For the first time ever, I will be hosting my family during the holidays.  I am so excited and want to fill the apartment with festive cheer:  cookies, eggnog, stockings, and all the little things that make Christmas feel special.  In anticipation of their arrival I even bought a real tree (which was no small feat; getting 6 feet of Nova Scotian Balsam fir on a very crowded bus was truly a Christmas miracle!) and made some felt ornaments for it.

Materials you will need:  ivory felt, coloured felt, circle templates (I used the 2 parts of a jar lid), sewing needle and thread, embroidery thread, hole punch, scissors, and a disappearing ink pen.

Step 1:  For each ornament you will need 2 ivory circles, 1 smaller coloured circle, and a ¼”x 6” ivory strip.

Step 2:  Draw a star on the ornament front.

Step 3:  Punch out the center.

Step 4:  Cut the radial arms of the star, making sure not to cut all the way to the edge or centre.

Step 5:  Pinch the centre of each wedge and secure with sewing thread.

Step 6:  Stack the layers together – ivory circle, coloured circle, hanging loop, and ornament front – and sew closed with the embroidery thread.

I plan to embroider initials or the year on the backs, and give them away as parting gifts.  Maybe it will even start a new tradition, with a different ornament commemorating each year.