DIY Marbled Ornaments (3 Ways)

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Two and a half weeks, guys!! Is your list as long as mine? It’s all fun stuff though, so that makes the to-do list look a bit better with that in mind. Today I’m bringing you a fun idea to decorate some ornaments that can match almost any decor. I marbled three different types of ornaments using the same technique and love how they turned out. I’m loving the marbled trend and after seeing how easy it was to marble my Easter eggs, I’ve been waiting for an opportunity to do it again.

This is another video DIY in partnership with our local Shaw channel, so I’ll let the video do the talking. If you’d like a photo tutorial on marbling with nail polish, you can check out my Easter eggs– I did everything the same! Oh, and yes- nail polish! It’s so clever really, no sealing needed.

The video seriously explains the steps better than I’d ever be able to. So I tested out three different ornaments. I made some cornstarch dough (salt dough… but better!) using this recipe. My worry with these was that they’d get mushy after dipping them, but they dried really quick with no real issues. They took the colour so well- I love that the marbling wrapped around the back without having to dip them a second time.

The wood ones are probably my favourite. I’ve been using this balsa craft wood for eeeeverything (like these ornaments and this mobile). You can cut it with a craft knife so it’s easy to make even if you’re not handy with power tools. I cut some triangles to make modern trees and used bold greens with browns. I think they would make awesome tags! But they’re also great to mail since they’re so thin. The possibilities are endless!

The glass balls especially need a super pigmented nail polish to show.I thought that I’d love these ones so much more than I did. They’re definitely fun, but they didn’t match my holiday decor, so I’m partial to the wood ones and the stars.

Some of the biiigest learning points I had were- the more pigmented nail polishes work better- the gold looked so pretty when it was first done, but doesn’t colour the surface enough to notice anything other than the glitter. Also- it’s better just to toss your water if you start to notice the marbling getting blotchy or sticky (see those two glass balls with the speckles…). Don’t waste your time trying over and over without changing your water. I found I ended up changing it every 3 ornaments or so.

Finish your marbled ornaments off with some ribbon or metallic thread and get to hanging! Or gifting, it’s up to you. What do you think of the marbling trend? Would you marble some ornaments, or anything else? I’d love to hear your thoughts on this one, it was so much experimenting (I just need ides on what to try next!). Aaand last question- what’s your fave out of these three?