Winter & Christmas

[Jay_HD_CHI]

Hey everyone,

The holiday season is not just the season of giving, but doing as well! So we've come up with a really cool project that you can tackle this year and make your home even livelier. You may have seen it featured in one of our commercials; it's quick and easy, and made for DIY'ers of any ability! Here's a quick video to show you what we thought up:

Isn't that cool? = D I never would have thought of using the ornaments like that, I usually just toss them up on the Christmas tree (or Christmas ladder in our house) and call it a day. This is such a neat and decorative project that doubles as an interesting centerpiece for the table too!

Here is a list of materials for what you'll need to put your own together:

• Chandelier or Light Fixture (make sure they have a sturdy base)
• Hanging Wire
• Ornaments (of course ^^)
• S-Hooks
• Scissors

Now for the fun part-- getting them all hung up! Follow along but be as creative as you can with this and it'll turn out like a masterpiece!~

1. Gather up your supplies and arrange the selection of ornaments that you'd like to hang up.

2. Spot out your hanging light or chandelier. Make sure that it has both a sturdy base as well as adequate hang space for the tree. Hang your first ornament from the center point of it.

3. Start out your next level, and place them a little bit further out on the fixture and about an inch lower than the top of your first ornament.

4. The S-hooks will help give you the perfect hang spot along the light and keep you from having to tie an obnoxious amount of knots around your beautiful light.

5. Keep layering the tree. Remember that as you go, each layer should be a little further out and lower than the previous layer. Soon you'll start seeing that tree shape appear = )

6. As you near the finish, make sure to check the tree from a far and be sure you've kept it symmetrical. You don't want a lopsided tree, now do you?

And there you have it! You're very own miniature Christmas tree made from ornaments!~ By just following along with the steps, you'll be done in no time and be the talk of all your visiting relatives this holiday season.

If you decide to create your own, be sure to let us know and please post a picture up here as a reply. We'd love to see how creative you get with it!~

[LightingGuru]

Great project! Here's another fun project. Learn how to convert bells into light fixtures at:

http://www.holidaydreamslighting.com/howtovideos/specials.html

[Jay_HD_CHI]

Hey there LightingGuru,

Welcome to the community!~

Thanks for sharing the link--that does look like quite a cool project. Really puts a fun spin on the traditional lighting to do around the house = ) Did you happen to check out the post for the Christmas Ornament Frame? My collegue shecandoit22 made a post about it, and I think it's another cool project people can enjoy this season too.

Have you done this one yourself before?

Oh, and if you have any other cool projects you've found, please share them with us, we love to see how creative people can get!~ = )

[Mrs-C]

I want to make this project this year but have a few questions first.  In the video it looks as if multiple ornaments are attached to a single line.  However, the instructions do not mention that step.  I would greatly appreciate help with this.  Thnaks

[Jay_HD_CHI]

Hey there Mrs-C,

Great to hear that you're gonna give it a shot this year! I really think it's a cool project and I can't wait to see how creative some people get with it. Be sure to post up pictures of the finished product!~ = )

For it to really get the tiered-tree effect, they'll need to be on separate lines. It looks like the only ones that would have multiple ornaments would be the ones in the middle, but that would just be to fill out the tree more in the center and for color.

The rest you'll have anchored further away as you go, and that usually means further up with chandeliers. In the one picture I posted, you'll notice multiple anchoring points that start to lead upwards and outwards...

And then I also zoomed in on a picture of the finished product and eyeballed out as many of the lines and anchor-points for you as well. See how it starts to branch out as you go, and by layering them like that, you get the tiered effect.

You can also see more of the string lines that overlap the actual ornaments as well. If they were all connected one below the other, we'd end up with more of a cylinder shape and that may not look as festive. = (

Gauge how wide you want the tree to be at the bottom diameter wise, and measure upwards from that. If you have a candelabra style like the one in the picture, your end circumference will be no larger than that, so that will help put in perspective how much hang room you have to work with.

I hope this helps clear it up a bit more for you. Please let us know if you have any more questions on it, and best of luck with it!~ = )

[Mrs-C]

Thanks so much for clarifying that for me.  I'll post pics as soon as I get it done, I'm going to start it next week!  

[TJonline]

For those of you who have tried it, how long did it take?  I'd really like to do it, but I'm afraid of spending a lot of time and winding up with something that doesn't look good.

If I understand the instructions right, every ornament is on a separate string.  But doesn't that mean that once you hang one, you can never get one directly below it?  So the inside has to be sort of empty?

Thanks for being patient with a decorating newbie.

[Jay_HD_CHI]

saphire9170 & nightngalenurse,

Those turned out so amazing!~  I'm sure they're both going to WOW! any family and friends you have over this year! Great job with them =D

TJonline

Don't sweat it = ) That's what the community is here for!~ We'll make sure your ornament tree is in top form this year and ready to impress everyone, just like the two great examples you saw above!

Each string is mostly independent from the others, like how I displayed in my responses to Mrs-C. However, you can add more to a single string with the ornaments in the center, particularly the middle ornament. This will give the tree a "fuller" look and not have the empty center that you're referring too. Just don't go too overboard because it may detract from the image of the tree shape if you add too many to the middle.

If you get stuck along the way, just let us know!~ Be sure to share the finished product with us though, I'd love to see how it turns out =D

[Paul]

Yes, you're correct. The center will be empty. But the illusion of fullness comes from there not being anything in the middle. The fact you see through it, seeing on the other side, makes the display look fuller than it actually is.

[franixavi]

I am trying to create this ornament tree, but how do you hang more than one ornament on one line in the middle to make it look fuller? Please explain step by step how to get that effect in the middle. Thanks.