Use Costume Jewelry as Mini Ornaments

Use Costume Jewelry as Mini Ornaments - closeup of an angel pin ornament The other day, I was going through a box of small keepsakes when I realized I've never worn a single pin I've ever been given. (Oops.) My favorite one is my grandmother's old butterfly pin that's too fragile to wear. Then I had a duh moment when I remembered I had no ornaments for my mini tree. :) You can finds all sorts of ways to re-purpose costume jewelry. Pins are very easy to tweak. You only need a bit of ribbon and some fabric glue.

Supplies:

ribbon
assorted pins
fabric glue (to make the bows last)

Steps:

There are different ways to fix the ribbon to get pins to hang nicely on the tree, depending on the type of pin you have. I've outlined some ways you can correctly affix ribbon to different shaped and sized pins
Small pins with needle-clip backings are the easiest to start with. Double knot the ribbon through the gap where the back clip of the pin meets the needle.

Use Costume Jewelry as Mini Ornaments - adding ribbon to needle clip back style pin

Next, make a fairly large loop, in proportion to the size of the pin, and knot the other end, leaving enough ribbon to make a bow.

Use Costume Jewelry as Mini Ornaments - make loop

Use Costume Jewelry as Mini Ornaments - knot

Double knot it to secure the hold. Make a mini bow, if desired, and dab a dot of fabric glue where the bow knots to prevent it from unraveling.

Use Costume Jewelry as Mini Ornaments - tie ends of ribbon into a bow

Use Costume Jewelry as Mini Ornaments - add glue to bow to hold

For the hook and needle pin, I folded a good length of ribbon in half and knotted the center fold to one end of the needle. Then, I twisted the ribbon and made a second knot at the opposite end.

Use Costume Jewelry as Mini Ornaments - knot a folded piece of ribbon to the hook and needle style pin needle

Use Costume Jewelry as Mini Ornaments - twist the ribbon and tie at the other end of the needle

The butterfly pin had a different weight and shape, so I ended up wrapping it around the body instead of the pin closure. I gently knotted the ribbon at the base of the head.

Use Costume Jewelry as Mini Ornaments - butterfly had ribbon gently tied around the body

Enjoy your new set of mini ornaments! They also make a cute gift.

Use Costume Jewelry as Mini Ornaments - finished mini ornaments

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Comment

Jodi Murray H.

November 29, 20181 found this helpful

Top Comment

I have a mini-tree, and I've used old Christmas earrings to decorate it. I use pearl lights on my kitchen tree, and when they burn out (they're white) I paint them with red nail polish and hang them on the mini-tree.

Somewhere, I acquired a bunch of tiny teddy bears, about 1/2 inch tall, so I added hangers to them and use them, too.

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Holly

November 30, 20181 found this helpful

Cool, Jodi! Thank you so much for sharing those creative tips. The teddy bears sound super cute. :)

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Jodi Murray H.

March 25, 20190 found this helpful

You're welcome! Sorry I'm just now seeing this. My family jokes that if I like something, I either frame it or hang it on the Christmas tree.

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Holly

April 20, 20190 found this helpful