5 Easy Christmas Ornaments You Can Make in Under 1 Hour

Christmas sneaks up quickly. With all of the shopping, travel plans and family politics, decorating can fall by the wayside. If you're staring down a Christmas tree (or Hanukkah bush) featuring few new ornaments, there's no need to panic. We've pulled together five ornament projects you can complete in under an hour. Get your glue guns, glitter, and yarn ready, your house is about to transform into a Christmas workshop.

Teeny Christmas Sweater

If you're a fast knitter, you may be able to whip up this tiny knitted sweater ornament in less than an hour. It's a great way to use up spare yarn and looks super cute. 

Pom-Pom Snowballs

Sometimes a snowy white Christmas tree can be very eye-catching, but without enough decorations to accent the branches, it can appear sparse. This craft is perfect for creating some filler baubles. They're white like snowballs, but if you're stuck for other colors there's nothing to say you can't change yarns! Grab a kitchen fork and wrap yarn around it (or your hand) until you've got a firm bundle, about 2.5 to 3 inches across. Thread a strand of yarn through the central prongs of the fork and tie tightly around the bundle of yarn. Snip along both edges of the fork and shake to produce a cute pom pom! You can hang this with the yarn you used to tie your knot, it's as simple as that.

Poker Chip Ornaments

If you and your partner are romantic, then creating a whole tree full of decorations commemorating your most memorable dates is a cute conversation piece. For those who play cards, poker chips make adorable decorations with just a bit of ribbon. Thanks to the way they're made, they're durable enough to stand up to serious hot glue-gunning, which is handy for this craft. 

Christmas Corkers

Having little creatures hanging from the tree is adorable. If you're a crochet whizz, these amigurumi patterns can be a good place to start. If you're more of a painter than a stitcher, we've got a great way to use up old wine bottle corks. For this project, you'll need a cork, a selection of acrylic paints, ribbon, and some pipe cleaners. Start by deciding on who or what you'd like to hang from your tree. For example, we could make a Santa. Paint the body of the cork red, with black buttons, a flesh-colored face, and a white beard. Stick pipe cleaners into the cork for arms and legs, then glue the ribbon to the top of his head and hang from the tree.

The Classic Snowflake

Crafting with a new crafter or a child? A paper snowflake is a super way to ensure everyone joins in. Start with a piece of square paper, then fold it in half in whatever direction you want. Triangular halves will create one type of pattern, whilst long rectangular folds work other ways. Snip away at the central fold of your snowflake until you've created a few holes in the paper. Once you unfold the flake you'll have a Christmas decoration that can be hung on a branch, or threaded with a bit of string.