Recycled Holiday Ornament Tutorial

I just wanted to give you a quick tutorial on one of the decorations I made for my Winter Window. It's super simple and uses recycled materials.

Start with some plastic lids from yogurt or butter containers (or whatever else you can find). You can also use the bottom of the container if you choose. Cut off the edge of the lid (or cut circle out of bottom of container). Make sure the piece is completely flat. Then cut lines in toward the center, about halfway in, all around the edge. Be sure to cut an even number of lines. You should have something that looks like this.

If you want two layers, do the same for a smaller circle. Then, bend one "arm" forward and one "arm" back, alternating all the way around the lid. You can also cut the "arms" into different shapes to create variety. Now, you should have something that looks like this.

Next, you can put a piece of string, yarn, fabric or pipe cleaner around the lid between the arms. Tie or twist and trim ends. You can also do the same for the smaller circle if you want.

Find different items, such as pieces of old wrapping paper, colorful food boxes, cut felt pieces, etc, to decorate the very center of your ornament. Cut a slit in the center of all the pieces and push a brad through all to hold it together. Punch a hole in one of the "arms", tie string to hang and enjoy your decoration. On the first picture, I used a piece of scrapbook paper for the center.

If you want a two-sided decoration, just put two lids back to back. After placing the brad through (and opening prongs), you can glue something over the prongs to cover. Here are some I did for the window.