I have always made Christmas ornaments for our family trees. I have made my own designs by cutting out Christmas trees, stockings, houses, horses, birds, hearts, bells, canes, bears, gingerbread men from Christmas fabric of all sorts.

I often used to help make costumes for local school Christmas plays and I would use the scraps from all the lovely fabrics to create some very special one of a kind ornaments.

Always trace a pattern on the fabric using some sort of template for the design you want or use one from your head by tracing it first on paper, cutting it out and then tracing on fabric.

Sew around design to help secure the border. If the fabric will not ravel just sew around pattern using doubled fabric and cut around the edge with either straight scissors or pinking shears. Make sure you leave a place open about an inch and a half to stuff. Stuff with fiberfill or some sort of polyester stuffing as it will work better and not clump as bad as pure cotton batting.

Trim with lace, ribbons, buttons, old jewelry pieces. Some are better left plain. Use ribbon, or tiny braid for loops to hang and sew securely in place.

I have made dolls from clothespins, by sewing or gluing fabric to them to make dresses and hats. I used round lollipop sticks that were cut to right sizes for arms then covered with puffy sleeves. Faces can be drawn or left blank.

There are many ways to make ornaments that children will love decorating the tree with or just looking at. My little granddaughter once thought I made everything used at Christmas in decorating and told a visitor that Mamaw made everything.

Learn more about this author, Mary E. Preece.
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