Craft project: Retro ornaments from foam | How About Orange

December 06, 2007

Craft project: Retro ornaments from foam

I had a few sheets of that strange craft foam lying around, so here's my attempt to make something out of it. You can download the template I whipped up right here.

You'll need: Foam sheets, sharp scissors, X-acto knife for cutting out holes, craft glue, string for hanging, and tape.

What to do: For each ornament, cut out two "frame" pieces, one solid ornament piece with the center intact, and whatever doodads you want to stick in the middle. Form a loop with your thread and knot the ends. Tape the knotted end to the top of one side of your solid shape. Then glue your frame pieces on each side like a sandwich, hiding the ends of the string. Glue some doodads to the hole in the middle. Place it under a light book while you wait for the glue to dry.

Tips: Cut your shapes very carefully. Make the inner solid piece a tiny bit smaller than the frame pieces so it doesn't poke out around the edges. Once it's glued together, don't try to trim the edges further. It will end up looking like your dog chewed on it. Cut it well the first time.

16 comments:

Anonymous said...

Good girl for coming over to the bright side by using the "c" word. Now that wasn't so bad, was it! The next step is to embrace the lawn goose clothing concept.

Fondly,
Dede
(your Midol commenter)

Mundane Jane said...

Jess:

Now take that foam ornament you've made and glue it to a piece of foam core. Run an ink-loaded brayer over it and use it to print your own Christmas cards. They'll look just like linoleum block prints!

mundanejane

Jessica Jones said...

Aaaah! Dede! I can't! I draw the line at lawn goose clothing! You're so funny. But apparently the Midol is working.

Jane, that's a great idea. I never would have thought of it.

Anonymous said...

super cute. thanks

Crystal said...

I also have a random stash of foam sheets (why?). Thanks Jess AND Jane Who for sharing the great ideas

Jamie Lives in Tokyo said...

Jess, is this what you and E. made today? Very nice! Or were you just trying to prove that you don't need a paper cutter because an xacto knife really can do it all?!

Lissy said...

These look great :)

Anonymous said...

that's nice..
but, umm. *blush* what's a foam core?

-creatist

Grandma G said...

I'm glad to see you're making use of last year's Christmas present. :)

Love,
Mum

Jessica Jones said...

Creatist, it's this stuff. People call it either foamcore or foam board.

ames said...

gee whiz, those are swell!

Alfred T. Mahan said...

*snickers*

I also had a supply of foamboard, but most definitely NOT for making ornaments, I can tell you that. Nor was I that skilled at making it look so good.

Pieces said...

Those are great! And I have foam just laying around doing nothing!

Anonymous said...

Ha! When I read that you used the "C" word, my first thought was "carefully"?
This probably says a lot about my crafting skills!

Anonymous said...

that's the coolest looking thing I've seen made out of those foam sheets!
btw I love your blog!

Laura Williams said...

Oh man, these are SO cool!!!! i am totally saving this for next year!!! :)