Hope

Today is day six of the Adorn 12 Days of Christmas ornament exchange. Today everyone opens my ornament. So excited! And I hope they like it! Here they are all wrapped up...

I used distressed brown paper bags with gilded joss paper for the wrapping. for each tag i used images of eggs from vintage cigarette cards. then i tied them all together with twine.

and here is what every girl received...

i bet it is no surprise that i made a bird!

i paint this little bird (a wheatear) frequently. he symbolizes hope and dreams to me. he looks so expectant as he gazes out over the mountains to the rising sun. at least that is what this image says to me.

and, if you will all cram into my little studio, i will show you just how i made the ornament. but be careful in here, as i am wildly disorganized and there's a kitten and big dog in here. the big dog especially doesn't like you to stand to close to him and the kitten will chase anything that moves too quickly. this tutorial is not for the timid! and, please do remember that the words and images here are mine. please be respectful and don't copy any of these things. i do want you to use these instructions to make your version of my ornament, but don't just print out my images and glue them to something. i'm sorry to have to say that but i i hope you will understand.

so here goes... I made this little bird painting on a wooden disc turned ornament. The back features a vintage image on German scrap and glitter for a “days gone by” look.

 

I started with a 3” wooden disc that I purchased in packs of six at my local craft store. but you could use watercolor paper or even an old cereal box. use what you have!

Using gel medium, I collaged torn pieces of vintage text from a hymnal onto one side of the wooden disc. When I am creating a painting I like to do this to add another layer of dimension and texture to the piece.

I am very impatient and have two little children so time is of the essence for me. When painting I will often have a brush in one hand and the heat gun in the other. I used a layer of gel medium under the torn paper as well as on top of it. I wanted to make sure it adhered to the disc as well as seal all the edges.

One thing to be careful of is daydreaming. You should always keep the heat gun moving or you will create bubbles below the surface of the paper. Here I fell into a daydream and the paper bubbled and burst.

I personally like the torn surface (also known as Décollage) so I just added more medium and adhered the pieces again. But if this sort of thing freaks you out, don’t get all dreamy. Look for this particular piece later. I bet it will end up being your favorite one.

For the backs, I adhered some painted paper towels I had left over from a class with the ever-amazing Traci Bautista.

But you could use more hymnal pages, scrapbook paper, phonebook pages or a simple coat of paint. Don’t be afraid to use whatever you have. It will look great in the end.

Since I was making twelve of these, I decided to organize an assembly line. Typically, this is not how I would go about making a painting. But it sure is much faster to pick up the brush loaded with the colors one time and paint each ornament. I was surprised to find it a lot of fun, too.

First up, chartreuse for the undercoat. I squirted a liquid acrylic directly onto the piece then loosely painted it on each disc. This will peep through in the final painting.

Next, using a charcoal pencil, I roughly sketched in the mountains.

Then, I painted them in with a dark pink.

Using a light turquoise, I painted in the sky, and then buffed part of the paint away with a baby wipe. The turquoise remains on the high spots while the chartreuse falls into the low points.

Now I am painting a dark blue edge around the semi-circle of the sky. Most of this will be blended in. It is to add a bit of drama and interest to the sky.

 

I am also adding a bit more turquoise here and there in the sky. While each ornament is the same design they each call for tiny differences as they are created.

 

On this ornament there was a bubble under the paper. It happens with that heat gut sometimes.

One way to remedy this is to take your craft knife and slice it open. Then you can add gel medium underneath and glue it down. It won’t hurt to leave the bubble under there but if you don’t like the look of it, get rid of it. If you are against the clean cut line, you can tear it open then glue it back. As you can tell, I love texture so the cuts and tears are bonuses to me. Often I will do this when there aren’t any bubbles.

 

Below you can see that I added a punch of purple to the tops of the mountains. And, using the charcoal pencil, I am drawing the outline of the bird. Draw whatever you want your focal image to be (an angel, a Christmas tree, a poinsettia). This bird is a Wheatear. I paint it frequently.

Then paint in the bird with white paint. I like to work with a white base and build up the colors without having to paint on layers and layers to compensate for the colors underneath.

Are you still with me??

Here I’m painting in the details. I am keeping these little birds fairly simple because the area is small and I’m making twelve of them.

I love to use Caran d’Ache Neocolor II crayons in my artwork. They are water-soluble, give great color, and blend very easily. I am drawing loosely with the pink then using a baby wipe to blend it in.

 

Disclaimer: If you do not have a cat in your lap, you might not get the same results as I did.

Ta-dah! Six little birdies.

As you can see, the collaged papers and yummy chartreuse paint peeps through and makes the piece much more interesting than if we had just painted directly onto the wood.

Lastly, I am adding Golden’s raw umber glaze.

It will give the piece a wonderful patina and depth.

I could eat this stuff for breakfast I love it so. Okay, do not really eat it!

Then take a baby wipe and pull the glaze from any areas you feel are too dark.

The fronts are basically finished.

Now for the backs.

First up, using a circle stencil and the charcoal pencil I outline circles then fill them in with white paint.

Grab another circle stencil (or just freehand the circles) and do the same thing with colors.

Be sure to outline the circles with charcoal first. Then fill them in with paint. Sometimes the paint can sneak outside the stencil so it is nice to have the circles defined. You may want to outline them again once the paint is dry.

Now I am going to adhere these German scrap angels.

These are die-cut paper images of Victorian angels from Germany. You can find lovely vintage Christmas images on the web if you do a search for German scrap. Or go here for really great ones at amazing prices.

I am again using gel medium underneath and on top of the image to adhere and seal it.

These images are a bit shiny and cute for my tastes. So I am rubbing them lightly with steel wool.

In some areas the scrap completely tears.

I like this wearing away, too. I want them to look old and well loved.

I will give these guys a coat of raw umber glaze to darken the tears and holes. It ages and distresses the piece nicely. No more shiny new looking angels.

For this ornament, I have highlighted the angel with Golden’s interference gold paint.

As you can see, it gives a pretty metallic cast from one angle but isn’t apparent from the other.

It is a nice alternative to glitter. I wrote in the paint when wet with the end of my brush handle to create more yummy texture.

Speaking of glitter, where would a vintage inspired Christmas ornament be without glitter? Nowhere!

I am using Stickles brand glitter, which comes in a gel form in a small squeeze bottle. I love this stuff.

The Stickles comes out rather thick and this wasn’t the look I was going for. I want to keep it looking old and worn. So after squeezing it on in a pattern, I lightly press the entire design with a paper towel.

I also used glitter to make more circles. And I went over the angel with glitter, which helps to incorporate the image into the overall piece by pushing it into the background a bit.

Now, the backs are pretty much done.

Let’s move on to the power tools. We need to drill a hole at the top to create something to hang our ornaments. I am going to hang the ornaments with a narrow ribbon so my hole doesn’t have to be too large. If you want you could use chain, wire, fibers, or cord.

Drill your hole the appropriate size for what you choose to hang your piece with. Be sure to begin your hole from the front side of the ornament. The hole is messier where the drill comes out so put that on the back. Also, I am drilling onto a big catalog so the drill doesn't go into my work table.

I have a couple different charms I want to hang from the bottom of my ornaments. One has two holes so I will need to drill two holes to accommodate it. I will place the charm on the ornament and mark the hole placement with my pencil.

Then drill where your pencil marks are.

After drilling all the holes, lightly sand them.

With the drilled holes, sanding will help smooth over any paper tears. I had to be careful not to use too much pressure or it will really tear the ornament. I also needed to lightly touch up the holes with little dabs of paint.

If you have any rough edges where your collaged papers were hanging over, trim these up and sand them down.

Now I’m going to gild the edges of the ornament with silver leaf.

You could use a metallic paint pen if you don’t want to deal with the bother of gilding (it’s sort of a messy endeavor). Or, you could just paint the edges or add a ribbon or other trim. I love the look of silver and gold leaf. I think it elevates the piece and is worth the effort. But, just remember you have other options for your ornaments.

Here I am painting on a layer of the leaf adhesive.

You have to let it sit for a few minutes until it is tacky. If you want to be especially neat you could use masking tape around the face and back to keep the leaf from finding its way to your painting. Or, you could do what I did and add little bits of adhesive to the front and back so some leaf will be there as well. It’s your call.

I grabbed a whole sheet of leaf and just rolled the edge of my ornament along it, peeling off the excess and adding it to another ornament.

One thing that is tough about this for me is that my hands always get sticky and pick up lots of silver leaf that I want to go onto the ornament. But, with a little patience it gets done.

Lastly, I apply the silver leaf sealer, which is like a lacquer, to the entire piece.

It really gives the painting a big jolt as it brings the colors out and gives it a nice shine.

Are you still with me? I bet those Radko ornaments aren't looking so expensive anymore, aye? Now, we’re going to make some jump rings and chain for our charms. I am using 19 gauge annealed steel wire from the hardware store.

This wire is coated to keep it from rusting. So I am running it through the sand paper to remove some of the black.

The finished look is of oxidized silver. It is very pretty and very inexpensive.

Now I am neatly wrapping a long length of the wire onto a big knitting needle, which serves as a mandrel. You can use a pen, marker, wooden dowel…whatever you have.

Be sure to take your time and wrap the wire straight onto your mandrel. Do not overlap the wires. Keep the rings right next to one another to make the rings a uniform size.

Here I am cutting the rings with a jeweler’s saw.

You should use your bench pen but I’m a lazy dog and frequently cut them right in my hand. If you do not have a jeweler’s saw, you can use your flush cutters. But you will have to make three cuts for every ring so that each end is flat. You need flat ends so your rings will close properly. But it goes pretty fast so use your cutters if you please.

Here are the other charms I am using.

They are puffed metal hearts that say things like “Share Your Heart” and “You Are Loved”. I got all the charms at Michael’s.

Next, I folded a thin piece of wire and used it like a needle to thread my ribbon into the top hole.

You could also use an awl to push it though or just drill a great big hole in the first place. Put your jump ring through the bottom holes and link them together for as much chain as you would like to have, finish it by adding your charm.

So here they are. All finished!

You can also add some final little glittery bits to finish them off. On some I used gold teardrop shaped Diamond Dots and others got little bits of brass charms that I had cut in half.

These make great gifts for your family and friends. I think handmade things are perfect for those people who already have everything. Here is something original and from the heart.

I also wanted to say that if you are completely daunted by painting, you could cut the background shapes of the sky, mountains, and earth from store bought papers, magazine pages, or old books. You could use a bird image from a collage sheet or old book or just use the German scrap on both sides. These would also be great fun to make with your kids or grandkids. As a matter of fact, after I made my original twelve ornaments, I went back to the store for more discs and charms to make some with my sons.

I hope you found this tutorial helpful. And I would love to see any of the ornaments you make with it. That would be a wonderful gift to me! Merry Christmas!!

 

Comments

[Dawn Gold]

Unbelievable, I cannot believe that you have taken all this time and effort to give this tutorial to us all as a gift. I was trying to decide what art stuff to pack to take to Spain and you have sold me on the idea of taking my wooden chips and the stuff to make some of these. Inspirational and I cannot Thank you enough - the spirit of Christmas is alive in your blog.
So from me to you have the happiest Christmas
xxxxxx

[connie]

Wonderful tutorial, Kelly. I am going to try this technique for some valentine charms i need to make. I had no idea one used so many layers! - no wonder my stuff never turned out with all that depth!
thank you!
connie

[Barbara Burkard]

simply an amazing tutorial! wow...thank you sooo much for all the time and effort you put into this....just wondering though...is the kitty optional? hee hee...just lovely angel just lovely! THANK YOU!

[Cat]

Kelly,
Thank you sweet girl for the wonderful Christmas gift...your tutorial is so detailed and the photos were the icing on the cake....it made it easy for me to see what you were really doing.
No kittens here, but I do have 5 cats who constantly want to help me!
Merry Christmas to you & your lovely family!
xo,
Cat

[Janet Kriz]

Kelly,
This was wonderful. I loved it all. Not only was it obvious that these are priceless, but you took the time to stop and photograph each step. Pretty labor intensive, but look at what you created. You have touched and inspired me. And others too, I want to make some. Your gift to all is appreciated. And I think it is a gift of love to share the technique. Very kind and unselfish. Thanks.
Way kewl.
Blessings,
Janet

[Marse girl]

Oh Kells...these are the sweetest most precious ornaments I've ever seen. I'm THRILLED that you added your directions. I've been lucky enough so have worked side by side with you and I know the depth of your work. You put so much of you into each and every piece Kells. Both spiritually and intellectually..Your paper towels are beautiful. Do you think you might sell some ornaments in your etsy store??? :) :)!!!

[Debby]

Oh Kelly!!! This is just incredible,all the work you have gone to. Your ornaments are spectacular. I love them. WOW!!! I just may have to try this one of these days. Your instructions rock!!!
May you have a Merry Christmas and thank you for the best gift of all "YOU" my sweet friend.
Hugs,
Debby

[Janine]

Kelly, thank you so much for taking the time and effort to post this amazing tutorial. The ornaments are divine....

[mosshillstudio]

Wow Kel, thanks for taking the time to write this all out. Just amazing!! I LOVE LOVE LOVE my ornament and am blown away by the steps you took to achieve such perfection. Truly a labor of love!!! I will cherish mine forever and I dream of the day we can sit side by side creating...soon, very very soon...DREAMS COME TRUE!!
LOTS of Love and thanks my friend, joanna xo

[Deryn Mentock]

Lovely, beautiful, incredible!! I'm singing the praises of your wonderful birdie ornaments! Thank you dear friend! Your tutorial is perfect!

[Nathalie]

I would like to chime in and repeat everything that everybody has already said. Awesome - in the true sense of the word - as in inspiring awe. You speak about how exciting it is to get up and go open your gifts - well, I am doing the same thing. I can't wait to get to my computer to see what you are going to get today. It's really fun. Thanks.
Blessings and Merry Christmas,
nathalie

[Sammy Stafney]

Kelly... awesome ornaments and a huge thank you for sharing how you made them... I will have to give them a try....

[Lorraine George]

Your ornaments are wonderful and you did a great job with your tutorial! I would not have the patience to stop and take all those photos!!

[Jo Wholohan]

Fantastic ornaments Kelly, thank you so much for sharing your tutorial!!! Im sssooo inspired now :))
PS I looovveee the caran dache crayons too, arent they devine????

[Karla]

Wow! How inspiring. It's really neat to see how other people make things. So glad you shared it. (I would never think to take time for pictures) Thank you! Thank You!
Karla

[Nancy Maxwell James]

oh my!! your tutorial is just amazing. a HUGE amount of time when into this post...and the artwork is stunning. I love your little bird and sure learned a lot from this post. thank you!

[minnie]

i found your wonderful blog, and am amazed to find this gift on how to make these lovely ornaments....i cant wait to try it. your detail is much appreciated...thank you minnie

[kecia deveney]

that was a great tutorial! i really enjoyed going through the process as you created the ornaments. it really put recognition to how much work goes into a handmade item. thanks for sharing! hope you are having fun opening your ornaments! i am sure everyone will love yours!

[Cindy In Carolina]

I am not in the swap, but I am following it closely. Thank you so much for SHARING your techniques. You are a generous soul.

[Laura Bray]

Thanks for the tutorial! The care & time you put into the ornaments speak volumes about how much you care about others. Happy Holidays!

[valarie whicker]

Oh wow thanks for sharing! That was a great tutorial. Now I have to go dig through my craft supplies...I'm sure I have some wooden discs somewhere..

[Linda Kunsman]

Kelly-this is an amazing tutorial!!!! So much work involved-what a loving and generous gift to us all!!! Your ornaments are so beautiful, as are you my friend!
:)Linda

[Tally Oliveau]

Looks great Kelly - good detail and pics. I loved looking at your lovely hands throughout each pic. Seeing your process was really great.

[Frivolitea]

Wow. I am so impressed by your ornaments and by your tutorial. Thank you so much for sharing your technique! Your ornaments are fabulous!

[Lee W]

thank you thank you thank you!! I am new to alot of this, and seeing the pictures along with the text is so helpful! I'm off to go try!!

[Debbie]

Kelly, thanks for posting to your MMCA art girlfriends about your wonderful tutorial. Your ornaments are awesome and I love the packaging. Debbie

[Rella]

Goodness......this was informative, funny, and just lovely eye-candy. Many thanks to you for taking such time and sharing here.
xo Rella

[tameraabate]

These are so perfect for the art project I am going to do with my son's 5th grade class ( we will simplify...quite a lot) but the basic idea is perfect for them. Thanks so much for sharing!!!!

[Kim]

Best tutorial ever! Thanks!

hugs!

[vicki cook]

Hi Kel, This was an amazing help to me! Great fun watching all that went into your step-by-step tutorial!

I love to make danglies (ATCs, altered/chunky books, ornaments, etc) and NEVER found the kind of "craft" wire I needed. Now I know what to get from the hardware store! EX-cellent!

- vicki xo

[Melissa Huber]

Kelly I love this tut... this looks like so much fun! I love the fact that your table isn't neat and tidy either and your hands are dirty!! LOL!! A lot of other tuts their hands are so clean and so is their work space!!

My fat cat is waiting for me to sit down to do this one...