Instructions for Christmas Clay Pot Decorations

Christmas decorations made by children add charm to your home.

Homemade Christmas decorations lend an old-fashioned appeal to your home during the Christmas season. Clay pots can be used in several ways to create Christmas decorations to hang on your tree or place around your home. Use smaller pots to create ornaments, favors for a party or small table decorations. Larger pots work well for larger decorations and centerpieces. These pots are available in large quantities at craft stores, often for a low price, making them a good choice for making gifts or decorating your home.

Things You'll Need

• Clay pots
• Ribbon
• Paint
• Paint brushes
• Hot glue gun
• Embellishments, such as glitter and false gems
• Spanish moss
• Bird models
• Golf balls
• Pipe cleaners
• Wire
• Craft puff balls
• Small Christmas tree or poinsettia
• Sticks

Instructions

Tree Ornaments

1. Paint each clay pot in silver, gold or any other festive color. Use 2-inch clay pots or smaller for your ornaments.

2. Add a design to the side of the clay pot, such as a snowman, star or snowflake.

3. Lay the pot on its side after the paint has dried. Face the opening toward you with the bottom of the pot facing away from you. Glue a patch of Spanish moss into the pot along the side that is lying on your work surface.

4. Glue a small bird model into the Spanish moss so it looks like a bird sitting in its nest.

5. Cut a length of ribbon and tie it into a loop. Glue the loop of ribbon onto the side of the pot that is facing the ceiling, just below the rim of the pot, to allow you to hang it from the Christmas tree where everyone can see the bird sitting in its nest inside.

6. Turn the pot bottom-side up if you do not want to make a bird nest in it. Glue the ribbon loop to the bottom of the pot to hang it from the tree.

Tabletop Decorations

1. Paint a 2-inch clay pot a white color for a snowman or brown for a reindeer. Paint a golf ball to match: white for a snowman and brown for a reindeer.

2. Glue the golf ball onto the bottom of the clay pot.

3. Paint on the faces onto the golf ball. For instance, paint a face, such as an orange-triangle nose, black-dot eyes and a mouth made from a chain of black dots, onto the snowman. For a reindeer, paint a brown or red nose, round black eyes and a line for a mouth. Paint other features, such as buttons for the snowman, onto the clay pot.

4. Cut pipe cleaners to create additional features. For the snowman, cut four 1-inch pieces of brown pipe cleaner. Twist one piece around another a half-inch from the end to create three fingers. Repeat for the other arm. The same process makes good reindeer antlers. Make reindeer legs with 2-inch pieces of brown pipe cleaner. To give your snowman accessories, wrap a colored piece of pipe cleaner around the joint between the golf ball and clay pot, leaving the ends dangling down to form the ends of the scarf. For his ear muffs, cut a 2-inch piece of wire. Insert the wire into the center of two small craft puff balls to create the ear muffs.

5. Glue the snowman's ear muffs onto the sides of the golf ball and the arms to the back of the clay pot so they stick out to the sides. Glue the reindeer antlers onto the back of the golf ball so they stick up on top of the head and the arms from the back of the clay pot around to the front to create legs.

Decorative Flowers

1. Paint a larger clay pot red, gold, green or silver, depending on your preferences.

2. Cut a length of a Christmas-themed ribbon to tie a bow around the neck of the clay pot. Plain red, gold, green or silver ribbon also work.

3. Place a miniature Christmas tree or poinsettia plant into the clay pot. Use Spanish moss to hold the Christmas tree in place and dirt for a poinsettia plant.

4. Paint sticks in gold or silver to accent your plant. After the sticks dry, place them into the dirt or Spanish moss used to hold your Christmas tree or plant in place.

Tips & Warnings

• Purchase the pots in bulk and make decorations as gifts to give out at Christmas time.

• Use felt and craft eyes to create your clay pot snowmen and reindeer instead of paint.

References

• Fave Crafts; Bird's Nest Clay Pot Christmas Ornaments; Lori Knowles
• Michaels: Clay Pot Crafting