homemade ornament 3

[ButterflyWings]

Puzzle Wreath Ornaments
We all have puzzles laying around that are missing pieces. For some reason, we never throw them away. This is a great way to make use of those puzzles with missing pieces.

This is a project that I first did as a kid with my grandmother. She loved crafting and taught me so many wonderful craft projects. This can be done on a small scale for a Christmas ornament, or on a larger scale for a decorative wreath. This is another great project to do with your kids.

What you need:

puzzle pieces (amount depends on size of wreath)

green craft paint

red craft paint

white glue

hot glue

cardboard circle (can be made by tracing around two round objects, one slightly larger than the other)

Cut a cardboard circle by tracing around two objects and cutting out.
Lay out puzzle pieces on a sheet of waxed paper. (Newspaper sticks to the paint)
Paint the top side of the puzzle pieces with green paint. It may take several coats to completely cover the puzzle pieces. (If the back of the puzzle is already green, there is no need to paint the other side of the pieces.)
Allow the paint to completely dry.
Using white glue, glue the painted puzzle pieces to the cardboard circle.  Do one layer, allow to dry and then do another layer, slightly off from the first, to create the look of a holly wreath.
Allow the glue to dry completely.
Using red paint, paint red "berries" on the green wreath. (You can also choose to glue small seed beads on as berries. Use slightly larger beads or fake berries if making a larger wreath.)
Make a loop with string or ribbon.  Using hot glue, glue to the back of the ornament.