I made this ornament for the ongoing ornament swap, which you can still sign up for - it’s now been extended to the end of November! Check it out here - Super fun ornament swap!
When I saw that @roler wanted a crochet related ornament, my mind started coming up with ideas on how to make that happen. I don’t know how to crochet, so I had to figure out another route.
The main inspiration for this came from @sweets4ever’s tiny yarn cakes . I really liked the idea of filling an ornament with these yarn cakes and adding a decal to the outside.
I didn’t have the type of beads that sweets used to make her cakes and I wanted to get started right away, so the internet came to my rescue. I found a tutorial that recommended using a straw (I just read that sweets used straws for her larger yarn skeins, so it looks like one straw is all you need for all your tiny yarn needs!).
The inside of the ornament also features a glittered glass background. I achieved this effect by putting a small amount of polycrylic in the ornament and covering the back part with it. I then added some glass glitter.
(This pic is the best at showing the glittered inside)
I came across the decal design when looking for crochet related sayings. I added the crochet hook to the design and voila, a crochet-related ornament that I didn’t have to crochet!
Excellent question! According to the minwax website, it “is a crystal clear, ultra fast-drying protective topcoat.” It also works as a glue inside an ornament to hold down glitter . I have a can of it from when I made some glitter coffee mugs. I would put mod podge on the outside of the coffee mug, add the glitter, then brush the polycrylic on top of it to seal all the glitter in place. Unlike some other sealants, the polycrylic did a good job of sealing without dimming the shine of the glitter.
This is really cute! Did you brush the polycrylic on the inside? I tried to paint the inside of ornaments one year with glitter craft paint and it all ran to the bottom as it dried. Yours looks like it stayed where you put it!!
I used a syringe to add a small amount of polycrylic into the ornament, then I swirled it and rocked it side to side until the back was covered. After that, I turned it upside down in a paper cup and let all the excess polycrylic drain out for about ten minutes, leaving behind just a thin film. Then I added the glitter - a sprinkle here, a pinch there…okay in reality, I just funneled a bunch of glitter into the ornament, swirled it, rocked it, covered the interior, then poured out the excess glitter.
I actually glittered this ornament a few years ago. I have a ton of preglittered ornaments that I created, but never used. Most are completely glittered inside. I actually came up with the idea to try and glitter just the back at a later point and I was very pleased that it worked.
The other good thing with the polycrylic is that it’s a permanent solution (people were using mop & glo when I started making these ornaments, but when I looked into it, I found that it wasn’t a permanent solution).
. I have a can of it from when I made some glitter coffee mugs. I would put mod podge on the outside of the coffee mug, add the glitter, then brush the polycrylic on top of it to seal all the glitter in place. Unlike some other sealants, the polycrylic did a good job of sealing without dimming the shine of the glitter.