Christmas decorations and toys for the New Year

Not only children, but also adults are looking forward to the New Year holidays. Since early December, store shelves are filled with colorful balloons, tinsel, beads, and original bows. The created decorations can be supplemented with a part of the soul, with hand-made Christmas-tree toys. Make memorable trinkets out of any available material. It can be paper, cloth, plastic and more.

The story of Christmas toys

Christmas decorations - an essential attribute of the holiday. They have come a long way of development, which has an interesting history. The first began to decorate the house on the eve of the New Year residents of European countries. Then used branches of conifers, fruit. People tried not to advertise their actions, because the tradition was not encouraged by the authorities. The Catholic Church considered it a pagan heritage.

The classic rules for decorating the main Christmas beauty have not changed over time. Only Christmas tree decorations have a huge difference. Previously, each element of edible decoration was symbolic and carried a certain deep meaning, mostly with religious overtones. Sweet waffles reminded of the unleavened bread used for communion, apples were associated with the forbidden fruit.

From the middle of the 18th century, Christmas-tree toys, vaguely reminiscent of modern ones, replaced Christmas honey gingerbread. Most families made them themselves from eggshell, cones, paper, various spangles. The craftsmen began to create figurines of angels and fairy-tale characters from chasing and brass.

The first Christmas balls appeared in 1848 in Thuringia, the city of Lausch. These were heavy glass products. The weight was given by the lead coating used on the inside to create shine. Colorful decorations were very expensive, ordinary people could not afford them.

After almost 20 years, in 1867, the technology of creating balls has changed. This was the opening of the gas plant. From the glass mass, brought to a high temperature, we got neat thin-walled products. Plastic material allowed to make toys of various shapes. Mirror gloss achieved by adding silver nitrate.

Until the beginning of the twentieth century, Lausch was the only exporter of Christmas-tree decorations. Then technology was adopted by other countries, including Christian ones. After the events of 1917 for the Soviet people, the celebration of the pagan event was stopped, the release of decorations stopped. Only in 1935 the headlines were filled with calls to decorate the Christmas tree only for children, and in 1937 the New Year's beauty even decorated the columned hall of the House of the Unions.

In accordance with the events of the story, the semantic load and appearance of toys changed. In the 70s Christmas toys lost their individuality. Production was put on stream. Colored balls and figures of the same type filled the counters. In the XXI century, handmade toys became fashionable.

Cones - original and beautiful decorations on the Christmas tree

Spruce cones can be considered the second unofficial symbol of the New Year. Available natural material exudes a pleasant aroma, the smallest needlewomen can work with it easily and safely. The material can be used as the main element when creating a Christmas tree toy, and as a supplement for the whole New Year's composition. The cones make funny animal figures, flowers, houses, baskets. To crafts simply attach secondary material.

Master class - angels from cones

For crafts you will need beautiful smooth cones, tape, pieces of felt and wooden, plastic balls. To prevent the natural base from losing its shape due to a change in temperature, the cone can be lowered for several seconds into a container with carpenter's glue. After drying, it will not lose its shape and will always be closed. The following workshop will help create simple angel figurines:

• We draw a face on a ball with a felt-tip pen - it will be a head;
• We attach the head of the figurine with PVA glue to the prepared bump;
• Hair can be drawn or created from tow, artificial wool, cloth, dry grass and other materials;
• Glue hair or press down with a cap from the top of the acorn;
• We tie the ribbon with a bow and fasten it to the back. For better fixation, you can use a felt belt;
• Hands can be made of thick fabric or wire.

Salt dough toys

Ingredients for the base are flour, salt and water. Christmas toys from natural components are very simple to make, they can be stored for a long time. Figures can be created with the help of forms for cookies or simply cut with a knife according to the sketch. A beautiful embossed pattern is obtained with the imprint of various leaves, twigs, coins. Paints, beads, rhinestones, powders are suitable for decoration of the original hanging toys.

Coloring crafts in several ways - after drying and in the manufacture of the base. In the first case, the coloring will take place with the help of gouache, acrylic, oil paints, and in the second, you will need to add food coloring at the stage of kneading dough.

After complete drying, New Year crafts are decorated with any elements (ribbons, buttons, beads, rhinestones). If you make holes in the center of the toys, you can create a bright, original garland.

In order to hang a New Year's toy from salt dough on a Christmas tree, in its upper part it is necessary to pierce a hole for the thread. Make it easier until the product is frozen.

Cardboard gift boxes

Creating boxes for gift wrapping is especially important on the eve of the New Year holidays. Handmade products made from simple materials will complement the surprise with a mysterious anticipation. For the manufacture of elegant and functional boxes of any design and size will require a minimum of material: cardboard, needles, glue, scissors, decorative elements.

Before you begin, you need to prepare special templates for cutting blanks. The packaging box can be of any shape, a method of fastening the lid and gluing, rolling the sides. The scheme can be increased to any size. For attaching the parts of a box of thick cardboard it is better to use PVA glue or double-sided tape.

Christmas boxes for gifts, after performing their main function, you can decorate the holiday symbol. Items made of cardboard are made in the form of snowflakes, Christmas trees, candy boxes. Download the template from the Internet, adjust the size on paper. Then we transfer to the base and cut along the dotted line. We bend the places intended for this, we glue them with glue and assemble the box. For decoration, you can use any decorative material.

Ball of acorns

New Year holidays - the perfect time for creative evening classes. Many professional craftswomen and just lovers of exclusive Christmas toys prefer to work with natural materials. Ordinary acorns will make original and simple Christmas-tree decorations. They can be assembled into a hanging composition, simply by painting the caps in golden color, or you can make a beautiful mixed garland with the addition of small cones.

Whole hats from acorns will be useful for creating an interesting Christmas ball in a trendy eco-style. Such an article mentally transfers it into the thicket of the winter forest and makes you believe in a real miracle. The base of the toy will be a foam piece. You can buy such an item in any craft shop.

We paint the prepared core brown and glue caps with tails to the ball. It is necessary to fill the space as closely as possible. The place of one hollow element will take a hook fastening from a wire. You can decorate a toy with the help of silicate glue and spangles, beautiful beads inside the caps, ribbons.

Textile toys

Christmas textile toys not only decorate the tree in country style, but also fill the interior with warmth and festive mood. Thematic crafts can be grouped in the composition or create a single exclusive copies. Any fabric is suitable for creating textile masterpieces, but materials that preserve the shape of a toy (felt, fleece) are more preferable. You can also use acrylic or cotton yarn. To create such products will require a minimum knitting skill. If there is no such talent at all, you can make beautiful dense frames of any shape from the threads.

Out of yarn

These Christmas toys are truly homemade. They can be made flat or bulk. Beautifully look flat products on the basis of the ring. To do this, fit the cut edge of a plastic cup and any thick yarn. If you wish, you can place any Christmas picture in the center. If you have experience crochet, the base can not be used. To keep things in shape, they just need to starch.

Flat yarn can be made of Christmas trees. First, knit a few green squares of different sizes. Fold one of the corners of each part to half and fasten it with a button. Beautiful triangles are obtained. Then all the products are fastened in the form of a Christmas tree and sew a knitted or textile leg of brown color.

Bulk balls are easier to knit on five knitting needles, according to the sock pattern. Vintage balls with jacquard patterns look very creative. You can also create an exclusive toy made of threads using a hook in the technique of alternating the number of loops. The filler can be cotton, synthetic winterizer, any fabric.

Out of felt

Flexible, plastic material can serve as a basis for any crafts, including Christmas-tree toys. Colorful felt soft and pleasant to the touch. Products from it do not have a statute of limitations. They will always remain bright, unique and fashionable. You can create a real highlight, a symbol of the New Year, without having sewing skills and experience with patterns.

The simplest Christmas toys are flat. These are ordinary carved figures, decorated on one or two sides. Using a marker, the pattern is transferred to the felt, cut out. You can make a beautiful Christmas tree, the face of any animal, for example, a pig. Reverse side for strength strengthened cardboard.

If you need a volume Christmas tree toy, then two blanks are cut out at once according to the template. Then the pieces of the whole are decorated and joined with threads. Use the following several seams:

• Basting. The easiest seam. Between the stitches are gaps. It is used to connect small parts along the slice;
• "Back needle." Stitches turn out equal, beautiful;
• "Assembly". Used when connecting bulk, openwork toys. It is carried out in the "forward needle" technique, but with a strong tension of the thread;
• "Over the edge." Reliably fixes the cutting line, prevents the exit of individual hairs. The stitches are the same distance at an angle;
• "Loop". Practical invisible loops go along the edge of the cut.

Socks snowman

Decorative handmade toys are always original. They are like nothing else, suitable for a gift, because they are made with a soul. Simple simple option - a snowman made of socks. For the manufacture of crafts will need one knitted, cotton sock, a few buttons, pins, 1 kg of rice.

The sock should be cut into two parts in the heel area. The upper half will serve as the basis for crafts, the lower one will be used for decoration. We twist the billet inside out and tightly tie it with one end of the thread. Hide the knot and return the sock to the front side. Fill the toy with rice until it gets the desired shape, but retains plasticity. We form the right body and tie the upper edge. Head snowman should be a thread.

It now remains to decorate and decorate the kilogram blank. The face can be drawn with a felt-tip pen or bead embroidered. A piece of colored fabric in the form of a scarf will mask the threads on the neck. The rest of the sock will be a hat. The body is decorated with colorful buttons.

Snowflake and stars from threads

Stylish Christmas snowflakes and stars are obtained from yarn and glue. The creation of such Christmas-tree decorations will take no more than half an hour. To create Christmas decorations with sharp corners you will need a special machine or an improvised carving of carnations.

Draw a star or snowflake on the plank. Then we put on the food film so that the toy does not stick, and we drive in nails in the corners of the figure. The next step is to separate part of the thread from the ball and cover it with glue. Without waiting for the material to harden, it is necessary to quickly wrap it on the frame. In some places, knots should be made so that the toy does not exfoliate after drying. The central pattern of snowflakes or stars can be made by anyone. After 12 hours, the craft is completely hardened, no glue will remain from the glue.

Cotton balls

From ordinary woolen threads you can create round mesh toys for the New Year tree. To work you will need small balloons, thread and glue PVA. Inflate a ball of a suitable size and tie its tail with the end of a thread. Starting from the same edge, we wind the form tightly and in any order. Threads of yarn should not be close to each other.

Then lower the billet into a bowl with a mixture of water and glue and turn it until all textile elements are well soaked. Drying will take at least 24 hours. After a day, pierce the balloon and extract it through the gap. Ready-made balls can be decorated with sequins, beads, bows.

Making the ball in kinusayg technique

The art genre of creating paintings and other products originated in Japan on the basis of austerity. The main task of kinusayga was to dispose of old kimonos. Modern needlewomen use such decoration technique to create designer Christmas decorations.

To decorate the ball using the kinusayg technique, you will need a round foam blank, similar flaps of different colors, decorative braid and beads for decoration. First, mark the base into four lobes. Then in the places of the dotted line do shallow cuts. The edges of the flaps will be placed in these slots.

Prepared fabric rectangles should be applied flat to the slices and hide their edges in the slots. Push material can be any flat object. After design of all sectors, you can proceed to decorating. We hide the seams under the tape or braid, wrapping the ball diagonally around the material. From the remnants of the cord form a loop.

Toys from buttons

The original scenery of the buttons will complement the Christmas theme. You can make crafts absolutely any shape, but it is better to start with a simple Christmas tree. For work, you will need multi-colored buttons of any size, a sheet of cardboard. The elements can be fixed with a glue gun or sewing pins.

We fold the paper into a cone and fix the edges of the workpiece with tape. Bottom make smooth and stable. Now randomly distribute buttons on the surface of the future Christmas tree, starting with the largest ones. Small buttons are located in the remaining spaces. Crafts decorate with beads, bows. Christmas toy can be put in the lobby or children's room.

Using light bulbs to decorate the Christmas tree

Creating original toys from waste material, such as blown bulbs, has many advantages. This is a significant savings on traditional decorations, the ability to create an original design for the New Year's beauty. You can simply paint a light bulb in any color or create interesting figured toys for the Christmas tree.

Light bulb snowman

The basis of the snowman will be a simple light bulb. Before use, it must be painted white. It is better to use a piece of sponge or foam to avoid the remaining strips and uneven strokes. To make the coating more dense, the paint must be re-applied. We make a hat from a piece of knitted fabric. For decoration, you can use a pompon or just a bright ribbon.

Eyes and nose can be cut out of cardboard of appropriate colors or use any suitable material. The body is decorated with buttons or any other decor. Hands can be made of yarn, cotton spirals, twigs. Any of the elements must be attached with a glue gun. To turn a snowman into a fur-tree toy, you need to make a mount for the thread. You need to thread a beautiful string into the bead and fasten it in the middle of the cap.

Snowball Toy

The traditional Christmas gift of Europeans can be made with your own hands. A snow globe assembled piece by piece from scrap materials will bring joy, faith in miracles to adults and children. The basis of the toy can be any jar with a tightly screwed cap. Filler will require simple water and a few drops of glycerin.

Before you start, you should think of a composition. It can be single toys from kinders, products from fabric, plastic and other trifles. Glue the parts with waterproof glue to the inside of the lid and pour it with a mixture of water and glycerin. Then we fall asleep sparkles and well we twist a cover. The more antifreeze, the slower the imaginary snow will sink to the bottom of the jar. The final touch is the joint treatment with glue.

Metal products placed in a liquid risk rusting. Поэтому перед использованием их следует обработать бесцветным лаком.

Декупаж на лампочках

Стеклянные елочные игрушки всегда считались особенно красивыми и индивидуальными. На полках современных магазинов их практически не встретишь. Такие изделия постепенно вытеснили более практичные и однотипные пластиковые аналоги. Fortunately, such toys can be made independently from improvised means. An old glass bulb is perfect for this purpose.

Decoupage technique will require a special napkin with a picture, a photo on a thin sheet, musical strips, scraps of newspapers or other paper elements. First you need to wipe the light with alcohol and paint it in any color you like. After complete drying of the workpiece, we cut out the drawings from the napkin and glue it to the light bulb. The edges should be well straightened and flatten with a dry towel. You can add shine and protect the coating from external factors with a thin layer of colorless varnish.

You can decorate a nondescript metal base with paint, foil, beautiful ribbons. The rope for which the toy will be hung is fixed at the top of the light bulb, simply by wrapping the base several times.

We draw faces and we dress caps on lamps

The best idea to decorate an unattractive lamp base is to hide it under the cap of the chosen hero. To create simple and original figures, you will need multicolored paints, a little fabric and decor in the form of beads, beads, ribbons.

It is better to paint the background with a piece of foam rubber with careful movements so as not to disturb the brightness of the color and not leave stains. For clear lines of the face fit fine brush. You can also complement the image of the hero elements of clay or faux wool. This may be the mustache of Santa Claus, the bangs of a shy lady and so on. The cap can be made of absolutely any material. Thin fabrics are better to pre-starch or make a cardboard frame for them.

Citrus Jewelry

Christmas crafts from oranges and tangerines will create a real holiday mood in the house. Citrus fruits are easy to find at any time of the year, it is a pleasure to work with them. They make magic decorations that fill the house with amazing New Year's aromas. You can add a little orange color by making one of the following crafts on the Christmas tree:

1. Fragrant balls. In the peel of fresh orange should pierce the holes with a skewer and put the sprigs of carnations there. Holes can be chaotic or create complex patterns. Such a creative ball will look great on the Christmas tree, the front door, on the kitchen cabinet;
2. Orange garlands. Through the fruit it is necessary to thread a metal wire and twist its ends in the shape of a snail. At one end we tie a beautiful ribbon and hang it on the Christmas tree. You can leave their natural look or cut spiral stripes, any patterns;
3. Pendants from the peel. Carved using the cookie cutter can be used as a Christmas tree decoration; gift wrapping;
4. Golden wreath. The main detail is orange slices. They can be simply attached to the wire or put spruce branches in advance.

Gingerbread Decorations and Cookies

Edible decorations began to appear on the trees less and less. But some modern design styles still accept this method of holiday design. You can revive a wonderful tradition by hanging on the Christmas tree appetizing Christmas trees and snowflakes from cookies.

In the New Year, Christmas usually prepare gingerbread and crumbly cookies. The recipe for cooking is very simple, you just need to have special curly shapes. You also need to remember about the need for holes in the top of the toy.

Design options edible flour decorations a huge amount. The unchanged rule is the presence of multi-colored glaze. You can hang cookies on the Christmas tree as separate toys or create garlands from them.

Paper toys

Hand-made Christmas decorations are valued much more than plastic conveyor balls. The process of their manufacture gives a lot of positive emotions, enhances the anticipation of the holiday. The most affordable and simple material for Christmas toys is paper. You can create a real masterpiece from the most inconspicuous, at first glance, piece. Work does not require special skills. All you need is imagination, patience and some improvised means.

Master class "paper bumps"

At any Christmas tree should be present cones. Paper crafts of this form will be very useful. You can make a toy yourself in several ways. To do this, you must follow the recommendations of the following workshops:

• Spiral bump without base. The work will require several multi-colored sheets of cardboard and a detailed gear diagram (you can print from the website of needlework). Details cut out of cardboard. It should turn out 16 elements with teeth and a circle. Glue the ends to a round base, combining colors. We collect crafts. Each element should go grooves for the previous one.
• Cone on the base with triangular scales. As a frame, you can use a foam or paper form. In the upper part we glue the circle. While the workpiece dries, proceed to the manufacture of scales. We will do them in the modular origami technique. Cut out squares from colored paper - 2 cm, bend to the middle two ends. Now all the elements in a circle staggered fasten to the round tops.
• Cone-based bump on the base. To keep the toy shape, you need an egg-shaped frame. Making it will be similar in type to the previous option, but we will use circles, not triangles. Cut out 150 round elements. The ideal option is to make them a hole punch with a suitable diameter. Pasting the form in a checkerboard pattern.

Felted wool toys

Wool felting is simple and exciting. Volumetric figures are light and soft. This will require pieces of padding polyester, a skein of wool yarn. Novice needlewomen is better to give preference to simple forms of Christmas toys.

Cut the workpiece in 2 copies (hearts, circles). Items must have a diameter twice the size of the desired toy. Using a needle, we assemble a contour around the outer edge (as basting), leave the thread free, without knots. The resulting bag is filled with padding polyester, tighten and tie. Details of another form can be simply stitched.

Now the workpiece must be covered with wool. We stretch the strands and wind them onto the base in different directions. They need to be fixed with a needle for felting so that bald spots are not formed. It remains the simplest. We place the future toys in a kapron stocking and send it to the washing machine to the standard washing mode. After drying, we get neat lumps. You can decorate with beads, braid, bows and other cute little things.

Conclusion

The tradition of dressing up a New Year tree with the whole family was invented for a reason. At this moment, every child and adult feels their need and benefit. Memorable toys made by hand, not only serve as an original decor, but also remind of happy moments. Practical Christmas-tree decorations can be stored for many years and pass from generation to generation.