Monday, October 5, 2009

19th Century Inspired ornaments

I initially saw these little cuties on Better Homes & Gardens website last year and wanted to try some of my own. (I tried one out last year) The end result is pretty much the same but I used some different materials to make them. I used a glass ball Christmas ornament and paper clay.

Remove the hanger(the silver top) from the glass ball and mold paper clay around the ball. I pushed down gently on the ball at this point so that the bottom is a bit flat and it will sit on a surface too as well as hang. Make a ball for the head and blend in to the neck and body of the ornament. Use two smaller pieces of round clay for the cheeks and blend in. Make a shape for the nose and blend in to the face. I trimmed the bottom of the silver hanger(hat) with wire cutters(just so they weren't so long) and slipped it right in to the top of the head. Let dry.

Once they're dry, it's time to paint! You can sand them a bit if you'd like. I like all the imperfections so I didn't do any sanding. I did mine to resemble the ones on BHG.com, but the possibilities are endless! I used antique white and pink acrylic paint and painted their faces with black. Added a few words to their bellies and let dry.
I grunged these fellows up a bit with some water based Maple Stain. I took a paint brush and wet it with water and then brushed it over the snowmen and then brushed on the stain and dabbed it with a towel until I got the look I wanted. A little brown paint mixed with water will give the same effect. After this dried I took some spray gold glitter and gave them a spritz of gold. I let that dry and sprayed them with a clear acrylic sealer. But wait......!



What snowman doesn't appreciate a nice scarf? I glued some glittery tinsel garland around their necks. I also put two stripes of glue around the stripes on their tummies and added some glitter glass and sparkles. Viola! Again, there are endless possibilities to how these are painted and what you add to them. Such sweet little guys!

21 comments:

Sarah said...

Super cute!

Zan Asha said...

Most excellent! They look great!

pinkglitterfae said...

those are great! and so easy. I love vintage style ornaments!

Kelly said...

Oh...these little snowmen are so cute and sweet. You're making me wish for snow! :)

Anonymous said...

Oh they are so cute.Just adorable.Wow you are so creative, lucky you.I love the glitter around their little heads LOL.

Anne said...

Hi, Kimmie! These are sooooo cute! Love the tinsel scarves! :-)

Evangelina Prieto said...

Your work is so nostalgic and beauty, make me smile and dream.
I'm a fan
Hugs
Evangelina

eulaliacornejo said...

your art is so beautiful!!!
congratulations,
best regards from ecuador.
eulalia

Dr. Denise Tucker said...

I ADORE these ornaments!

I wandered over to your blog. Found you on the 2009 One World One Heart Giveaway site. After watching the movie Julie and Julia recently, I've decided to try and go through the ENTIRE OWOH list, from beginning to end, in 90 days and connect/reconnect with all the artists and blogs that truly inspire me! Your blog is amazing and really resonated with me!

A bit about me. I'm a mystery writer, jewelry artist, and college professor. Yes, and a Gemini, if you couldn't tell! Here is my blog, where I blend my mystery writing and jewelry craft:
www.thehousemysteries.type pad.com
My first mystery Keeping House: A Madame President mystery just came out on Amazon.
Take care and as Julia Child might say, "Bon Blogging!"
Denise

Nikki (Sarah) said...

these are soo cute.

Brialee said...

How completely adorable!!

The Studio at Crow Haven Farm, LLC said...

THIS are awesome...I so love the pink! WHOOHOO
Have a great and safe Halloween!
Cheers

Christina Colwell said...

These are cute. Love snowmen and women. They are "cool".

Lille Diane said...

How perfectly, imperfectly adorable! These are so sweet! Thank you for the great how-to's!

Suzie said...

They are so adorable, and so unique! Thanks so much for sharing how you made them! Very clever!!

Lydia said...

Such a great idea. Super adorable !!!Love 'em!

Nishant said...

Wow you are so creative, lucky you.I love the glitter around their little heads.

Work From Home

Leslie said...

Adorable-they look so vintage!!

Unknown said...

Fabulous x

Flor Larios Art said...

Cool and original!

Rockstar said...

those are rlly pretty i love making crafts