Monday Made It...Sequined Ornaments

Today I am linkin' up with Tara for Monday Made It with 4th Grade Frolics.  I'm so excited!  This is my very first Monday Made It...ever!

Today I'm sharin' somethin' that is very time consumin' to create...only if you plan on makin' several.   If not, it should only take you about an hour and a half to two hours for one (if you are more focused than I am).  I have to warn you though...they are addictin' once you start.  If you are anything like me (a perfectionist), you will want to make each one better than the next and chances are, you aren't goin' to want to give them up.  Ha! 

With that bein' said, it's never too early to start thinkin' about Christmas, right?  I've been seein' "Christmas in July" stuff all over, so I think it'll be okay.  I  have a whole method to my madness when it comes to these bad boys.  What are they you ask?  Well...I'm happy to welcome you to the lovely world of "Sequined Christmas Balls". 

I have added some samples of balls that I made last year.  The pictures really don't do them justice.  When the lights on the tree hit the sequins, they sparkle!  Unfortunately, I didn't take pictures of all of the different designs that have been created by myself, my friends, or my students in the past.  I've made striped ones, solid ones, polka dot ones, monogrammed ones, etc.  This past year we started on Halloween night and still didn't have enough time to get all of the ones completed that we wanted, so I'm startin' earlier this year.  Every year I say "NEVER AGAIN", but I lie.  I just hope the people that are gettin' them love them as much as I love makin' them. I know when I was introduced to them by a friend, I went bananas over them.  

***If you plan to do this craft in the classroom, I would suggest tryin' it out on your own before you use it with the kiddos.  You will need a LOT of patience when you do it with the kids, but they LOVE makin' them for themselves and their families...boys too!  I always ask for a little craft donation or you'll need to take out a second or third job.***

Samples: 

Santa 

*Twinkle*

New Orleans Saints

 Peppermint

Side-view of Peppermint

Boston Red Sox

Atlanta Braves

Georgia Bulldogs

Camo for the hunters

 For the baseball fanatics.

Up close baseball.  (White & red sequins and beads)

 Neutral colors (golds, browns, taupes)

Red sequins with black beads.  

Interested in makin' some yourself?  Here's the Step by Step for you:

Step #1:  put on pajamas, or sweatpants, or whatever comfortable attire you prefer.

Step #2  turn on your TV, Netflix, radio or whatever form of entertainment you use while gettin' crafty.

Step #3 get out needed supplies...pictures provided for all of you visual learners.

Plastic Vegetable Tray $1 @ Dollar Tree.  I'm sure they probably carry somethin' like this at Walmart or Dollar General.  I picked this style because I can put different colored sequins, beads, and pins in the six sections.  In the center I put Elmer's glue.   

Any color ribbon you choose. I normally choose somethin' skinny and always wait for it to go on sale at the craft stores.  (50% is definitely worth waitin' for!)

These are the medium size styrofoam balls.  I normally use large.  I try to always use a 40% off coupon @ Michael's or Hobby Lobby because these things can start to get expensive.  Sometimes if you are lucky, at Christmas time, you can find these at Dollar Tree for $1.  If you stick with this project, I'd suggest snatchin' them up when you see them, to save money. 

These are Bridal & Lace pins, but you can use sequin pins also.  I try to stick with this size, but it doesn't really matter (definitely not worth stressin' over gettin' a certain size or name).  Go for what is on sale or the cheapest.  You can find these in the sewing sections of Hobby Lobby, Michael's, and Walmart (cheapest spot if they are in stock).  I have been known to drive to neighborin' towns to wipe out their whole supply.  Luckily, we now have 4 Walmarts where I live, so I won't have to be drivin' all over the state to hunt these down.

  Sequins-Hobby Lobby or Beverly's Fabrics(in California) have the best selections on colors.  Michael's has a few basic colors (silver, gold, red, green and that's about it).  I never find any at Walmart.  I've actually started ordering different colors online.  When I do the larger balls, I use 10mm sequins.

Glass Seed Beads.  Again, Hobby Lobby and Beverly's Fabrics have the better selection on these.  Walmart has gotten more colors in.  Michael's is hit or miss on this and it really depends on what colors you are usin'.

*I used to store all of the remaining pieces in Ziploc bags in a plastic shoe container.  Now, I actually save the little plastic containers from the sequin pins and store the sequins and beads in there.  That way I can see inside the tiny little boxes and quickly pick up the colors I want.  In the classroom, this project takes several days, so I stored the supplies in clear plastic cups and had a few helpers make sure they stayed organized throughout the project.*

Step #4 dump sequins, pins, and seed beads into the tray.  Squirt glue into the center.

Step #5 get out your ball, put the tray in your lap and get to stickin'.

Step #6 decide where you want to place the ribbon.  Place a seed bead on your pin, then place a sequin on the pin after the bead.  Dab the pin into the glue and stick in the ball (this part only, I use Tacky Glue or a glue gun).  You can create any pattern color, theme, etc. that you desire.  This is your chance to "differentiate" your creativity.

Step #7 repeat the step of puttin' a bead on the pin, puttin' on sequin, dabbin' in Elmer's glue, and stickin' in the ball.  Sometimes I lay somethin' flat on the couch next to me and bead and sequin several pins at one time before dabbin' them in the glue and stickin' them.  You will build up your own momentum and works best for you.  I try to overlap the sequins a little bit on top of one another to cover up all the white spots.  

If you decide to make these for yourself or with your students and you have any questions, please feel free to ask.