Hang homemade holiday ornaments this season

Create unique decorations that you can personalize with photos

By Julie Stoyka

Each year, my mother’s Christmas tree is simply and elegantly decorated in glass and gold ornaments — with the exception of several handmade ornaments that my siblings and I created when we were children. Twenty years later, the faded paper ornament that features a photograph of my brother wearing a boy scout uniform and a gap-toothed smile is still on the tree, much to my brother’s chagrin.

My mother refuses to get rid of our childhood “paper and glue monstrosities.” Luckily, with today’s technology, crafting a paper ornament is a lot easier (and less messy) than ever before. This year, take an hour with your kids to create ornaments that don’t require glue or Popsicle sticks. With Microsoft Home Magazine’s ornament templates, you can choose from one of two designs: 3-D paper cones or a photo ornament.

Materials

cardstock and/or glossy photo paper (available at office supply stores)
printer
paper scissors or a sharp-edged utility knife
double-sided tape (for the photo ornament)
colourful ribbon or yarn

Putting together the paper ornaments

These cute little ornaments, featuring snowflakes and pine trees, can be made at a moment’s notice by printing out our PDF template. Or use our Word template to design your own ornament. You can add scanned images or Clip Art in a flash.

Download our ready-to-trim paper ornament PDF template * for quick decorations.
To customize your ornaments, download our editable paper ornament template and open it in Word.
Save a copy and remove any Clip Art you wish to replace by clicking it and hitting Delete. Go to Insert > Clip Art to add a different image. Click on Position > More Layout Options > Text Wrapping > In Front of Text > Picture Position > Lock Anchor to drag the image.
Change the box colour by going to and clicking the paint can icon. To change the font, highlight the text and go to Home > Font.

Print the template on cardstock. Make sure your printer is set to the highest-quality setting.

Cut out the template along the thick black lines, using paper scissors or a sharp-edged utility knife. Score the template along the dashed lines for easier folding.

Using a hole punch, place a hole at the top of each box (on the dots).

Fold the paper along the score lines.

Thread thin ribbon or yarn through the holes. Pull the ribbon tightly, so the edges of each side come together.

Tie the ribbon at the top to make a loop for easy hanging.

Assembling the photo ornaments

This project will help you create 2-D photo ornaments. Just scan images into the computer or pick your favourite digital snapshots, and frame them with adorable star and tree shapes. Laminate the ornaments and they’ll last forever.

Download our pre-made photo ornament PDF template *

Print the template on cardstock. Make sure your printer is set to the best-quality setting.

Cut out the template shapes along each edge using paper scissors or a sharp-edged utility knife.

Trim out the white area within each shape.

Open your photo in Word.

Resize the photo so that it will fit the inside space of the template shapes.

Copy the image and print on glossy photo paper or cardstock, making sure your printer is set to best quality. Or print different images, so each side of the ornament is unique.

Quick tip: If you’re a traditional photographer, you can always use actual photographs for your ornaments — have doubles made if you want the same image on both sides. You can also add text, instead of an image, to the reverse side of the ornament.

Affix double-sided tape to a template shape. Remove tape backing and place the template over the printed image. Press firmly.

Trim the printed image, so it fits within the template shape.

Add extra double-sided tape to make sure the template shapes stick together. Once both shapes are trimmed and affixed with printed images, press them firmly back to back.

Using a hole punch, make a hole at the top of the ornament and thread thin ribbon or yarn through it. Tie the ribbon at the top to make a loop for easy hanging.

Quick tip: Laminating your photo ornaments will help them last for years to come. If you don’t have access to a laminator, you’ll find most office supply stores provide this quick and inexpensive service. You can also do it yourself by purchasing self-laminating sheets or adhesive vinyl. Make sure to cover both sides. Trim a few millimetres from the edge of the ornament.

*You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader to open the PDF files. Click here to get it for free.

All styling and inset photography by Julie Stoyka of Zariel Creative