Stained Glass Window Ornaments

I saw this craft on the Carol Duvall show, but it is the best present I have ever given. People still comment on it five years later. How many presents have that kind of effect?

Stained Glass Ornaments

What you'll need:

• Circle cutter
• transparency sheets that are compatible with your printer. If you use inkjet allow the ink to dry over night. Print on the rougher side of the transparency otherwise the ink flakes off the shiny side.
• Clear glass globes (Craft stores have the best prices)
• tweezers

On the show they used actual images of stained glass rose windows. My twist was to use family photos. Start with fairly large glass globes. It must have a removable top where the hanger is inserted into an opening with a metal cap. Buy the globes first. Take a piece of white paper and estimate the circumference of the glass globe. Roll the paper up into a tube shape. Insert it in the opening at the top of the ornament and estimate how much bigger or smaller the circumference needs to be. It will take several tries, but it is worth the effort. Once you have the size nailed down the circle cutter will give you the exact same size every time. Another tip is to place the circle cutter on the side of the transparency that does not have the ink. There will be less ink rubbed off. I chose to print everything in a sepia tone for consistency.

The basic idea is that you print an image, of any shape, on the transparency and cut it into a circle. Roll up the image and insert into the ornament. The transparency will pop open and be viewable from both sides. Use the tweezers to manipulate the image into place. Spray a light glue inside the ornament and swirl a small amount of fine glitter. Top it with a bow.

I chose large graphic images like headshots or individuals, instead of tiny detailed pictures like family groups. I chose iconic kind of images like a baby peeking out from under a blanket or grandpa with his fishing pole. I did not choose posed school or studio pictures and the like. You can see bold images from across the room. Years ago Look magazine took pictures of my grandparents and I used those photos for my mom's ornaments. She like them so much that she made duplicates for her sisters the next year. My aunts were screaming with joy and crying when they opened their gifts.

Steps:

• figure circumference using white paper
• using your computer and white paper print several image sizes until you get the desired one
• print the finalized image on the transparency (I try to squeeze several images onto one page)
  
• cut out with circle cutter
• roll the image and pop into ornament
• manipulate with tweezers until straight
• replace top and hanger

There is a fine balance if the image is a teeny bit too small the image will slide around within the ornament. A tiny bit too big and it will not unfurl all the way.