Book Page Medallion Ornament (Swell Noel #23)

My sweet friend Kara from Creations by Kara is in the house this morning, and the ornament idea she is sharing with us couldn't possibly be more darling - or versatile!

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This Swell Noel series has sure been amazing! I'm thrilled to be a part while Amy is taking time off to snuggle cute baby George.

I'm Kara from Creations by Kara.

I am kind of an all over the place crafter. I like DIY projects, thrift store re-purposing, craft tutorials, sewing, and pretty much anything creative. Oh, and I also like cooking and sharing my favorite recipes. I think that sums it up. :)

Today I am sharing a cheap and easy Christmas ornament. I think it would also make a darling embellishment on a gift. Or if you wanted to, you could make it much larger and use it like a wreath. You choose. :)

Here's what you need to do:

1-Take a small stack of book pages (I used three), and cut them into 1/2" strips. This is much easier if you have a paper cutter.

2-After you have 12-18 stacks cut, staple each one of them together right at the bottom.

3-Add hot glue right at the end and start attaching the loops together.

When you are done you should have something like this. I used 12 loops in mine, but you can use more if you want.

4-Now it's time to make the paper medallion for the middle. Take a 12" piece of cardstock and cut it 3/4" wide. Score it every 1/4", and fold it up accordion style.

5-Put double sided tape or glue on one end of the strip, and attach both ends together. You will end up with a circle. An uneven circle, but a circle. ;)

6-Now cut a little circle out of cardstock. Mine was about 1" across. Put some craft glue in the middle.

7-Now comes the tricky part. You have to push down the middle of your folded circle so that it will lay flat. It will not want to cooperate. Just remember that you are bigger than it, and you can force it! Stick it on top of the gluey cardstock circle and use something to weigh it down as it dries. I used my jar of glitter. Which is actually an old spice jar. Very handy.

After you are sure that it is dry, take off the weight, and you will have this:

8-Hot glue it to the center of your loopy flower:

9-Add an embellishment to the center. I hot glued a clear gemstone on mine. You could also use a brad, button, or chipboard. Whatever you like!

10-Add a hanger to the back. I cut a piece of thread 10" long. Put it in the middle of the back. Then cut a piece of carstock, cover it with hot glue, and put it over the string, sandwiching it in the middle.

Tip: My ornament fell forward when I hung it, so I pulled apart the top two loops, put a dab of hot glue in the middle, and pushed my string up into that glob. Much better!

Here it is all finished:

Thanks so much for having me Amy!!

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Isn't it incredible how glamorous humble book pages can be once they are gussied up a bit? I adore this idea! Thanks, Kara!