Make your own glitter ornaments this holiday season

Glitter ornaments are so fun to make, and when you add cut vinyl designs, you can personalize them any way you want. Today I’m going to show you how to make these cute Grinch glitter ornaments that go so well with how 2020 has been behaving. I just want to throw this year in the trash and start over. I will show you the difference of two kinds of glue you can use to get the glitter to stick to the inside of the ornament, and how to weed the vinyl and apply it to a curved surface.

Are you ready to make your own?  Let’s get started!  This post contains some affiliate links for your convenience (which means if you make a purchase after clicking a link I will earn a small commission but it won’t cost you a penny more)! Read my full disclosure policy.

Quick links to information in this post

Material needed to make a Glitter Ornament

• • Clear Ornament
  • Polycrylic or ModPodge
  • Glitter
  • Permanant Vinyl in your choice of color
  • Paper cups to catch glue
  • Syringe or spoon to pour glue
  • Funnel for easy of pouring

Instructional Video

Fill Ornament with Glitter

Step 1. Pour in glue

Take the top off your ornament and set it aside. Prepare your glue. If you are using Polycrylic, stir well. If you are using ModPodge, mix even parts of ModPodge and water in a cup to make it more liquidy. I did 1 Tbl ModPodge and 1 Tbl water. Use a syringe or spoon to pour your glue into your ornament. I used about 2 Tablespoons of glue for each ornament to get good coverage. The amount will depend on the size of your ornament. Mine was 4 inch by 2 inches.

Once you pour your glue into the ornament, spin your ornament slowly so you cover the whole inside with the glue. Once it is all covered, let the ornament sit upside down in a paper cup so the excess can drip out for a couple minutes.

Step 2. Pour in Glitter

Use a funnel or piece of paper to pour the glitter into the ornament. Swirl the glitter around like you did with the glue until it covers almost all the inside of the ornament.

When you get to the top of the ornament, cover the opening with a paper towel and shake the glitter in the ornament so the glitter can get to the top of the ornament. Pour the left over glitter back into your glitter container.

Step 3. Let Dry

Set your ornament to dry and go cut out your vinyl. My ModPodge ornament took longer to dry that my Polycrylic Ornament. Also, the ModPodge is white until it is fully dry, then it will be clear.

Cut and apply your vinyl

Step 1. Download and prepare the Grinch file

Download the Grinch file from my resource library and unzip onto your device. Upload the file into Cricut Design Space or other cutting software. You can also cut this out by hand with the PDF or PNG files that are included.

Set your cut files to the size you need based on the size of your ornament. Make sure your layers are set to cut, and send it to your cutting machine. I am using permanent vinyl for these ornaments so they will last for years.

Step 2. Cut your vinyl

After selecting the make it button, but before cutting, I didn’t want the images so close together, so I spread them out a little so I had space to cut them apart.

When I am using small amounts of vinyl, I like to cut it all on one mat. I placed my black on the top edge and the red on the bottom edge. I still cut the black by itself and then the red, I just flipped the mat over when I cut the other color.

After you cut your vinyl, before taking it out of the machine, check to see if it cut all the way through your vinyl. Mine did not. So I then pushed the cut button again and it cut again. If you don’t take out the mat, you can cut another pass in the same exact spot. You just need to press the cut button, the “c” button, instead of the release arrow. I had to do this four times because for some reason it wasn’t cutting all the way through.

When I cut the red vinyl, I decided to change the pressure so it would cut all the way through the first time. I went into the materials setting and changed the pressure to 207. This cut so much better in one pass and was easier to weed than the black vinyl.

Step 3. Weed Vinyl

Because this cut is rather small, I chose to reverse weed my design. To do this, I place my transfer tape on top of my vinyl before weeding. Then peel off the paper backing to expose the adhesive side of the vinyl. Using painters tape, tape the transfer tape and vinyl on to a table so I don’t have to hold it with my hands.

Next, take your weeding tool and remove all the vinyl you don’t want.

I had a much harder time weeding my black because it didn’t really cut all the way through. The red was much easier to weed since I increased the pressure.

Step 4. Apply Vinyl to ornament

Since we are applying this to a spherical object, it’s helpful if you cut slits into the transfer tape. This allows it to go around the ornament without distorting the vinyl or creating bubbles or folds.

Once your vinyl is in place, rub it really well with your fingers to make sure it sticks well. The transfer tape might fold in areas around the vinyl, but that’s okay, as long as the vinyl isn’t folding or bubbling. Then slowly remove your transfer tape. Repeat this process with the other side of the ornament.

GET YOUR FREE GRINCH GLITTER ORNAMENT CUT FILES IN MY RESOURCE LIBRARY.

 

WANT TO REMEMBER THIS FOR LATER? PIN THIS GRINCH GLITTER ORNAMENT TUTORIAL TO YOUR FAVORITE PINTEREST BOARD!