In a season that often feels larger than life, we decided to zero in on — and have some fun with — one of the smaller details: the holiday ornament.
The Home&Garden staff asked nearly two dozen famous, wild and creative souls — designers, artists, foodies, actors, athletes, journalists, you name it — to take our challenge and create a holiday ornament that’s sure to inspire a few oohs and aahs and that you can reproduce for yourself.
HERE’S THE KICKER: We gave them a $5 budget.
We didn’t rule out the possibility of using scavenged or “found” objects. But $5 was their maximum out-of-pocket expense. (OK, a few went over, but just a tad.)
Other than that, we went easy on the rules: It didn’t have to be a Christmas ornament. We told our participants their piece could celebrate the December holiday of their choosing. And it didn’t have to be meant for a tree. They could turn it into a kissing ball, table decoration, whatever they imagined. We supplied the “blank” glass ornament but invited participants to use another round object of similar size, if they preferred.
What we got back was comical, beautiful, amazing: a glass orb filled with aspirin (an antidote to the holiday madness), another dipped in chocolate, another festooned to look like a mini-pinata, others swirled with paint.
GUESS WHO DESIGNED WHICH ORNAMENT.
On that same page, we’re sharing how-to details for these beauties for those who want to try making them at home. For those who prefer just to buy one, we are auctioning off these orbs, each of which is signed by its creator. Proceeds benefit Chicago Tribune Holiday Giving, a campaign of Chicago Tribune Charities, a McCormick Tribune Foundation Fund. The Giving campaign helps alleviate hunger and homelessness and promote literacy in the Chicago area. To bid, go to chicagotribune.com/ornaments. Minimum bid is $25. The auction starts today and ends at noon Dec. 18. Winning bidders will be notified Dec. 19 and receive their ornament before Christmas.
HAVE A BALL:
Want to try your hand at making ornaments like these? All of our celebrity ornament-makers have shared materials lists and instructions — and their holiday wishes for the world.
MAKE A BID:
These autographed ornaments not only look good, they do good when you buy them at auction. Proceeds benefit the Chicago Tribune Holiday Giving campaign. Go to chicagotribune.com/ornaments. Auction ends at noon Dec. 18.
The Music Brings Harmony and Unity Ornament
Who made this: Dusty Baker (autograph) and 6-year-old son, Darren (decoration)
Who’s that? Chicago Cubs manager
— Elaine Matsushita
About this ornament
Materials needed (and cost):
Musical stickers
Letter stickers
Washable paint pens
Total: $0 (all from Darren Baker’s art supplies)
The Music Brings Harmony and Unity Ornament
Steps to make it:
1. Put stickers on ornament.
2. Use letter stickers to write a message.
3. Use paint pens to add colorful accents.
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The Big-Hit Ornament
Who made this: Rick Bayless
Who’s that? Owner/chef at Frontera Grill and Topolobampo restaurants in Chicago, author of many popular cookbooks on Mexican cuisine and star of his own television show on Mexican cooking and culture, “Mexico — One Plate at a Time,” on WTTW-Ch. 11
Holiday wish for the world: Peace in abundance.
— Mary Daniels,mdaniels@tribune.com
About this ornament
Holiday it celebrates: Christmas. Mexicans traditionally did not have a Christmas tree with ornaments until recently. The breaking of a pinata was and still is one of the highlights for their children at Christmas. Creating a little pinata ornament bridges ancient tradition with modern ones.
Materials needed (and cost):
Assorted candies
Craft paper (or paper bags)
Colored tissue paper
Total: $5.23
Equipment needed: Glue gun, white school glue, scissors
The Big-Hit Ornament
Steps to make it: (Note: In the tradition of making Mexican celebratory ephemeral decorations, the cost is low but the time to make them is generous. Time is the main ingredient to this exuberant ornament.)
1. Fill the inside of the globe halfway with candy (mini-Chiclets). Use very lightweight candy to prevent the globe from getting too heavy and therefore slipping off its hanging anchor.
2. Cut five 4-by-4-inch squares of craft paper (a paper bag would do), roll them into small cones and glue gun the seams. Cut the cones to the length you like them to be, and then make small 1/4-inch incisions at the bottom of the cone about 1/4 inches apart. Bend back the flaps created by these little incisions, apply glue and position the cones on your globe so you have one north, south, east, west and one sticking out in the back opposite the globe “window.”
3. Cover the cones on the globe with the candy paper of your choice. For this step, white school glue worked better as the heat of the glue gun made most wrappers shrivel.
4. Unwrap the candy; share it with friends but save the wrappers.
5. Flatten wrappers, then pinch them at the center and bunch them up like little bouquets of flowers. Apply a drop of glue to the bottom of the wrapper bouquet and attach it to the globe. Do this until the globe is completely covered except for the “window” where you want to be able to see what’s inside.
6. Cut 1-inch-long thin strips of multicolored tissue paper and glue them to the tips of the cones.
7. A baby pinata is born.
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The Memory Ornament
Who made this: June Blaker
Who’s that: Fashionista, glamorous hippie, bead lady — June Blaker may have closed her eponymous fashion boutique in River North in 2001, but she still reigns as Chicago’s queen of avant-garde fashion. The lady-in-black is in the midst of a reinvention. Look for Blaker to have a new Oak Street presence. More details to come in the new year.
Holiday wish for the world: “Peace, of course. Peace and love. It’s been my thought since I was a kid. I’m an old hippie. I still believe in it.”
— Karen Klages, kklages@tribune.com
About this ornament
Holiday it celebrates: Any one you want.
Materials needed (and cost):
Use whatever you like — pieces of memories. Blaker used remnants from a broken necklace, a fortune from a cookie, feathers from a friend’s macaw, a lock of hair, seedpods from morning glories on her porch this summer.
(Optional) Nail polish, any color.
Total cost: $0
The Memory Ornament
Steps to make it:
1. Unscrew the cap. Fill the glass ball with pieces of memories.
2. Blaker dangled part of a broken necklace from the inside of the ornament cap.
3. (Optional) Paint ornament cap with nail polish and recap after it’s dry.
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The Money Ball Ornament
Who made this: Jonathan Brandmeier
Who’s that? One fun-lovin’ sonofagun and morning-show host on The Loop 97.9-FM.
Holiday wish for the world: “Tight board, no negs.”
— Elaine Matsushita
About this ornament
Holiday it celebrates: Walleye Weekend
Materials needed (and cost):
5 $1 bills
Green marker
Red marker
Total: $5
The Money Ball Ornament
Steps to make it:
1. Take off cap of ornament.
2. Roll up 5 $1 bills tightly and insert into ornament.
3. Replace cap of ornament.
4. Write messages on outside of ornament. (Brandmeier’s says: “Break if you’re broke.”)
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The Field of Dreams Ornament
Who made this: Mike Brown and Erin Brown
Who’s that? Chicago Bears strong safety, No. 30, in his sixth year with the team, and Mike’s wife
Holiday wish for the world: PEACE.
— Elaine Matsushita
About this ornament
Holiday it celebrates: Football season
Materials needed (and cost):
Grass from Soldier Field (legally obtained from Soldier Field staff; you can use any grass or grass substitute)
Liquid plastic casting resin (from crafts stores)
Catalyst for polyester resin (from crafts stores)
Total: $0
Equipment needed: Rubber gloves, face mask, pencil (to poke grass into resin)
The Field of Dreams Ornament
Steps to make it:
1. Fill ornament with a couple pinches of the grass.
2. Pour in about 1/2 inch liquid plastic casting resin.
3. Add catalyst (follow packaging instructions).
4. Repeat Steps 1 through 3 five times until ornament is filled.
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The Color Fantasy Ornament
Who made this: Diane Dinkens Carr
Who’s that? President of the South Side Community Art Center
Holiday wish for the world: Harmony and sincere love.
— Elaine Matsushita
About this ornament
Holiday it celebrates: Christmas
Materials needed (all from Carr’s own supplies, but available at crafts stores):
Decorative trim
Star garland
Ribbon
Total: $4
Equipment needed: Scissors, glue gun
The Color Fantasy Ornament
Steps to make it:
1. Cut trim and stars off garland; put cut pieces into ornament. Save some trim for neck of ornament.
2. Cut trim into 2 pieces, take 1 piece and hot glue around neck of ornament so fringe lays on top of ornament, take other piece and glue so fringe is sticking up toward the ornament’s cap. Tie ribbon through hoop of ornament.
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The I Do, I Do Ornament
Who made this: Laura Cid-Perea
Who’s that? Owner and chief pastry chef at Bombon bakery in Pilsen, who came to the United States eight years ago already a celebrity in Mexico as the sole woman executive pastry chef in that country.
Holiday wish for the world: Understanding and love
— Mary Daniels, mdaniels@tribune.com
About this ornament
Holiday it celebrates: Christmas, with a little bit of influence from weddings and the wedding cakes Cid-Perea loves to create for novios, or sweethearts.
Materials needed (all are things Cid-Perea had on hand):
Sheet of gold leaf. When Cid-Perea was a student in Paris, she could not believe how the French used gold leaf to decorate their cakes. “They must think their cakes are jewels,” she thought. This inspired her, in making the ornament, to use gold leaf as they would in a wedding cake. (About $1.80 a sheet)
Fondant to make the tiny flowers
Royal icing. Most bakers prepare it with egg whites and confectioner’s sugar. Cid-Perea used 1 egg, 1/2 cup of confectioner’s sugar and a few drops of water, for the texture. You can make it thicker to do the leaves.
Little pearls, out of cornstarch, confectioner’s sugar and water.
Granulated sugar
Total: $0
Equipment needed: Small bowl, hand mixer or hand whip, spatula, rolling pin, a small piping bag or a wax paper cone
The I Do, I Do Ornament
Steps to make it:
1. Make swirls with royal icing, using a small piping bag and a small round tip, if you have one, or wax paper cut into a triangle and rolled into a cone shape.
2. Mix a little granulated sugar and water and sprinkle it on the ornament (the mix will stick to the glass) for a glittery look.
3. Then roll out the fondant to make the flowers and shape them.
4. Put the little pearls (made by mixing cornstarch, confectioner’s sugar and water) on the centers of the flowers; glue them on with royal icing and then apply flowers to the ornament.
5. Apply gold leaf. (Note: royal icing has to be fresh for the gold leaf to stick.)
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The What TO Wear Ornament
Who made this: Clinton Kelly (“I’m calling this the `What TO Wear’ ornament because I’ve stuffed it with one of my famous pocket squares — always what to wear.”)
Who’s that? Fashion expert and co-host of TLC’s “What Not to Wear.”
Holiday wish for the world: “An increased capacity to empathize with others, the ability to recognize when someone’s feeding you a line of bull, and at least one good belly-laugh a week.”
— Tran Ha, tha@tribune.com
About this ornament
Holiday it celebrates: “It’s for Christmas. (It’s my favorite time of the year, so to call it anything else feels like treason.) But I like to think of Christmas as a holiday for all. It can be religious if you choose, or not. Mostly, it’s a season to remember what’s really important in life: reminding the people you love how important they are to you — whether that’s by making a delicious dinner for them, decorating a tree that makes them smile, or just sitting quietly and watching a roaring fire together. Cashmere’s nice too.”
Materials needed (and cost):
Robert Talbott silk pocket square ($0, Clinton donated his own)
Ribbon
Total: $0
The What TO Wear Ornament
Steps to make it:
1. Take a 16-by-16-inch piece of silk or satin, preferably with finished edges and gently stuff into the opening of a hollow glass ornament.
2. Replace ornament’s cap.
3. Finish with a piece of ribbon.
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Cristina’s Tropical Hangover Ornament
Who made this: Cristina Saralegui
Who’s that? One word really says it all. Cristina! The name of the Cuban-born media mogul who hosts the eponymous Spanish-language TV talk show. She has spread her creative wings into furniture with a Miami-Mediterranean-style collection with Pulaski Furniture Co.
Holiday wish for the world: “That there will be one entire day of peace throughout the world, one whole day when no one kills or hurts anyone else.”
— Pamela Sherrod,psherrod@tribune.com
About this ornament
Holiday it celebrates: It celebrates New Year’s Day in the tropics.
Materials needed (and cost):
Tropical sparkles ($2.59 from crafts or stationary stores)
Scenic sand ($1.39 from crafts stores)
Cork bottle stopper (check kitchen drawers)
Total: $3.98
Cristina’s Tropical
Hangover Ornament
Steps to make it:
1. Put sparkles inside ornament.
2. Add colorful scenic sand.
3. Replace ornament cap with a bottle cork. This turns the ornament into a decorative object to make tabletops or place settings more festive. “It feels like a happy New Year’s Day in the tropics with all the elements locked inside the sphere.”
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Shakespearean Holiday Ornament
Who made this: Barbara Gaines
Who’s that? The founder of the Chicago Shakespeare Theater. Her work has received Jeff Awards for best production and best director.
Holiday wish for the world: “More theater, more music, more art, more dancing and more love.”
— Pamela Sherrod, psherrod@tribune.com
About this ornament
Holiday it celebrates: A Shakespearean holiday
Materials needed (and cost):
Spray paint (from home)
1 piece of vellum paper (75 cents from crafts, paper-specialty or office-supply stores)
Glue (from home)
Mardi Gras beads (50 cents from crafts store)
Buttons (from personal sewing kit)
Total: $1.25
Equipment needed: Scissors
Shakespearean Holiday Ornament
Steps to make it:
1. Choose colors of spray paint that accent the image you will place on the ornament. Use very little paint, layering the colors corresponding with your picture.
2. Take a picture with a digital camera and print it on a piece of vellum paper.
3. Glue the picture onto the ornament.
4. Glue Mardi Gras beads around the exterior of the picture.
5. Add buttons or other decorations to accent the image.
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Boxwood Pomander:
The Chia Pet Ornament
Who made this: William Heffernan
Who’s that: He’s the creative director of Heffernan Morgan, Chicago’s top event florist (weddings, galas, fundraisers, hotel lobbies, Chicago Flower and Garden show).
Holiday wish for the world: “Flowers every day of their life.”
About this ornament
Holiday it celebrates: Any holiday
Materials needed (and cost):
Oasis brick (florist’s foam), standard size (about 50 cents at crafts stores)
5 inches of chicken wire (about 5 cents at home center stores)
1 1/2 bunches of fresh boxwood (about $2 at garden centers)
Iridescent green/gold French wired ribbon (found in his studio)
Total cost: $2.55
Equipment needed: Knife, bowl, garden pruners and/or scissors
Boxwood Pomander:
The Chia Pet Ornament
Steps to make it:
1. Form a ball out of the oasis brick using a knife to cut it.
2. Tightly wrap chicken wire around the ball, looping it within itself to lock in place.
3. Soak the oasis, completely submerging it in water.
4. Cut boxwood into 3-inch clippings. Insert clippings into oasis to form a sphere.
5. Using garden pruners, trim the boxwood to a uniform height.
6. Wrap ribbon through the wire, bring it up and make a small bow.
(Note: The boxwood will remain green for approximately 3 weeks with some spritzing — or you can dunk the whole ball in water. After 3 weeks, it slowly will turn a golden color and last indefinitely in its dried state.)
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The Hyannisport Holiday Ornament
Who made this: Chris Kennedy
Who’s that? President of Merchandise Mart Properties Inc.
Holiday wish for the world: The love of family.
— Mary Daniels
About this ornament
Holiday it celebrates: Inspired by a place that’s special to Chris and his family, Hyannisport, on Cape Cod, in Massachusetts.
Materials needed (and cost):
Sand
Shells
A watercolor of the Kennedy Hyannisport home
Total: $0 (All from Kennedy’s office)
The Hyannisport HolidayOrnament
Steps to make it:
1. Pick a place that holds great memories or is a vacation destination that you go to every year. Then select objects that are representational of that location. In addition to those objects, cut a photo from a brochure from the hotel you stayed at or a snapshot that was taken there.
2. Insert artwork and objects into ornament. Your ornament will remind you of that trip every year.
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The `It’s a Bears Town!’ Ornament
Who made this: Lovie Smith and
MaryAnne Smith
Who’s that? Respectively, head coach of the Chicago Bears and Lovie’s wife.
Holiday wish for the world: Peace on earth, good will towards all — and a Super Bowl for Bears fans!
— Elaine Matsushita,ematsushita@tribune.com
About this ornament
Holiday it celebrates: Christmas
Materials needed (and cost):
Acrylic paint (from crafts store)
Glitter
Glue
Total: $0
Equipment needed: Fine-gauge brush
The `It’s a Bears Town!’ Ornament
Steps to make it:
1. Copy the skyline from a Chicago postcard onto the ornament with a very fine paintbrush and black paint. Let dry before filling in buildings with paint.
2. Mix blue paint with glitter, pour into inside of the ornament and shake around to create the night sky. Let dry for about 24 hours.
3. Paint Bears claw and Christmas decorations with a fine brush near top of the ornament. Let dry for about 24 hours. You’re done!
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Katrina Markoff
The Chocolate Ornament
Who made this: Katrina Markoff
Who’s that? Founder of Chicago-based chocolatier Vosges Haut-Chocolat
Holiday wish for the world: Peace, love and chocolate.
— Tran Ha
About this ornament
Holiday it celebrates: Christmas, as well as all holiday traditions throughout the world. It was inspired by our Naga truffle, which draws its name from Nagaland, a vibrant area full of folklore in northeast India.
Materials needed (and cost):
Chocolate (chips might melt more evenly)
Colorful spice (curry powder, paprika, etc.)
Total: $0 (Markoff used chocolate and spices on hand at Vosges.)
Equipment needed: a 3.5 quart pot and large glass bowl
The Chocolate Ornament
Steps to make it:
1. Melt the chocolate of your choice in the 3.5-quart pot. Let it cool a bit.
2. Carefully dip ornament into chocolate. Let chocolate drip and create patterns as it dries. (Either hold or hang ornament over wax paper as it drips dry.)
3. Follow with a quick dip in sweet Indian curry powder or other spices. You can dust it on, or pour some spice into a bowl and roll the ornament around in it. Travel the world through chocolate . . . celebrate Mexico with ancho and chipotle chili powders, Australia with chopped macadamia nuts, and Hungary with sweet paprika.
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Golden Bee Ornament
Who made this: Laura Foster Nicholson
Who’s that? Chicago-based textile artist.
Holiday wish for the world: “I wish people would be able to recapture a sense of serenity and balance. That’s what I want for myself. . . . I chose the bee as a symbol of hard work” and balance. “Bees are very industrious and they’re thrifty. They work hard and they get this incredibly beautiful thing — the honey — at the end.”
— Karen Klages, kklages@tribune.com
About this ornament
Holiday it celebrates: Christmas
Materials needed (and cost):
Four bee charms (found objects)
2 1/4 yards 5/8-inch Honeybee ribbon ($2 to $2.50 a yard from LFN Textiles, wwwlfntextiles.com; or Soutache, 2125 N. Damen Ave., 773-292-9110; or Vogue Fabrics, 718 Main St., Evanston, 847-864-9600.)
4 yards 1/4-inch gold metallic ribbon (about 13 cents a yard at crafts stores)
3-inch-diameter Styrofoam ball (59 cents at crafts stores)
Total cost: $5.61
Equipment needed: Glue gun, scissors, straight pins, needle, gold thread
Golden Bee Ornament
Steps to make it:
1. Cut 5 pieces of gold ribbon, each 12 inches long. Cut one piece 16 inches long.
2. Mark top and bottom of Styrofoam ball with straight pins for guideposts.
3. Draw 12 “orange slices” on the ball by first dividing it into quarters and then dividing each quarter into thirds.
4. Find center of one of the 12-inch-long gold ribbons. Glue center over top pin (moving the pin out of the way and then back in) and then glue rest of ribbon down overone marker line all the way around the ball and bringing the ends together over the bottom pin. Let loose 3- to 4-inch ends dangle below ball to form the tassel. Do this 4 more times with 12-inch ribbons, following a different marker line each time.
5. Find the center of 16-inch gold ribbon. About 3 inches down, tie knot to form a loop. With loop at top of ornament, glue ribbon on final lengthwise spot on ball.
6. Cut and glue shorter lengths of gold ribbon to cover white spaces until ball is entirely covered.
7. Wrap short length of gold ribbon around tassel base; glue and trim.
8. Cut bee ribbon into about 52 1 1/2-inch lengths, making “V” cuts at the bottom of each bee repeat.
9. At the base of ball, glue tops of 4 bee ribbons around the top of the tassel.
10. Next row: glue 8 bee-ribbon strips so pointy end just misses the bee below it, with each bee of this row alternating with bees below it.
11. Keep adding rows of 8 bee ribbons until you reach the top of ball.
12. With needle and gold thread, tack each of 4 bee charms into the knot in the hanging loop.
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The Winter Pearls Ornament
Who made this: Kathy O’Malley
Who’s that? Half of the top-rated Kathy and Judy radio show on WGN-AM 720. Since 1989, O’Malley and Judy Markey — once newspaper reporters for the rival Chicago Tribune and Chicago Sun-Times — have hosted a live talk show where they discuss life, children, men, the day’s news, gardening, books, wars, goose attacks and anything else that might occur to them.
Holiday wish for the world: Honest and sane leadership for every nation.
— Beth Botts, ebotts@tribune.com
About this ornament
Holiday it celebrates: Pretty much Christmas
Materials needed (and cost):
Old leftover paint
Tiny fake pearl beads ($2.99 at crafts stores)
Sparkly silver craft paint ($1.49 at crafts store)
Glue
Total: About $4.50
Equipment needed: Newspaper to cover table, small brush
The Winter Pearl Ornament
Steps to make it:
1. Dig up old leftover house paint from basement.
2. Remove cap from ornament. Add small amount of paint to ornament and swirl paint around inside. Let dry. (Note: It takes forever, because air can enter only through the small hole at the top of the ornament.)
3. Add some more paint and swirl around. Let dry.
4. Try again.
5. Decide gray-painted ornament is ugly. Panic. Buy pearls and silver paint.
6. Glue pearls to top of ornament to suggest snow falling through a wintry Chicago sky. Add touches of silver paint to enhance icy effect.
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Adam Schwerner, director of natural resources for the Chicago Park District
The Feel Better Ornament
Who made this: Adam Schwerner
(“I wanted to make something with humor. All those holiday parties have one feeling a bit under the weather. Here’s an antidote to those fevers and headaches.”)
Who’s that? Director of natural resources for the Chicago Park District, “plant nerd” and artist
Holiday wish for the world: “Unending supply of water where it’s needed.”
— Marjorie David, mcdavid@tribune.com
About this ornament
Holiday it celebrates: It’s meant to be hung from a holiday tree.
Materials needed (and cost):
Bottle of aspirin
Thermometer
Ribbon
Total: $3.99
The Feel Better Ornament
Steps to make it:
1. This was a family project. My 6-year-old son helped poke and funnel the aspirin into the ornament. My wife tied the ribbons.
2. Finish by tying thermometer to the top of the ornament with a ribbon.
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Matt Shallenberger
The Blue Man Ornament
Who made this: Matt Shallenberger
Who’s that? Member of the Chicago Blue Man Group and a transplanted Hawaiian who loves Chicago. “I really dig winters here because people seem to be warmer here — they’ve got something to bond about.”
Holiday wish for the world: Rediscover what it’s like to play. “I think it’s a shame that recess stops at 5th grade.”
— Marjorie David
About this ornament
Holiday it celebrates: any
Materials needed (and cost):
6 glass balls
acrylic paint, which works best because of its thickness
Total: $3
The Blue Man Ornament
Steps to make it:
1. Pour your choice of paint colors into ornament (Shallenberger chose blue for obvious reasons).
2. Mess around. Shallenberger and the rest of the Blue Man Group gathered in his kitchen and brainstormed. After much experimentation (including an explosive attempt with marshmallows), Shallenberger got in the groove with acrylic paints. He turned ornaments to make different designs and also poured paint from one ornament into another.
– – –
Chris Sullivan, actor, “Defending the Caveman”
The Omniholiday Ornament
Who made this: Chris Sullivan
Who’s that? “A very fortunate actor who was given an opportunity to make other people laugh. There’s no better feeling than making other people laugh,” says the star of “Defending the Caveman” at the Lakeshore Theatre.
Holiday wish for the world: “A little bit of perspective. If people could just step back and get a little perspective on the big picture.”
— Marjorie David,mcdavid@tribune.com
About this ornament
Holiday it celebrates: “I tried to keep it holiday anonymous.”
Materials needed (and cost):
Blue and yellow curling ribbon
Total: $2.99
The Omniholiday Ornament
Steps to make it:
1. Cut ribbon into 7- or 8-inch lengths.
2. Curl with scissors.
3. Push ribbon into ornament. Toss glitter inside.
4. Use a mailing label to personalize it.
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The Donald Ornament
Who made this: Donald Trump
Who’s that? Need you ask? Real estate mogul, creator of “The Apprentice” series and all around famous guy is building a Trump Tower in downtown Chicago.
Holiday wish for the world: Peace.
— Tran Ha, tha@tribune.com
About this ornament
Holiday it celebrates: Christmas and New York City
Materials needed (and cost): Gold permanent marker (about $3)
Total: $3
The Donald Ornament
Steps to make it:
1. Draw the skyline of your favorite city on the ornament using the gold marker.
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The Hattitude: Wear Your Crown Ornament
Who made this: Cheryl Burton
Who’s that? ABC7 News Chicago anchor and Chicago native who was raised on the South Side
Holiday wish for the world: Abundant blessings. And peace and understanding among nations, freedom from poverty and homelessness and joy in the hearts of children everywhere.
— Elaine Matsushita
About this ornament
Holiday it celebrates: In the African-American community, hats long have been a symbolic tradition. They speak long before its wearer utters a word.
My grandmother would always wear hats to church, and when I complimented her about how beautiful she looked, she would say, “Thank you, baby. Women who wear hats are queens and the hats are our crowns.” So I wanted to celebrate women and all the women who have influenced and contributed to my life.
Materials needed (and cost):
Acrylic paint for the face
Hat (bought at crafts store)
Earrings (from an old dress)
Glue
Total: $10
The Hattitude: Wear Your Crown Ornament
Steps to make it:
1. Paint a face on front of the ornament.
2. Glue hat at top of ornament.
3. Glue little pearls or faux gemstones at “ears” of ornament.
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The Wake Up and Smell the Latte Ornament
Who made this: Amy Dickinson
Who’s that? The Chicago Tribune’s syndicated advice columnist
Holiday wish for the world: PEACE!
— Elaine Matsushita
About this ornament
Holiday it celebrates: I made this in the spirit of friendship and to try to commemorate what I do for a living. It is intended for Christmas — this sort of thing should only surface once a year.
Materials needed (and cost):
Balloon
Shredded newspaper (for karma’s sake, I shredded my own column)
Flour
Glue
Liquid Paper
Paint
Fixative
Electrical wire (for the handle)
Ribbon
Tag
Total: $0 (materials I had on hand)
Equipment needed: Glue gun
The Wake Up and Smell the Latte Ornament
Steps to make it:
1. Blow up a small balloon and prepare some sort of glue solution. (I used flour and water, followed by Elmer’s glue diluted with water.)
2. Shred newspaper in thin strips.
3. Coat newspaper strips with glue solution and layer them around the balloon.
4. When dry, pop balloon and the strips should remain in the basic mold.
5. Decorate (I painted my creation with Liquid Paper and then sprayed a thin layer of fixative over the whole thing).
6. For the handle, I used twisted electrical wire from my daughter’s science fair project and attached it with a glue gun.
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The Go, Go White Sox Ornament
Who made this: Southpaw
Who’s that? White Sox mascot
Holiday wish for the world: For all children to be safe, warm, fed and loved, and for the White Sox to bring home another World Series Championship in 2006!
— Elaine Matsushita
About this ornament
Holiday it celebrates: Southpaw’s love for the World Champion White Sox.
Materials needed (and cost):
Sox logo (free from Internet)
Picture of Southpaw (free from Internet)
Mini Sox helmet ($1)
White Sox ribbon ($2)
Hair from Southpaw (priceless)
Total: about $3
Equipment needed: Tape, glue, scissors
The Go, Go White Sox Ornament
Steps to make it:
1. Get a haircut and save the cut hair. You also can use fabric or supplies you already have.
2. Print a Sox logo and a picture of Southpaw from the Internet and cut it to fit the flat side of the ornament (the ornament we worked on was round with a flattened part on one side). Tape or glue both pictures to the flat part of the ornament.
3. Take off the cap of the ornament and place cut hair inside.
4. Glue a bunch of the hair (or fabric) to the top of the ornament. Put the cap of the ornament back on.
5. Punch 2 holes into the top of the Sox helmet and set it atop the ornament as you would atop a head. Thread 6 inches of White Sox ribbon through the ornament cap and Sox hat.
6. Tie Sox ribbon, and you’ve just created a masterpiece.
