Vintage Glass Ornaments - DIY Reverse Decoupage

6 Materials
$6
3 Hours
Easy
Who doesn't love handmade ornaments? I'm so excited to share with you how to do a reverse decoupage technique on glass ornaments and also how to weave ribbon for trimming the ornament.

For the reverse decoupage technique, a paper napkin is decoupage faced down on the back of a glass ornament, giving off a see-through the glass look. This allows you to use the back and possibly the front to add additional decorative elements like glitter paint and woven ribbon trim around the ornament. The woven ribbon trim is actually the same how braiding a ribbon lei is done. Both are popular handmade dimensional effects for ornaments!

Let's begin by separating the 2-3 ply white paper layers from the printed layer of the napkin.
Next, place the ornament on the napkin at the design spot you want to show through the glass. Dip a small brush into plain water, tapping off excess and outline the ornament.
Gently tear out the pattern along the wet lines. Do this so the napkin paper edges will blend in better than straight edges from cutting.
With a dabber sponge brush, lightly coat the back with mod podge.
Place the napkin face down onto the ornament back, centering the pattern. Smooth out the napkin using one side of a plastic sandwich bag or plastic wrap and your fingers to remove any wrinkles.
Once the decoupage napkin has dried, paint the backing white to enhance the napkin color patterns. Once the paint is dry, paint over in gold or matching color. While the paint is still wet, sprinkle glitter on top and allow to dry. Once dry, seal the glitter with more mod podge to prevent glitter from flaking off.
To make the woven ribbon trim, cut two 1/4" ribbon strips 60 inches long. Make a slip knot on one end.
Next, make a loop on one end of the other ribbon strip and push that loop through the loop on the slipknot. Tighten the ribbon by pulling on the long ribbon end of the slipknot loop, keeping the ribbon snug and straight.
Pick up the opposite longer ribbon strip, make a loop and insert into the loop that's there. Tighten the ribbon, as before.
Continue alternating the ribbon strips, making loops and pushing the ribbon loop through the opposite loop, braiding the ribbon. You will see a pretty pattern emerge as you continue to braid.
Continue to loop, push and tighten ribbon strips until you have braided most of the ribbon and have only a few inches left. Measure around the ornament to make sure you have braided enough. If you have too much braided ribbon, remove by pulling on the ribbon strips until satisfied with the length. Make sure the ribbon is tight and pull the tail end of the last loop all the way through to the braid. Tuck the ends under and back into the braid. Add a dab of hot glue to seal and cut off excess on both ends.
Use a glue that's suitable for glass like E6000 to secure the braid around the ornament.
Secure the ornament top on and add a hanging ribbon to complete the vintage ornament look!
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Gail@Purple Hues and Me
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