Ornament Challenge 2011: Bead & Glitter Bulbs

When it comes to Christmas ornaments and my tree, I am a firm believer in “more is more.”   There is never too much bling, there is no such thing as tacky and basically anything goes.  Usually it goes something like this: homemade ornaments by my kids next to a kitschy rhinestone mini coke can, next to a bird clipped on a branch.  For the ornament challenge though, I wanted to do something that could be elegant or blingy, depending on the crafter.

These seed bead and glitter dusted bulbs are just that.  You will notice I did them in loud purple, green, aqua and pink…but they could also be in softer hues of white, silver or gold.  

Supplies:

• Glass or Clear Acrylic Bulbs – Round or Disc Shape
• 2-3 Packs (Per Bulb) of Darice Seed Beads in Choice of Colors
• Martha Stewart Glitter (other brands work, but this is the Cadillac of bling!)
• Matte Mod Podge
• Foam Brush
• Spray Adhesive

I started out by spreading three packs of seed beads out in the Darice Tidy Mate Craft Tray (not necessary, but easy to use and clean up beads afterward).

I first applied a thin, even coat of Matte Mod Podge to the Ornament with a foam brush.  Once the ornament was fully coated, I pressed it in the seed beads.  I continued to pick up beads and sprinkle them over the ornament until it was almost completely covered.   At this point, you will see spaces in-between the beads with glue.

Don’t mind my immensely glittered fingers! 😉

Next, I applied a light coat of spray adhesive to the ornament, being careful not to get it on the silver top.  While it is still tacky, I applied a coordinating color of Martha Stewart glitter.   I went crazy with it, just glittered the thing to death.

Next, another generous layer of spray adhesive to set everything in place.   You can repeat glitter and adhesive as many times as you need to in order to get to the desired amount of bling.  Hang to dry.  I added ribbon to finish off at the end.

Anne

Anne is the Director of ConsumerCrafts and considers herself extremely fortunate to have a job that she loves so much. She has been doing crafts her whole life in some form or another, whether it be slip covering a chair, building a toy box, making handcrafted invitations or laminating homemade placemats with her kids. She loves to try new crafts, as well, and finds nothing so satisfying as answering a compliment of her work with “Thanks, I made that.”