Jun 15th 2023
Light Up Your Holiday Tree with Resin Christmas Ornaments
The process of embellishing trees, even evergreens specifically, has been around for hundreds of years. And it never gets old, does it? At ProMarine Supplies, we think that what you use to deck out your tree with is every bit as important as decking the halls; so why not personalize each and every branch by creating your own holiday epoxy resin ornaments?
Resin Applications
So, for those who are unfamiliar with resin, you might wonder how it comes into play when making ornaments. With a variety of different resin types and the many applications for epoxy resin, you have endless ornament potential. You can use products like our ProArt Resin and Table Top Resin to coat preexisting artwork and give it a protective and glossy shine or use Casting Resin in molds to create unique shapes.
Although this may not apply to most Christmas ornaments, we wanted to add that if you plan on casting anything deeper than 1.5 inches, you should plan on using a casting resin of some kind. Casting resins are formulated to work well with multiple deeper pours, whereas other resins work best with shallower castings.
Now, let’s first talk about some basic equipment that you will need for any resin project.
What You Need
For any resin projects, there are several things that are useful to have! Some basic tools include:
- Stir sticks (wooden paint sticks or popsicle sticks are commonly used)
- Disposable gloves
- Measuring and mixing cups
- Safety glasses
- Silicone mats (or plastic to cover up your work area)
For supplies like mats, mixing cups, and stir sticks, it can be helpful to get ones made out of silicone. Silicone is a material that resin doesn’t stick to, and this can make for easier clean-up and less mess. And who wouldn’t want a little less mess during the holidays, right? If you don’t have silicone supplies, you can also use plastic or wood utensils and spread sheets of plastic over your working surface.
For information about how to properly dispose of resin when you’ve finished your project, you can read more here.
Types of Epoxy Resin Ornaments
The tradition of decorating a Christmas tree has roots in winter festival celebrations across the world. In fact, plants and trees were often used to lift moods while simultaneously promoting “new life in the darkness of winter”. Modern Christmas trees as we know them seemed to have come into popularity in Germany during the 16th century.
As long as there have been Christmas trees, there have also been means to decorate them. For 16th century Germany, this was achieved through the use of fruits, nuts, and gingerbread and for 20th century America, this evolved into dyed popcorn and the use of homemade ornaments. Today, we still keep some of these traditions alive but with added, and ever-evolving, artistic endeavors.
Let’s talk about some common ornament types and see how you can expand on them with epoxy resin.
Ball Ornaments
Commonly made out of materials like metal and glass, holiday “baubles” were said to have been brought to American in the 1800s. Some of the first widely manufactured glass ball ornaments were created by Hans Greiner, the descendant of a German glassworker, who then brought them from abroad in the late 19th century.
Originally meant to mimic the fruits and nuts that had been previously used to decorate evergreen trees, ball ornaments presently come in a variety of finishes and colors to suit the aesthetics of everyone who celebrates. From subtle shades and matte surfaces to vibrant colors coated in glitter, there’s something for everyone to stylishly trim their tree.
Take a look at some of the bauble-inspired epoxy resin ornaments that epoxy crafters across the community have made with resin. These two pieces by @artmoxie and @calypso_conch from Instagram let you celebrate the holidays by bringing the beach indoors!
Thematic Ornaments
Whether it’s strictly related to the holiday season or representative of some other aspect of their life, people often decorate with a theme in mind. Perhaps the common thread that links their design involves their favorite colors, common seasonal symbols, or their favorite movie. Regardless of what unites your vision, you’ll likely need ornaments to achieve it. With resin’s ability to pick up even the most minute detail, you can cast virtually anything, provided you have a mold.
Personalized Ornaments
You might be looking to commemorate this holiday season for multiple reasons, including the celebration of a loved one. Crafting custom resin Christmas ornaments for, say, the entire family or your beloved pets continues to be a popular practice.
With epoxy resin, you can also encapsulate a variety of objects, including organic items like plants and flowers. We’ve even seen encapsulations that hold pinecones, making for particularly festive pieces. If you plan on encasing something organic or porous (like wood) in resin, you have to first make sure it’s dry. If you need it, we have an article that guides you through the process of drying plants and flowers to prepare them for resin projects, if you need!
The thematic and personalized ornaments below are by @jenlashuart on Instagram and really serve to both celebrate the season and your beloved pets!
Novelty Ornaments
Sometimes a holiday ornament holds special significance, sometimes it looks pretty, and sometimes it’s just fun! Once, at the ProMarine Supplies’ office, we had a conversation about everyone’s most memorable Christmas ornaments and the answers varied widely. From geeky knickknacks and stylish disco balls to objects filled with treasured memories, everybody had a different approach to seasonal decorating.
Mind the Cold
For those of you who experience seasonal weather, we recommend keeping in mind how colder temperatures can affect resin and its curing process this holiday season. Temperature plays a huge role in working with resin, after all!
Spread the Joy
Consider gifting a resin ornament to a loved one, garnishing your own tree with your creations, or turning the process of creation into a fun activity with friends! Just remember to stay mindful of how best to safely use and work with resin products.
Talk with Us at ProMarine Supplies
Share all of your holiday creations with us on our social media and become an inspiration to aspiring crafters the world over. Join us this holiday season and become part of our private Facebook group filled with epoxy resin pros discussing projects, tips, and tricks, and connect to the world of resin creation.
Any questions about us or our products? You can visit our FAQs page or Contact Us.
Finally, the happiest of holidays, crafters, from your friends at ProMarine Supplies!