Eight Handmade Christmas Ornaments For Everyone On Your List

I have had visions of embroidery hoops dancing in my head.  I had so many ideas for turning an embroidery hoop into an ornament that I thought I would share 8 of those ideas with all of you.  Eight hoop ornaments that you can make for your tree or gifts for everyone on your Christmas list.  There are ones for boys, girls, grandmas, newlyweds, teachers, you name it!  So let’s get started!

First gather your supplies from Consumer Crafts.  There is a wide variety of small embroidery hoops that are perfect for this projects.  I used mostly 3 inch hoops but one 4 inch as well.

A complete supply list is below.  If you are just making one of the ornaments pictured, be sure to scroll to the tutorial below as you may not need all of the supplies listed.

Supplies needed to make your own handmade christmas ornaments:

• Embroidery Hoops (3 inch for the small and 4 in for the large)
• Felt in Red and White
• Embroidery Thread (this pack is a great value)
• Buttons
• Doily
• Marker
• Disappearing Ink Marker
• Ribbon
• Xacto Knife
• Embroidery Needle
• Scrap Fabric and/or Ribbon

First up is my state love ornament.  This one would be perfect for anyone who loves where they live.  Even a set of these for someone in the military that includes all of the states they have lived in.

These are very simple to make.  I used red and white felt but the colors could of course be customized to your gift recipient.  Place your hoop on the sheet of felt and tighten.

Cut away most of the excess with a pair of scissors.

Then use an X-acto knife to trim the felt neatly.

I then printed my state (Tennessee) on the computer in approximately the size I would need to fill the hoop.  I cut the state out from the paper.  I then laid that on white felt and trimmed around with my X-acto knife.  Please place an old magazine or something under your work area.

Then place your cutout state on the hoop in the approximate location.  Stitch around with red embroidery thread and stitch a heart in the middle or the approximate location of the town where you live.  First ornament done!

Next up is the Tree of Love Ornament for newlyweds or those that still think they are!  Perfect for any couple.

You will need a scrap piece of fabric for this one as well as a marker.  I used a scrap piece of an off white canvas material.  The marker is from my scrapbook supplies.  I think any thin line marker would do fine.

Draw a faux bois or wood grain pattern on your scrap piece of fabric with your thin line marker.

Place the fabric in your embroidery hoop.  Again repeat the steps that are above in the state love ornament.  Trimming any excess with your X-acto knife.

Then cut out a heart from felt (I used white).  I free handed an arrow and “R + A” on my heart.  This is supposed to be reminiscent of a carving on a tree.

I just had to make one using buttons.  I love working with buttons in my craft projects.  My button tree ornament would be perfect to give as a gift or keep for your own tree.

I laid out the buttons I wanted to use before I even started.  Making sure I had the correct placement and number of buttons that I wanted.  I then followed the State Love Ornament tutorial above as far as putting my felt in the hoop.  The buttons were stitched on with embroidery thread.

One of my absolute faves  is the Teacher Gift Ornament!  I love this idea.

Again you follow the instructions in the State Love section above for inserting your felt into the hoop.  I then drew on the felt with a disappearing ink marker to lay out my stitches.  It is very  hard to see the writing in pictures but it was enough for my to use as a guide.  I did the stitching for the “paper lines” first then the stitching for the name.  I love how it turned out.

The exact same methods apply to my Rainbow Name Ornament.  This one is perfect for any little girl from newborn to teen.  Again use a disappearing ink marker to layout your design.  Then put their name in a rainbow!

Now I did say there would be an ornament for everyone on your list right?  What about those pesky boys?  You know the ones that are so hard to buy for.  So I asked my seven year old what type of ornament he would like.  Dinosaurs?  Trucks?  What did he say….a skull.  The Goth Skull Ornament was born.  You gotta give em what they want right?  I just free handed the stitching on this one.  You could lay out the design with chalk on the black felt and it should wipe off after you are done.

What about grandma?  Or even those of us that are grandmas at heart?  A Doily Ornament is the perfect gift.

I used a vintage doily that I had at home but there are a wide variety of doilies for sale on Consumer Crafts.  Size it to your embroidery hoop.

Then just insert the felt and the doily at the same time and pull tight.  Tighten the screw on the hoop.  Turn it over, trim the excess with an X-acto knife, and you have an ornament ready for display or gift giving!

Last but not least, are you ready for some team spirit?  The Team Spirit Ornament is perfect for sports fans, college students, or even high school students.

I used scraps of ribbon in my daughter’s college colors.  Just cut either scrap ribbon or fabric into triangles.  Put your felt in the embroidery hoop.  Add the triangles with embroidery thread.  Then layout the name with disappearing ink and stitch.

Each of the ornaments got a ribbon to hang by.  I actually just threaded the ribbon through the screw portion of the hoop and tied it.

Add an embroidery hoop ornament to the top of every present under your tree.  Make one for each of your kids.  Make one for everyone in the office.  The possibilities are endless!  Enjoy making these for the special people in your life this holiday season.

Angie Holden

Angie blogs at The Country Chic Cottage where you can find creative crafts, vintage finds, home decor, and DIY all with a little farmhouse flair. Angie has been blogging for over 2 years and is married with three kids. Stop by her blog where you will find everything from small, quick crafts to major furniture and home makeovers.