04-12 Make Christmas Pretty - With Balls!

Hello people, and happy holidays! This time around we’re going to be making some delightful Christmas balls. I was joined by my good friend Margot Potter the Impatient Crafter. She and I put this idea together.

Here’s how you make them:

You’ll need:

Styrofoam balls

4 way stretch velvet

Straight pins

Small artificial flowers

Various embellishments – sequins, beads, jeweled picks and sprays, etc.

1/4” wide ribbon

Begin by wrapping the velvet snuggly around your ball and gathering it into your hand, and then cut the excess away, close to the ball. Pin one side of the velvet into the ball, then, stretching it tightly around, pin into the opposite side. Repeat the process until you’ve gotten all the loose fabric pinned down. Pin into virgin Styrofoam as much as possible and stretch the velvet as tightly as you can around the ball. The goal is to take advantage of the four way stretch and keep the gathers at the top as few as possible. As you get more velvet pinned in you’ll have to start to overlap it. You can cut away excess and stretch the folds up to make a smooth top.

Once you’ve covered your ball in velvet you can start to embellish it. The artificial flowers will camouflage the gathers. Cut the stems to about an inch and a half and poke an awl or other small pointy tool through the velvet into the Styrofoam to create a pilot hole, then stick the flower in place. Once you’ve created a tuft of flowers over the gathers you can start to dress the ball with sequins, beads, jeweled picks and sprays and other decorative elements you may have found.

The hanging strap can be put in either the center of the tuft of flowers or on the opposite side of the ball. Wherever it is placed, it should be anchored firmly with two pins placed pointing in opposite directions, to keep it from being easily pulled out. 

 This craft is a fun diversion for pre-holiday afternoons and the resulting ornaments are very pretty.

I’m in the process of looking at new apartments, trying to find a new place to live. To that end I’m starting to purge my various collections. Right now I have lots of vintage sewing patterns from the 50’s, 60’s and 70’s available on my Etsy page. Be sure and have a look if you like to sew, and keep an eye peeled for future sales. 

I hope everyone has a delightful holiday season!