Upcycled Thrift Store Ornaments

When my daughter was feeling lonely in our family with three brothers, I started a tradition of decorating a tree with the girliest ornaments we could find. This small tree grew over the years until one year when I finally found an inexpensive white tree to make our new Girl Tree.
The main rule of the tree is to be glittery and bright and shiny. With more tree to decorate, I needed more ornaments to fill the space.
I found this steal of the season at a local thrift store. At $1.50 each, these ornaments cost about $.03/each.
For some of the ornaments, I just left them their regular color, covered them with glue and covered them in German glass glitter. The results are so shimmery and sparkly. You really need to see German glass glitter in person to appreciate the beauty and sparkle it adds.
I did a faux Mercury Glass technique on some of the bulbs using a spray bottle with water and a can of Looking Glass spray paint. Simply spritz the water onto the bulb, then spray over with the spray paint. I did several layers on each bulb.


For extra dimension and aging, I flicked some Antiquing glaze onto the bulbs.
I made some other ornaments using clear glass bulbs. These were not technically thrifted ornaments, but I did use a coupon to buy them. All the other parts I had on hand. The nose is some orange Sculpey polymer clay. These were from a project years ago and I saved the extra noses just in case I ever had need of snowmen noses. I'm smart that way.


A couple of sequins and beads from my stash serve as the eyes and mouth. A scrap of wool makes a scarf and a couple of twigs from the yard make the arms. The "snow" is a couple of teaspoons of Epsom Salts.
I used my Silhouette machine and some scrap vinyl to cut out the words, "Some Assembly Required." I love these ornaments and they make great gifts.


If you want more details, be sure to check out my blog! #‎OriginalOrnaments‬
Suesan - Frou FruGal
Want more details about this and other DIY projects? Check out my blog post!
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