How to make a simple Christmas ornament with mod podge! And a Free Printable! When I saw that our next theme for the Farmhouse Hens was going to be a DIY Christmas ornmanet I have to admit that, initially, I hit a total wall and couldn’t think of anything! Then, finally (at the very last minute!) it came to me that I could make something using the mod podge photo transfer method. I used it a few weeks ago on a sign for our Fall Vignette and learned a lot on how to do it. So, I got to work!
Once this idea came to me it was pretty obvious what photo I wanted to transfer. I decided to put it on both sides and make three ornaments: one for me, one for my aunt and one for my mom. My mom and my aunt grew up here on this old farm and the barn means a lot to them as it does to me too. I wanted them small and light weight so my print outs of the barn are not much bigger then the dimensions of a business card and then I just cut my wood to fit. It is important to use a laserjet and to make sure that you “mirror” the image (flip it horizontally so its backwards) so when you lay it face down it will be correct.
With my three little pieces of wood cut, sanded down and hole drilled into the top of each of them I gathered my supplies. My print outs of the barn, a little brush, a jug of mod podge, a roll of twine and poly acrylic for finishing it later. I put a good even layer of mod podge on the piece of wood and then laid my print face down on it. I used a business card to smooth it out and press it down hard and evenly across the whole piece of wood. I did this with all three of them and then let them dry over night. (You don’t need to wait over night that’s just what worked for me. In fact, just a couple of hours would be plenty of time.)
From there I soaked an old rag in the hottest water my sink will give me and then rang it out completely before laying it over the ornament, I pressed down hard and made sure it completely covered the ornament and then I let it sit a few minutes. Then I just used my fingers and the rag to rub all of the paper off and unveil the print underneath. This is not hard to do but there will be little bits of paper left behind that may or may not drive you crazy. With both sides complete I dated them by signing the bottom of the ornament with the year and holiday (Xmas 2017). Then I covered them entirely with one coat of poly acrylic.
With them dry all I had left to do was to tie a piece of twine to hang them up! Tip when working with twine: Once you get it through the hole and all tied up like you want to your going to have a crazy amount of fuzzy flyaways. What’s the answer? Burn them! Just take a lighter and run it all over the twine, blowing it out as you go etc. All of the flyaways are gone and the ends won’t unravel!
I hope you enjoyed my Christmas ornament and maybe found some inspiration on how to make your own! Click the image below to use it for your own ornament or project! The little barns are each around 2×3 and already mirrored and ready to be printed and mod podged!
Make sure and check out the rest of the Farmhouse Hens who have some fantastic ornament projects!
Stephanie at Abbotts At Home! Blog / Facebook / Instagram / Pinterest / Twitter
Denise at My Thrifty House! Blog / Facebook / Instagram / Pinterest / Twitter
Michelle at Our Crafty Mom! Blog / Facebook / Instagram / Pinterest / Twitter
Sam at Raggedy Bits! Blog / Facebook / Instagram / Pinterest / Twitter
Leanna at FaeriesandFauna! Blog / Facebook / Instagram / Pinterest / Twitter
I love these and your beautiful Barn was the perfect choice. Great job, Tarah!
Thank you Stephanie!!
Absolutely love these ornaments Tara!! I am always so inspired after visiting your blog!!
Thank you so much Michelle!
These turned out really cute. I need to look into this transfer method.
Thank you Denise!
What a great idea! Love these!!!
Thank you Lisa!!
What a neat idea! I’m sure your mom and aunt will love them… ๐ Liz
Thank you for coming by, reading and commenting, have a great weekend!
These are great. I love ornaments that have meaning behind them rather than that are just purchased for the sake of filling a tree.
Thank you so much Elise!
Very creative, love them!
Thank you Christine!
Aww, these will be so meaningful to you, your aunt, and your mom! Having done a few of these photo transfers myself, I know how the process goes, and I can see you do too. These turned out great.
Thank you Florence! I look forward to trying more photo transfers in the future!
Those are great ornaments–love the wood blocks! Thanks for sharing at Party in Your Pjs!
Thank you!!
Cute idea! Thanks for sharing at Home Sweet Home! Merry Christmas!
Thank you Sherry!
I love your barn image! Would you mind sharing it? Could you send me the image or provide a download link? Thank you for sharing your talent and making projects feel do-able. Have a blessed New Year from Port Huron, Michigan.
Hi Susie, you can check the post again as I have now added the printable I also emailed it to you! Thanks for coming by!