Learn how to make personalized glitter ornaments in no time! It's a really easy and inexpensive gift idea!
Ever since my husband and I started dating over a decade ago, we've been adding ornaments to our Christmas tree, and we make a point to add at least one new one each year.
We usually pick them up on vacations, grab a cute Hallmark one for an important milestone or occasion, or recently, I've been making them (see this or this or this for proof).
Well, I felt like I needed some more glitter in my life (don't we all), so I decided this year I was also going to give making my own glittered variety a shot, and of course I would have to slap some personalization on there too to finish them off.
And you know what?
They could not be easier to make!
Here I'll walk you through how to make your very own DIY personalized glitter ornaments!
How to Make Personalized Glitter Ornaments
Personalized Glitter Ornament Supplies
- Clear ornament (I used plastic but you can use glass too)
- Fine glitter
- Polycrylic
- Mini craft funnels
- Silhouette Cameo
- Vinyl
ORNAMENTS: I chose some 3.75" clear plastic disc (M&M-shaped) ornaments since my son and niece are in the Godzilla stage of toddlerhood, and I'd like for these ornaments to last longer than ten minutes on the tree.
Plus, since they're disc-shaped and not completely round, personalizing them would be a breeze!
Vinyl likes to stick to flat surfaces much more easily than round ones.
GLITTER: I used a colorful set of fine glitter since I wasn't sure what my ornaments were going to look like just yet. I like having options, ya know?
POLYCRYLIC: The "glue" that I'd be using for these glitter ornaments is none other than my trusty can of polycrylic!
I sure am getting some mileage out of this little can of wonder as I frequently use it on wooden sign projects, like my family's growth chart ruler.
Other glue options for glitter ornaments:
- This specific floor cleaner (really)
- Water-based polyurethane
- Glitter It
MINI CRAFT FUNNELS: I also picked up a set of two mini craft funnels for dirt cheap.
And let me tell you what: these funnels are the bee's knees, no joke!
I would consider them an almost must-have because they made this task a breeze and nearly mess-free.
Waaay better than using a homemade sheet-of-paper-funnel for adding sand to an ornament like I did here.
PERSONALIZATION: I'm using vinyl to personalize these ornaments with my son and niece's names because I'm obsessed with my Silhouette Cameo, but you could also use scrapbook stickers or even paint markers instead of vinyl.
You can also add any additional embellishments with bows, ribbon, tulle, rhinestones, etc.
How to Make Personalized Glitter Ornaments
This fun and festive project is super easy!
I'll be going into detail below on how to make glitter ornaments, but here's the quick TL;DR tutorial:
- Prepare your ornament by removing the hanging top and prep your work space
- Pour in the polycrylic "glue" and coat the inside of the ornament, then pour out excess
- Add the glitter and coat the inside of the ornament, then pour out excess
- Let dry
- Add personalization to one or both sides of the ornament
- Reinsert hanging top and your DIY personalized glitter ornament is ready for gifting and/or hanging!
Step 1: Prepare the Ornament & Work Space
The first thing I did was prep my ornament by removing the hanging top and setting it aside.
Then, to make things easier to handle, I grabbed a little dipping bowl and a paper towel and set the ornament inside so it would stay propped upright.
Ahhh, if only we had more than two hands, right?
I then popped in one of the mini craft funnels in the top in preparation for my "glue."
Step 2: Add the Polycrylic "Glue" & Coat the Inside of the Ornament
Now it was time to add my "glue" to the inside of the ornament.
I first gave the can of polycrylic a little shake, popped the top off, then poured a small amount into the ornament.
It doesn't really matter how much you add, so don't stress.
You can always add more if you need some, and if you add too much, it'll just get drained anyway. No biggie.
Next up, I just started moving the ornament so the polycrylic swirled around and coated all areas of the inside, including the neck...
...then, once I had a nice, even coat of polycrylic over the entire inside surface, I drained most of the excess back into the can.
And don't worry about any air bubbles that you might see at this point.
They should all pop once the glitter is added.
At this point, I stood the ornament upside down on a paper towel to drain the rest, which only took a couple minutes.
NOTE: If you're going to do this, I would recommend either folding your paper towel in half or using multiple ones or even a paper plate.
The polycrylic dries pretty quickly, and it starts to make a sticky mess on your table. Yuck!
Luckily, though, it's easy to clean.
Step 3: Add the Glitter and Coat the Inside of the Ornament
Now it's time to add the glitter! Wahoo!
This particular ornament is going to be for my niece, Elena, so I chose a bright and beautiful shade of pink.
I popped the ornament back in my bowl-and-paper-towel stand and inserted the second of my mini craft funnels (the clean non-polycrylic-covered one).
Then I poured in some glitter.
Same thing goes here as with the poly: it doesn't matter how much you add.
You can always add more if you need it and will just drain out and salvage any excess.
I ended up using about ⅓ of the bottle of pink glitter for this ornament.
Once again, I swirled the ornament around until the entire inner surface area was coated in glittery pink beautifulness.
It's looking so pretty already!
To get a coating over the neck, I placed the ornament's opening against my palm and gave it a nice shaking until everything was covered in glitter.
To drain out the excess glitter, I placed the tube in the glass bowl (to help contain any spillage), inserted the mini craft funnel, turned the ornament upside down above it, then gave it a few taps.
Also, luckily there wasn't a strong odor left from the polycrylic.
I wasn't sure if there would be an aroma lingering since this was an indoor project, but it's not noticeable at all.
Wahoo!
Step 4: Let the Ornament Dry
Once the ornament was fully drained of the excess glitter, I set it aside, leaving the cap off so it could dry.
Step 5: Add Vinyl Personalization to One or Both Sides of the Ornament
The next step was adding some personalization to the now-glittered ornament using vinyl decals.
(You can learn all about how to make vinyl decals here.)
For this step, I fired up my Silhouette Cameo and cut out my niece's name in this swirly font in some pretty mint vinyl.
I then added some transfer paper and used the hinge method to apply it to my ornament.
Once again, the ornament being disc-shaped really allowed for an easy and smooth application.
(You can read more details about the hinge method here, here, here, or here. It's a sure-fire way to apply vinyl perfectly every time!)
Step 6: Replace the Hanging Top to the Ornament
Now, all that's left is carefully replacing the hanging top back on your ornament.
Pay special attention to not accidentally scraping off any of the newly-added glitter with the top's wires as you reinsert them down the ornament's neck.
And with that, your DIY personalized glitter ornament is complete and ready for gifting and/or hanging on your Christmas tree!
My Final DIY Personalized Glitter Ornaments!
And here's Elena's final ornament!
Not too shabby, especially for a first-timer.
The pictures really don't do the glitter justice. It just sparkles and shines in the light!
I was truly amazed at how well the polycrylic acted as a glue and provided such a strong and even coating of glitter.
These ornaments are SO easy to make and personalize, and not to mention super inexpensive!
Since Elena's ornament turned out so perfectly (and was so incredibly quick and easy to make!), I decided to knock out one for my son as well.
(And in case you're interested, the font for his name is Mixtape Mike and the initial and year on the backside is called Pharmacy.)
Great DIY Gift Idea!
Talk about an easy gift idea that everyone would love!
I envision lots of these ornaments being made in my future, especially when Rowan grows up and needs gifts for his friends, classmates, or teachers.
They can be made in any color and personalized in any way...perfect gifts for large groups, or even just that one special person!
I just made another personalized glitter ornament as a gift for my hair stylist!
***Glitter Ornament: 2021 UPDATE!***
Here's a little update on how these DIY glitter ornaments have held up over all these years...
GREAT!
They look just the same as they did when I first packed them away all those years ago.
The polycrylic glue and glitter has held up wonderfully, even being stored in a hot and humid Alabama garage. :)
How to Make Personalized Glitter Ornaments
Learn how to make personalized glitter ornaments in no time! They are SO easy and inexpensive DIY gifts!
Materials
- Clear ornament
- Polycrylic
- Fine glitter
- Vinyl
Tools
- Mini funnel
- Silhouette Cameo or other cutting machine
Instructions
- Prepare your ornament by removing the hanging top and prep your work space
- Pour in the polycrylic “glue” and coat the inside of the ornament, then pour out excess
- Add the glitter and coat the inside of the ornament, then pour out excess
- Let dry
- Add personalization to one or both sides of the ornament
- Reinsert hanging top and your DIY personalized glitter ornament is ready for gifting and/or hanging!
Recommended Products
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More Glittering Fun!
I've also used this method (and another one...it was an experiment!) to upcycle some dollar store vases into things of beauty.
Check out how to make glittered vases here!
More Festive DIY Christmas Ideas!
Check out my Project Gallery for lots of other holiday projects, including these!
Thanks so much for stopping by! Merry Christmas!
I want to make the glitter ball ornaments, but I also want to cut out the bottom and glue a tea light in it. How would I do that? Thanks.
Hi Diane! I've never tried anything like that myself, but instead of cutting out a section of an ornament, I think I would first try one of these options: a fillable ornament like this, or one with a hole already open on one side like this. Good luck!
Hi Christine
I want to make the Christmas ornaments
can i use stickers on the ornament.
Yep, sure can!
How Big do you make your L and names?
I ment to say Letters behind the name and names, sorry!
How big do you make your name for the 3.25” ornaments ? They turned out beautiful !!
Hi Kendra! Thanks for all the kind words! I just checked the size of the decal that I made for my hair stylist's ornament and it was just under 3.25" wide and tall (3.18" and 3.14" to be exact, lol). Hope this helps! :)
When I make mine, I use a bathroom paper cup (like for rinsing after brushing) and smoosh it oblong. Let the glue stuff drain into that paper cup! Super easy cleanup. I also tried the mini funnel. I loved it but ended up using another clean paper cup for the glitter process. No spills. I've done about two dozen. Definitely have the fever. :-)
Yours are beautiful!!
Thanks for the great tips, Lori! I really like my mini funnels, but I'll have to grab some of the small paper cups too....easy cleanup for sure! :)
These are so pretty!!
These ornaments look amazing Christine! I'd love to make some for my kids.
These turned out wonderful! I love how they can be used for many years and will be special for each one of them!
Thank you so much, Pamela! I was really happy with how these turned out too. I was especially happy just a couple weeks ago when we pulled our Christmas decorations out again for this year....I was happily relieved to see that the polycrylic held up perfectly while in storage. Rowan's ornament looked just like it did when I packed it away! :)
Thanks so much! I got it! and I got the 10% off too!! I only bought the upright font. Did you buy the whole set?
Thank you! I bought the upright font. Did you buy the whole set? I wasn't sure whether to buy everything, or just the upright. And thanks for the advice on the discount! Got 10% off!!
I absolutely love the 'Samantha' font and would like to purchase it. Your link takes me to a site called 'Mighty Deals' where I can get the upright font for $17. I have never purchased from this place - I was wondering if this is where you got the font, and what your experience was with the purchase? Is it complicated to download and install?
Thanks for any advice. Have been gunshy about pulling the trigger on the purchase, but I really want this font!
Hey Tammy! Yep, that's where I purchased the Samantha font from because they have such a great deal....it's normally sold for $75. My purchase experience was great and I downloaded and installed it like any other font. No issues at all, so I would definitely recommend grabbing it!
If you are going to purchase it, I would also check out retailmenot.com to see if they have any coupon codes for it....I think I used one for 10% off. Let me know if you have any other questions! :)
I decided to get the whole set. How do you get the fancy scrolled letters like your 'E' in Elena, and the 'a' as well? Sorry for all the questions!
I am not seeing all the extra letter options and fancy swirls, or anything extra - just the basic upright font, and the italic font? what am I not doing?
Hey Tammy! No problem with the questions....I had them too! :) I have a Mac, so to get the super fancy letters with all the swirls, I need to open up my Font Book and find the Samantha font, pick the letter I want and copy it, then open up Silhouette Studio and paste the letter (which will show up as a tiny box), then click on the box to select it, and in the font list on the right, choose Samantha....that will change the box to the letter I'm after. I'm sure it sounds like a lot of steps but it's actually really easy. ;)
Silhouette School also has a tutorial on how to use this font too if you haven't checked it out already. I'm not exactly sure how to do it if you have a Windows-based computer, but I think it's detailed in that tutorial. Have fun playing around with it! :)