pine cone. This will make gluing much easier as it will allow a bigger surface to adhere to the body.
Before gluing, paint the body and head with some blue paint. Apparently, the pine cone and head were painted with an acrylic water-based paint, patted on with a brush. Using this type of paint will allow for fast drying.
The little beak was made from yellow cardstock cut into a triangle and gently forced into the styrofoam, or maybe a small slit was cut and the paper eased into the slit. I can’t really tell at this point.
Cardstock was then cut to look like a tail and then glued into the pine cone. The curl to the tail is optional. As I recall, it was flat and straight when Danny first brought it home 23 years ago.
A string was then tied to the head, or went around the body, and with great pride, Danny brought it home from church and hung it on our tree. It has been one of my favorite ornaments ever since.
Ornament #3
Finally, this ornament was probably the easiest of all three to make. This was made by my son Jeremy when he was five years old. I actually helped him make this one, so I know firsthand what was involved in the process.
First, I gave him five craft sticks. These are the fatter ones you can buy at a craft store, or right here. They do make thinner ones, but I wanted to let him color the sticks, so I used the fatter ones.
After Jeremy finished creating his works of art on each side of the sticks, I began placing a small amount of tacky glue at each place where they intersected.
Making sure that glue had not oozed out from under each intersection, I then placed a clothespin at each point of the star and allowed it to dry overnight.
The next day, I simply removed the clothespins and had Jeremy place his ornament on our tree. I wish I had taken a picture of the smile on his face.
It is my hope that if you have little children–even grandchildren–that you will enjoy making these simple ornaments with them. If they turn out like ours did, you will be able to enjoy them for many years to come.
Originally posted 2008-12-13 23:20:16. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
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