every year we put a little 4′ christmas tree in my kids’ room so they can decorate it with all the christmas decorations they make at home or at school. it’s “their” tree under which our elf likes to leave little gifts (check out these free printable christmas gift tags for those little gifts!) throughout the christmas season including new christmas pajamas and a movie on christmas eve.
it seems that as they exit that preschool/kindergarten stage, however, they tend to make less and less of these cute little ornaments at school, so i’ve had to try to come up with ideas of things i can make with them at home. (in addition to ones like this diy candy wreath which are more complex and suited for adults.) this project for homemade woven star ornaments is perfect for them because a) they’re a little bit older so they can handle the little bit of coordination it takes to make these stars, b) they’re able to be around pins without injuring themselves or anyone else (i would not recommend this as an activity for toddlers for obvious reasons), c) i used to make these myself as a little girl. my mom always called them the star of david, and we actually used little pieces of tinfoil instead of patterned paper in the middle, but even so they make me feel all nostalgic and everything, and d) they are super inexpensive to make…i already had everything i needed at home to make these and even at that, these items cost very little money so even if i ran out of something it would cost almost nothing to go out and get more.
here’s what you need to make these adorable christmas tree ornaments:
- corrugated cardboard…like the boxes of the thousands of diapers i have to buy, or what all your amazon orders come in. you know, the boxes you were just going to recycle anyway.
- tape…just regular old scotch tape. or glue.
- yarn or string…in whatever colors you like!
- pins…plain old strait metal pins.
- scraps of patterned paper or cardstock…with small christmas patterns/colors preferably, but use whatever you have on hand and whatever matches your yarn.
the first step is to cut out two squares of the corrugated cardboard. you can make them whatever size you want, but i made ours approximately 2″x2″.
take a strip of tape and loop it around so you can stick one square onto the other in a square-diamond fashion, like pictured below…. you could also use glue if you wanted.
next, take one of those scraps of paper and cut it just slightly smaller than your cardboard squares and use glue or tape to adhere.
then take 8 of the pins and push one gently into each corner you see. you want them to be sticking out slightly because they’re going to catch the yarn as you weave. this is also why you need to use corrugated cardboard instead of the thin stuff – you want to push the pins into the corrugated part in between the 2 outer layers (the small fluting as it’s called) so they’re snugly sandwiched in between and won’t poke out anywhere.
now we move on to the yarn. flip over your cardboard shape, take a piece of tape and fasten the end of your yarn to the back of the star.
if you’re okay with a plain cardboard back to your star, then move on to the next step. if you want the back of the star to look nice (there’s a picture at the end of the post of what it would look like), you can take a second scrap paper square and tape or glue it overtop of where you just fastened your yarn on the back.
this is where the fun begins. it really is just a pattern of “2 down, 1 up” referring to the pins. you start by taking the yarn from behind the star, going overtop of one pin, going down 2 pins (following the edge of the square) and going around that pin…
…then coming up behind the pin that is 1 pin up from where you just were and looping the yarn over the top.
now you just repeat the pattern by taking the yarn down 2 pins from where you just were…
…and the looping it around one pin above.
repeat after me: “2 pins down, 1 pin up. 2 pins down, 1 pin up. 2 pins down, 1 pin up.”
just keep doing that until you’ve done one round. it will look like this:
continue to do the same pattern, moving the yarn to the left ever so slightly – right next to the yarn in the same place from the previous round – so that you are moving towards the middle of the star more and more with each round.
you are all done when there is no more space in between the points of the star to move toward the center of the star anymore while moving to the left of the previous round. cut the yarn with an extra inch or two to work with and weave the end into the yarn on the back of the star and tie a knot, or if you don’t care about what the back looks like, just use another piece of tape to keep the end in place.
the pins will help to keep the star’s corners in place, but we don’t want them sticking out anymore. after this step they won’t be in the way at all because we used the corrugated cardboard to protect them from poking out anywhere…just as long as you push them straight through the space in between the outer cardboard pieces and not at an angle. you just need to gently push the pins all the way into the cardboard and you can hardly tell they’re even there.
here is a closer look, if you need one, of what i mean when i said to work towards the middle of the ornament with each round. i’m just about the finish off the 3rd round here on this star and if you look closely, you can see with each round i moved the yarn to the left of the round before it. it looks like there are a lot of gaps and there isn’t even a real star shape yet, but trust me, as you keep repeating that pattern and moving toward the center each time, those gaps will fill in and the yarn will eventually go over the straight edges enough to make them look like a star shape. also, as you keep going, the yard will eventually meet in between the points of the star and that’s when you know you’re done.
and this is what the backs will look like if you decide to add an extra piece of scrap paper. or, like i said, you can just leave them as is and it will be cardboard. up to you.
all you have left to do is cut an extra 4-5″ piece of yarn and tie it to the yarn on the back to make a loop with which to hang your star. these are so pretty and impressive looking, i just can’t wait to have them hanging on both of our christmas trees this year!
if you like this post, make sure you share it will all your friends by pinning it!
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Absolutely beautiful
thank you so much! i’m glad you like them 🙂
love these, would look cute with an image in centre too. Thanks for the tutorial 🙂
oh, they would look darling with a picture in the center!!!
My boys and I made these years ago (my “boys” are in their 40’s!) and yes, they do look darling with photos in the center. I also used ball end pins in some of them to enhance the points. Both ways looked great.
I still have several that I put on the tree each year.
Ah, I love this! How wonderful it is to go down memory lane each year at Christmastime and see the things your kids made. That’s why Christmas ornaments are so special.
Great idea with the ball-end pins! I will try that for sure this year! Thanks, Marlene!
Thanks these will make a nice gift!
Really like this idea! So, I’ve made several! I need 30!! I have had a bit of a problem as some have started to
unravel. I know they need to be tight, but taping the end doesn’t seem to do the trick. I wonder if tying the loop for
hanging throws it off somehow? Any ideas? I’m thinking of reinforcing the back with a dab of hot glue in places.
I’ve used a special silver cording which, although a little pricey, looks really nice with silver paper in center. They also look good in white yarn!
Thanks so much!
Hi Lydia! I’ve never had them unravel on me, but yes, you could certainly hot glue them in strategic places to keep the yarn secure. I’m so glad you like them!
Cute stars. I didn’t see the approximate length of yarn/string used for the windings. About how much for each of them? I’m hoping to have a group make them so need adequate supplies, THANKS, JF
Hi Joyce! It really depends on how big you make your stars…or rather, how big of a square you cut out of the cardboard…and how thick the yarn/string is you’re using. I would pick a size that you want to use and a yarn/string, make one, and then you’ll have the perfect idea of how much yarn you will need.
About how much yarn did you ise for the 2″ x 2″? Thanks!
That’s a really great question. I usually buy a skein of yarn and just keep making them until I run out! Next time I make one (or if you need to know before I get a chance, you can do this too) I will put one together and then unravel it to get an idea of how much yarn I used on it. It also depends on when you consider it “done”- you can just cover the cardboard or you can make it kind of chunky. Hope that helps for now!
I just gave my teacher daughter a bunch of little balls of yarn to do suncatchers with her students. This will be great for next christmas for her class of 4, 5 and 6’s.
This would be perfect for that age group!! 🙂
I just found this tutorial and had to try it. I make ornaments for my co-workers every year and am always looking for something new and different. I made my first one and it’s adorable. Guess you know what I’m doing this year for Christmas 😉 Thank you so much!
Thanks so much for your comment! I’m so glad you like them! Your co-workers will love them too 🙂
Me encantan!!!
Gracias por compartir esta idea tan genial ????
De nada!!
I run craft sessions for my son’s school parents and these stars are lovely. We glued some sequins in the middle of some and they are great. Thank you very much.
thank you so much for your kind comment! i’m so glad you like them! 🙂
I have one made by my grandmother in the 1930’s using crochet cotton ! She has a Christmas scene in the center.
Oh, that is so sweet! I love that there is a Christmas scene in the center – great idea! Thanks for sharing!
People used to use old Christmas cards as the center art. Waste not want not!
I love that idea!!!
Aloha!
These are beautiful! My husband has an ornament his mom made him when he was a baby just like this one and I’ve been wanting to recreate it for so long now! I was wondering, would I be able to make the little circle opening bigger in the ornament and put a tiny picture in the center?
Thank you!
Chant’e
That is so special that he has that ornament still! I love it when ornaments get passed on and have sentimental value 🙂
As for adding a picture, depending on the size of picture you want to put in, you could either increase the size of the cardboard squares to give you more space on the front, or you could use the back of the star, which, because of how the pattern works out, will naturally have more space to put something larger in. Hope that helps!
I make homemade ornaments for my family (about 24 ornanments) and I absolutely love this…it looks expensive and classic all in one!!! Thanks so much for the idea can’t wait to get started!!!
what a great idea, to make ornaments for your family! they are going to love these 🙂
These would be perfect for adding a child’s school picture to the “back”.
Yes! I love that idea!! Thanks for sharing!
I am thinking of having my 4th graders make these for their parents. How long would it take a child to make these?
For a child, I would say probably around 15-20 minutes from start to finish, including time to cut out the cardboard, etc. They’re not complicated, but it may take them a few tries to get the pattern just right. I think this would be a great gift for 4th graders to give their parents! Good luck!
These are just adorable!! I can’t wait to make them. Do you have these instructions that can be printed?
Thanks again!
Hi Donna! I’m so glad you like them! Unfortunately, I don’t have the instructions available for printing. But if you had the blog post up and did just one, you’d have the hang of it and probably wouldn’t need the instructions for subsequent ornaments.
Hi,
We are planning to have about 70 students make these for their parents. Could you give me an approximate amount of yarn needed? I understand there are some variables that make it so you can’t give me an exact, but a rounded number would be GREAT! Maybe about how many you get out of a skein of average thickness yarn??? THANK YOU!
Barb
You’re right, there are a few variables like the thickness of the yarn you use and the size of the cardboard squares, but I did take one of mine apart and it was *approximately* 22 feet of yarn. If you wanted to be sure, you could always make one with the materials you plan on using and then use that as your guide. Good luck!!
I’m going to try making some of these this year. Seems like a nice quick gift. 🙂 I liked the idea of a Christmas scene in the middle from another comment. Gave me an idea to use old Christmas cards for the center. Thanks for a great idea & tutorial!
Yes, I love that idea too!
Hi. These are adorable!! I am going to make these with 5th graders for a present for their parents (adding their pic in the opening). Wondering how much yarn per each ornament if I am making individual kits for each kiddo?
This one is a little tough to answer because it depends on the thickness of the yarn you’re using and how big you make your cardboard squares. I just took one of mine apart and it was *approximately* 22 ft of yarn. I would suggest making one and then seeing how much you ended up needing and using that as your guide. Best of luck! Your 5th graders’ parents are going to love them 🙂
What fun ornaments! I’m wondering about the pins – do they need to be left in? Could I just take them out instead of pushing them in? I guess I’ll probably just try that, but just wondered if you had tried it that way. I can see their use during the making, but wasn’t sure if they were needed to keep things in place once it’s made.
Yes, I keep the pins in – it does keep all the yarn in place. When you’re done all the weaving, just push them into the cardboard so they’re not sticking out at all anymore – they should be flush with the yarn. You won’t even be able to tell they’re there! Well, except for the little pinhead, but those are so flat and tiny no one will notice them 🙂
Hope that helps! Good luck!!
I think pins with a bead on the end would be pretty…maybe a snowflake bead??
that would be beautiful! great suggestion!
Would love to make there as I travel out west in a motor home. I will not have internet much of the time so would like to print the directions. Where could I find a printable site. Thank you
Janet
Sorry, there are no printable instructions. But I think you could print the text from the blog post.
I love this look. A bit more sophisticated than the 4 paddle pop sticks from primary school. I would be a bit worried about the pins not holding all that beautiful yarn and I would probably put the pin through a sequin first and then into the cardboard, then at the end when you push the pin all the way in you would have the sequin to stop and potential unraveling of yarn. This would be my safety net as well as adding a bit of sparkle. I’m going to go and try this right now. Thank you so much.
Hi Julieanne! I would think the same things about the pins not holding the yarn in place, but they’ve actually never unraveled for me! It’s like magic! 😉 I love the idea of the sequins though – a little more bling!
My cardboard is 3″ and am using just regular Red Heart yarn. Pins would not stay in cardboard so I used toothpicks, but I’m doing something wrong. The back is not getting covered. Am I just stopping too soon? I’ve gone to the end of the toothpick. What am I missing?
The pins should stay in the cardboard just as easily as toothpicks would, so I’m not sure what’s going on there…but you need the pins to hold the yarn in place once you’re finished weaving since you push them into the cardboard the rest of the way and the head of the pin keeps the yarn nice and snug. If you look at the pictures on the post, there’s one of the back of the ornament – it is not nearly as covered as the front of the ornament. Hope that helps!
These are adorable! I’m excited to include them in my favorite Christmas crafts post. I’m going to try to make a giant one for my front door. =)
Glad you like them! Good luck with the giant one. 🙂
While searching for Christmas bells I found your decoration and cannot wait to make many. I think i may even try using longer straight pins to add a pearl or crystal bead on before inserting pins into cardboard. I will let you know how it turns out.
These would be beautiful with little pearls on the ends! Great idea!
Thank you for this tutorial! I work for a public library in a small town, and am using this ornament for a take and make craft for our patrons next month. I will include a link to this page for them, but do you mind if I also take your instructions and abbreviate them a bit so people do not need to be online to make them?
For an offline event, sure! For anything online, please include a link back! Hope it worked out!
I needed an ornament for a school project and this is perfect! Kid-friendly, but also something families can hang for years to come! Thank you so much for sharing!
Thank you so much for your comment! I’m so glad you like them. 🙂
I loved this ornament. I used a burgundy velvet ribbon for in the middle and used white crochet thread. I also used pearl ball end pins so they added a nice sparkle to the points. It turned out so pretty and was so easy to do. Thanks for sharing.
I love your creativity! I imagine it looked sooo beautiful!!