I LOVE how these DIY Dollar Tree blue and white chinoiserie mod podge (aka: decoupage) Christmas ornaments turned out! Talk about budget friendly decor for the holiday season, and I have the full tutorial for you all below.
The great thing about this particular ornament tutorial is that you can apply it to ornaments of all sizes. I include examples of four different sizes in this post.
How to Use DIY Chinoiserie Ornaments
Once you start making these and get into a rhythm, you’ll find you can knock out a ton of them quickly. This also a great, no concentration required craft for a girls night or with your kiddos.
These DIY ornaments are also very versatile. The craft supplies to make these are super cheap (seriously, I now buy my ModPodge at the dollar store).
This means you can make a ton of them to use as vase filler, gift tag adornments for presents, ornament wreaths, accents for shelfies or mantle decor, place cards for a beautiful dining table set-up, etc.
Tons of options, super easy, and you literally cannot mess these up.
Overall, I say these look best when you have a lot of them. They’re showstoppers because of how timeless and chic blue and white chinoiserie is, and these DIY ornaments will be the crowning jewels of your holiday decor.
Tips for Making DIY Chinoiserie Ornaments
A few quick notes before we dive in to the meat and bones of this DIY chinoiserie ornament tutorial:
-I recommend using silver or white ornaments because the color of the ornament will peek through. If you want a slightly warmer hue, gold or bronze ornaments work better.
-Stick to shatterproof ornaments that are smooth (not textured with glitter or designs).
-Embrace that these will be imperfect. Given the napkins are thin, it’s hard to get them perfectly smooth.
-Let them dry completely without touching one another! They do dry quickly, but allow each ornament to dry on its own so they don’t stick together.
Love Blue & White Chinoiserie?
Here’s another fun DIY project for you. Next time you’re at the dollar store, pick up some simple charger plates to create your own DIY blue and white chinoiserie chargers. I have a step-by-step tutorial to guide you.
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DIY Blue & White Chinoiserie Ornament Tutorial:
And now here’s the supply list and step-by-step process of how to make these DIY blue and white ginger jar
Please note I linked the supplies, but truly most of these items CAN be found at the dollar store. If you need stylish napkins, look at Tuesday Morning, HomeGoods, etc. where they have a large variety for $3-4 a pack.
DIY Dollar Store Blue & White Chinoiserie Ornaments
These DIY chinoiserie ornaments come to life with a beautiful blue and white pattern. You can use nearly any napkin design for this, so if blue and white isn't your jam, feel free to use another design.
Materials
Tools
- Scissors
Instructions
- Pop off the ornament topper from your ornament (set aside for now) and remove the white layers from your napkin so you’re left with the single ply layer that has the design on it.
- Cut several napkins into four squares along the folded edges, then cut those in half (This is after you’ve removed the white layers from step 1. There’s typically about 3 layers.) You should end up with eight pieces per cocktail napkin.
- Pour some Mod Podge onto a paper plate and using a craft brush, brush a light, thin layer onto the ornament surface. This stuff dries FAST, so you want to then immediately place a small napkin section and glue into place. If the glue dries on you, simply brush on another layer.
- Repeat this process until your whole ornament is covered- you may need to fill in bald spots with smaller pieces of napkin. I HIGHLY suggest cutting the small pieces with scissors and not simply tearing the pieces so you do not end up with fuzzy edges.
- You will likely end up with a few wrinkles- gently smooth them out as best as you can with more Mod Podge until it’s as flat as can be. (But again, these will be imperfect!) I also found it helpful to gently cup the ornament between both hands to help “round” out the shape and get the napkin pieces flat.
- Apply some hot glue to the top of the ornament to secure the ornament topper into place. Dollar Tree ornament tops tend to pop off easily, so this will help keep them on there.
- Optional, BUT, I then took my most gold leafing pen and colored the ornament topper in a gorgeous layer of satin gold. I left the super small ornaments with silver tops for contrast.
- Optional: A few readers said they made these and stored them in the attic and over the summer the ModPodge kind of activates and they all stuck together. You can mitigate this by storing them inside OR sealing with a sealer spray. In very hot climates, I'd suggest storing these inside.
And that’s all there is to it, friends.
I made all of these in under an hour one evening when I couldn’t sleep. The little disco ball looking ornaments are also a Dollar Tree find. They come six to a pack for $1.
Another idea for using these year round is to rotate the DIY blue and white chinoiserie ornaments so that the ornament topper faces down. Then they just look like miniature carpet balls/vase filler. Throw some on a tray or vessel, and you have year-round decor.
My real motivation for making these DIY Chinoiserie and ginger jar holiday ornaments is that ready made ones can be prohibitively expensive. I was able to make over 40 of them for under $12 or so.
The crisp blue and white pattern is busy enough that each ornament is unique and beautiful.
And here’s another display idea for these beauties- they seriously look good no matter how you use them.
This is the first of several dollar store decor projects I’ve worked on for this holiday season. Here’s a few of my favorite dollar store projects from previous years:
Kate Spade Inspired Ornament
DIY Blush & Gold Chair Wreaths
I also have tons of thrifty and glam decor ideas in my holiday posts from previous years below:
19+ Easy, Chic & Affordable DIY Christmas Tree Filler Ideas
Free Printable Signs & Artwork for Home Decor
Romantic Floral French Christmas Tree
Small Dining Room Holiday Decor Ideas
Jeweled Mini Wreaths for Dining Chairs
Pink & Gold Floral Christmas Tree
View My Christmas Tours Here:
2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2017 Dining Room
Susan Forbes
Sunday 18th of November 2018
Thank-you so much for sharing your craft. With your good instructions even I expect these to turn out well, and help make Christmas merrier!
Nan
Wednesday 14th of November 2018
You are so very creative...I love it! I’m trying it! Thanks!
Rachael @ This is our Bliss
Friday 2nd of November 2018
No WAY are these made out of napkins!! You always find the best and cutest patterned things!! I am definitely going to try something similar for my tree's ornaments this year! They are seriously fabulous! Thanks for joining in this month :)
Sarah Vanderkooy
Saturday 27th of October 2018
These are fabulous, I love how they turned out. I have all the supplies too, I am definitely going to try this soon.
Cristina Garay
Friday 26th of October 2018
You knocked these out of the park! Absolutely beautiful!