Angels are a significant part of the story of Christmas, which makes angel ornaments the perfect touch to your Christmas tree. While silver, gold, and glass versions of these holiday decorations are always a divine choice, there is something truly special about handmade Christmas angel ornaments. If you are looking to add a heartwarming touch to your seasonal decor, here is how to DIY angel ornaments for your Christmas tree or give as gifts.
DIY Jean Pocket Angel Ornament
If you're looking for a way to upcycle old jeans into something beautiful, this is the project for you. This cute rustic angel ornament is created using the back pocket of a pair of worn-out blue jeans.
Supplies You Will Need
- Old blue jeans, adult-size
- Scissors
- Ruler
- Craft wire
- Wire cutters
- Jute twine
- Natural burlap scrap
- Hot glue gun
- ¾-inch wood ball
- Coarse sandpaper
- Craft glue
- 1-inch wood star
How to Make Your Angel Ornament
- Cut around the outside edges of a back pocket from old blue jeans. Turn the pocket over and cut out the back just inside the pocket seams. Discard the back of the pocket.
- Working from side to side, gather the pocket with your hands approximately 1.5 inches from the top edge. Wrap with craft wire to secure. This is the waist of your angel ornament.
- Fold the top-center of the pocket down and hot glue above the waist. This is the angel's neck.
- Cut an 18-inch length of jute twine. Wrap the jute around the waist and tie in a bow on the front of the angel. Trim the ends as desired.
- Hot glue a ¾-inch wood ball to the top of the neck for the head. When the glue is dry, use coarse sandpaper to sand a flat spot on top of the head.
- Cut a 4-inch wide by 5-inch long rectangle from natural burlap. Pull the strings out of all four edges to a depth of ¼ inch to fray them slightly. Cut a 12-inch length of jute twine. Hand gather the burlap from the center of one long edge to the center of the other. Center and knot the jute around the gathers. Bring the remainder of the two ends of the jute together and tie an overhand knot approximately ½ inch from the ends. These are the angel's wings and the ornament hanger.
- Lay the wings on your work surface with the wings extending to the sides. Arrange the hanger above the wings. Apply hot glue to the gathered center of the wings. Lay the back of the angel waist on the glue.
- Apply craft glue to the flat spot on the angel's head. Place a 1-inch wood star over the glue for the halo. Allow the glue to dry before moving the angel ornament.
Burlap Fabric Clothespin Angel Ornament
Transform grandma's old peg clothespins into a country angel ornament that's big on nostalgia. You can use colored burlap for the dress if you prefer, and wired ribbon for the wings instead of the jean hem.
Supplies You Will Need
- Small piece of burlap
- Ruler
- Scissors
- Iron
- Hot glue gun
- Cotton crochet thread
- Embroidery needle
- Wood peg clothespin
- Craft glue
- Old blue jeans
- Gold, 20-gauge craft wire
- Pencil
- Wire cutters
How to Make Your Angel Ornament
- Cut a 4-inch square from the burlap. Fray two edges by pulling the strings from two opposite edges to a depth of ¼-inch. These edges are the top and bottom of the angel's gown.
- Fold the top edge down 1 inch and iron to form the collar.
- Overlap the unfrayed edges by ¼ inch. Hot glue the overlapped edges together to form a tube. Allow the glue to dry.
- Thread a double strand of crochet cotton thread onto an embroidery needle. Turn the burlap tube so that the seam is centered in the back. Beginning at the center-front of the top edge (where you formed the collar), sew a running stitch around the top, leaving tails extending from the beginning and end.
- Dress your angel. The top of a peg clothespin is the angel's head, and the split pegs are the legs. Apply craft glue to what would be the neck and chest of the angel. Insert the clothespin inside the burlap gown with the collar at the top. Pull the cotton thread to gather the opening around the neck. Tie the thread in a bow and trim the ends. Adjust the gown so the bow is centered above the split in the clothespin pegs. When the glue on the chest is dry, the gown will no longer slip.
- Cut along both edges of the flat-felled jean seam from one leg on a pair of old blue jeans. (If you don't have old jeans, use a strip of thin ribbon instead.) Cut a 12-inch length of the seam for the wings. Overlap the ends ½ inch and hot glue to form a ring. Place the ring on your work surface. Press opposite sides of the ring down with the right side facing up. Push the sides together and hot glue in the center to form a double-looped wing.
- Cut a 9-inch length of jute twine. Bring the ends together and tie an overhand knot one inch from the ends. This is the ornament hanger. With the knot of the hanger at the top, hot glue the bottom of the hanger to the center-front of the angel wings. Hot glue the wings to the back of the angel just below the neck.
- Trace a 1-inch star on a scrap of denim from the blue jeans (or use contrasting burlap or any other fabric). Cut out the denim star. Apply craft glue to the back of the star and press to the front of the dress.
- Wrap gold, 20-gauge craft wire three times around a pencil. Use wire cutters to cut the beginning and the end of the wraps. This is the halo. Apply craft glue to the ring on one end of the halo. Place the halo on the head. Allow the glue to dry before moving the angel ornament.
Make a Choir of DIY Angel Ornaments
The angel ornaments described here are fairly simple to make for anyone who enjoys crafting. There are many other DIY angel ornament ideas to consider. Angels can be fashioned out of all sorts of crafty materials, like fabric, yarn, paper, beads, mesh ribbon, felt, pinecones, and more. Whip up a whole choir of homemade angels to give as handcrafted gifts, to top wrapped packages, or to use as favors for your child's classroom Christmas party.
