Liz 2.0

For the last 7 years my son and I have been hosting an ornament swap. The catch is we don't buy our ornaments we make them! Really it is an excuse to have some fun crafting time with my kids. Over the years we've worked out a few kinks and now we make about 20 ornaments each year for those who want to swap with us.

This year's ornament has been in my head since last year. I had a bunch of poster tubes that I've collected hoarded over the years and they all had 2 end caps in each one. I really wanted to actually use all the things I've been saving and these caps were on my list. I had an idea to make them into little shakers or snowglobe type things. I figured out a way that used a bunch of my craft supply stash and turned out super cute ornaments.


 Here are the supplies I used: poster tube caps, transparency sheets, foam stickers, ribbon, washi tape, hot glue, and sequins (all of which I had in my stash o' stuff)


Use the stickers to make a scene on the inside of the poster tube cap, then add your sequins, glitter, or beads. This is the easy and fun part.  My kids loved sticking the stickers and picking just the right ones for their friends.


This is the tricky part. I had a thin rim on the tube cap that I had to run a bead of hot glue along. This is NOT the part to have the kids do. Once you've got your glue move quickly to add a square of transparency film over top of the cap.  Use a book to hold the film down so it is flat.  You will want to make sure you get glue around the whole edge so when you add the transparency film it will seal the sequins and loose pieces in. The glue doesn't have to look perfect you will cover the glue with the washi tape.


I flipped over the cap and used my scissors to trim away the extra transparency film. Note make sure your glue is cooled before you flip it over or shake it, if you don't your sequins will stick to the edge.

Next up wrapping the edge with a strip of washi tape.  The washi tape that I used was a bit thicker and tackier than another roll that I had tried. This kind stuck really well. I covered about half way on the side then folded it over. The tape makes a nice little frame for your shaker.


Last step is to add a hanger on the back. I used ribbon folded over and glued onto the back.  Pretty simple and easy.