How do you choose the right ornament?

Giving an ornament as a gift during the holidays is a tradition for many people. 

Parents and Grandparents start by adding a new ornament each year for their children & grandchildren.   They may choose a holiday theme such as snowmen, and get one for each child, personalized with their names & the year. 

As children grow older, ornaments are chosen to match the child's interests, hobbies & achievements in addition to the usual holiday favorites.

Special occasions can be celebrated with a new ornament.  A new baby, baby's 1st Christmas, a couple's 1st Christmas together, a sweet sixteen are just some of the events where you can find a special ornament that is just right.

 

What do you do if you want an ornament that is extra special?  A wedding ornament that looks like your wedding cake?  An ornament with meaning?  An ornament that captures a moment in time?  A custom designed ornament can be just what you're looking for. 

 

Custom designs are a great gift, but require time to design & create!   The most important part of ordering a custom design besides the idea, is to make sure you order early! 

Remember, ornaments can be given for any occasion, any time of the year! 

Christmas Countdown - already?!

It's always a little bit of shock to realize how close the holidays are!  The kids are excited about Halloween - which means of course that Christmas is not far behind! 

I've created a new free ornament pattern that was sent out to my newsletter subscribers last week - a Penguin Snow Globe Ornament.

Here it's shown painted for a couple's First Christmas Together, but I've also painted a sample with BFF (Best Friends Forever) in the heart.  Comes in handy for all those kids gifts!  

You can get a copy of the pattern by subscribing to my newsletter! There is also a coupon code good for Free Priority Shipping! ($5 value) on orders until Oct. 10!  Perfect for you early shoppers!

Recycled Light bulb Ornaments

Painting on light bulbs is a good way to experiment with painting on glass.  If you are still fazing out the incandescent light bulbs in your house  it is inexpensive as well. 

I've had several laying around the studio for awhile, and decided to just paint them already!  The penguins are based on a pattern of Deb Malewski's that was in the Winter 2007  Ornament Issue of Quick & Easy Painting, called Pretty in Pink.

 

If you have this issue you'd see that I changed some of the colors & details on the scarves to match the fabric I had for the hats.  The plaid coat is my design.  It's not exactly like the pattern - but they're still  cute!

Glass painting tip:  When painting a design that is going to cover the entire surface like these ornaments, I've found that it's easier to pounce the glass primer on with a make-up sponge than to brush it on with a paint brush.  For the light bulbs I used J.W. Etc.'s Undercover Primer.  

My last light bulb is an original monkey design.  The sky & sand go all the way around the light bulb.  It's a bright cheery design that would be good as a birthday ornament I think.

Custom Wedding Ornaments

Original hand painted ornaments are the perfect gift for the bride and groom. A memorable keepsake for their tree for years to come! Ornaments can also be displayed on a hanger year round.

Check out some examples I have painted in the slideshow below. To order your own custom creation - contact me!

Sweet Sixteen Ornaments Rock!

Order your own cool custom ornaments from Robyn Warne Designs!

Presenting the Happy Couple

Without further ado, I would like to present Beauty & The Beast!

Beauty close up:

My girls like the Beauty ornament, the Beast creeps them out a little bit.  I will not split the couple up - they are staying together, and will be sold as a set!

A peek at the Beast & his Beauty

I designed and cut out these ornaments 4 years ago.  They were prepped - then ended up in the U.F.O. (unfinished object) pile. 

Sometimes when I get into a bit of a creative rut it helps to pull out something like this & just start painting it.  I only made line drawings for these ornaments, I didn't have any idea about the color scheme or details.  Making it up as I go along can produce some interesting results! 

The Beast isn't finished yet - but he's getting there!  The fur on his arms needs to be a little messier I'm thinking, he looks a little too "neat"!

I thought you might like a peek at my work area, these are the colors I've used so far on this guy. 

When I have several projects going at once I can tell which palette belongs to each by looking at the colors!

Here's Beauty - I've just started working on her.

Together they make rather an odd looking couple!  It's been fun painting them.