Hello, sports fans!

I don’t know about you, but I love to incorporate my love of sports into my holiday decorating, because sports memories just seem to fit so well into this nostalgic time of year!

So today I’m going to show you a really easy way to include some of your favorite sports memories on your Christmas tree (or nestled in a wreath, hanging from a garland or as package tags or tie-ons).

Collect your materials:

  • Wooden ornament shapes – plain wood or painted wood will work, as long as the surface is smooth. I bought a pack of 50 on Amazon for less than $10
  • 3.5″x5″ photos printed or photocopied on regular copy paper (don’t use photo paper)
  • Pencil or pen
  • Scissors
  • Matte Mod Podge
  • Paintbrush
  • Bakers twine (or anything you want to use as a hangar)

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Directions:

One – Trace the ornament shape onto your photos, making sure you center the photo the way you want it to look on your finished ornament.



Two – Cut out the circles you traced onto the photos. You can cut them to fit the ornament exactly, or slightly smaller to leave a border.


Three – Use a paintbrush to spread a thin layer of Mod-Podge on the front of the ornament. I found it easiest to hold onto the “hangar” part of the ornament, while applying to the “ball.”



Four – Put the photo in place on top of the ornament. Make sure its straight, then smooth it down using your fingers, gently pressing out any air bubbles.



Five – Allow to dry thoroughly (15-20 minutes) and then spread a thin coat of Mod-Podge over the top of the photo, pressing down firmly on the edges to make sure they are adhered well.



Six – Allow to dry, then finish off the ornament with your twine for hanging.


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Optional ways to change up the look a little:

  1. If you prefer painted wood to the raw wood look, paint the ornaments first using any acrylic craft paint.
  2. Use a black sharpie to add names, the year the photo was taken or the location to the back of the ornament.
  3. Use a black sharpie to fill in any raw wood showing on the front of the ornament, if your circle cutting wasn’t perfect (mine wasn’t)!

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There you go! Your memories are now ready to hang on the tree!

Aren’t these fun? I can see my tree with a whole series of these ornaments on it, or all the packages under the tree identified with photos of each gift recipient. After all, I did buy 50 ornament blanks!

Are you going to give these a try?

Until next week,

Carrie