✨Are you looking to breathe new life into your old Christmas decorations?✨🎄A fun and creative way to refresh worn-out Christmas baubles is by using foam clay! This versatile crafting material lets you design unique, personalized ornaments that will stand out on your tree this holiday season. Here’s how my old, boring, and slightly worn-off baubles got a magical makeover.
🎬 Full video tutorial on my YouTube channel:
The Base
Start by gathering your old Christmas baubles and cleaning them to remove any dust or debris. You can use Styrofoam balls or cheap plastic ornaments—anything works!
Cover the baubles with paper. I used strips of wiping paper and wood glue, but school glue works just as well. Let them dry completely.
Next, prepare your decorative elements. I used light foam clay for mine because it's durable, lightweight, and perfect for small molded details.
Silicone molds on AMAZON 👉 https://amzn.to/3Y0W9G2
Options for Making your castings
1. Foam Modeling Clay
Foam clay is lightweight, air-drying, and perfect for molds with small, intricate details.
Important tip:
After pressing it into the mold, let it dry completely before removing it. Foam clay is sticky and very flexible, so if you try to demold it immediately, it will stretch and loose shape. Drying usually takes about 24 hours depending on thickness.
Be gentle when removing tiny or thin pieces—they break easily.
Although foam clay is slower to work with, you can make many shapes in advance and store them for later. It comes in many colors; I had a large purple bag, so my details are all purple.
Hot glue works best for attaching foam clay decorations to the bauble.
Foam modeling clay 👉 https://amzn.to/4a1TNyd
2. Cold Porcelain
You can make it yourself or buy it. It holds fine details well and can be used directly after coming out of the mold.
Air-Dry Porcelain 👉 https://amzn.to/3KIxSSq
3. Air-Hardening Modeling Clay
My personal favorite—but it adds more weight to the bauble.
It's harder to use in molds with tiny details, and you need school glue, wood glue, or PVA to attach it to the surface.
Air Dry Modeling Clay 👉 https://amzn.to/4iEHD0u
4. Resin
Many crafters use resin in molds because it captures every detail and stays flexible.
I haven’t used it myself, so I can’t give personal advice—but it’s a great option. I've heard great reviews on 'amazing casting resin'. It's two component resin, that dries fast. After 10 minutes you can glue it with strong glue.
Amazing casting resin 👉 https://amzn.to/4aArcjK
Texture
The wiping paper naturally adds texture. I glued it in strips to create the smoothest surface possible, but it still leaves a subtle pattern you can enhance with paint.
On one bauble, I used structure paste on the upper part for extra texture. This makes the bauble slightly heavier but still perfectly fine for hanging.
Structure paste 👉https://amzn.to/4oDeows
Paint
Now for the most fun part—painting!
I started with a brown acrylic base, then applied a black paint wash on both baubles.
Alternatively, if your base color is light, you can use a gel or wax paste to create shadows, like this one:
Shadow patina👉https://amzn.to/4oEa5AS
My main color was a pastel beige that I mixed myself, but feel free to choose your own color palette.
On one bauble, I used crackle medium on the upper part. After applying it, I waited about 30 minutes, then added my main color.
Tip: Work quickly—cracks start appearing immediately. Don’t paint over an area that has already cracked, or it won’t crack again. Thicker paint creates larger cracks.
Crackle medium👉https://amzn.to/4poNFVL
Once everything was dry, I dry-brushed all foam clay decorations and the lower part of the bauble.
Finally, I used acrylic gold paint to highlight the details.
Final Touches
My baubles originally had jute twine for hanging. At first, I considered keeping it, but in the end, I switched to a thin ribbon. A wider ribbon might look better on large baubles, but I didn’t have one, so I used what I had.
I also thought about adding ribbon bows, but since I used structure paste and crackle medium on the tops, I didn’t want to cover up the detail work.
Conclusion
Don’t let your old Christmas baubles go to waste!
Grab some foam clay, unleash your creativity, and transform your ornaments into stunning works of art that add a touch of magic to your holiday décor. ✨
AMAZON shop https://www.amazon.com/shop/rs.artcraftsdesign
Craft tools on AMAZON https://amzn.to/3slC6X5
Acrylic paint on AMAZON: https://amzn.to/3FPPNQZ
Silicone molds on AMAZON: https://amzn.to/3Y0W9G2
(As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases)
🧵 Materials Used
- Old Christmas baubles (plastic or styrofoam)
- Wiping paper / paper towels
- Wood glue or school glue
- Foam clay
- Molds for decorations
- Acrylic paint (base color + gold details)
- Structure paste (optional)
- Crackle medium (optional)
- Ribbon or twine
- Hot glue
- Paintbrushes
