Create Marble Ornaments

How to Create Marbled Ornaments for Your Tree:

These marbled ornaments are so easy to make, yet they look beautiful on any Christmas tree or you can just place them in a bowl as a unique center piece for your Christmas party or dinner. All ages can enjoy the fun of making these elegant marbled ornaments with acrylic paint and clear ornament balls. These are the one ornament that I love to make every year with my children to place on our Christmas tree.  What a wonderful and fun way to spend some time with your children over the holidays and make a memory that will last forever.

Materials Needed:

• Acrylic Paints-( I used Delta Ceramcoat) 3 to 4 colors or more.
• Clear glass or Plastic ornaments- mine are glass, but plastic would be better for small children.
• Paper cups or empty egg cartons

Instructions:

1. Remove hanger and cap from the ornament. Rinse the inside of the ornament with rubbing alcohol. Let dry completely. No moisture should be inside the ball. Start with one color of paint. Squeeze just a small amount about 1/8 of a teaspoon of the first color into the ornament so it runs down the side.
Rotate the ornament and add more paint down another side until you have about three or four lines of paint with only a dime size amount of paint pooling at the bottom.

2. Add the next color, squeezing out a small amount the same size as the first color. Place this color next to where you added the first color. Continue to add one or two more colors in the same way.

3. Rest the ornament on its side for a about five minutes in the box it came in or use either a paper cup or the egg carton. ( I found that the egg carton seems to work the best for this craft project.) Tilt the ornament slightly as you rotate it a quarter turn. You want to do this every five minutes to make sure that the paint covers the entire inside of the ornament.

Pour Out Excess Paint: 

At this point you are almost finished. Once you have your desired look created,then drain out the any remaining paint. Let them sit and dry for about an hour. Replace the the cap with the hanger when dry.

And voila! You have beautiful glass ornaments that you can keep for yourself, or make as gifts.

 

 

 

More Variation Ideas: 

•   Try different variations with colors- perhaps if a friend roots for a certain college or university, try making an ornament with those colors. Or try a color-themed tree this year and make some accordingly.

• Horizontal Marbling: coat ornament with your choice of colors and let the ornament dry on its side, rotating one side another avoiding an up right position. 

• For Vertical Marbling: coat ornament with your choice of colors as in step 1 and 2 and prop ball upside down in a paper cup to drain. Let dry

• For Irregular Marbling: drop in one color of paint, swirl, then add another color. Continue adding or repeating colors and swirling until the entire ball is coated on the the sided. Follow step 3.

Enjoy making these marble ornaments with your family as I did with mine.In fact we add more to our collection every year.  Even if you don’t put up a tree, try placing the ornaments in a glass container, jar, or bowl for a different decoration option. I use them on both my tree and in glass bowls for center piece decorations during the Holidays.  

Note: All these item can be purchase at Amazon or Micheal's