During the holidays I saw these really neat glittery sphere ornaments and I loved them. So I set out to make some of my own. I think the sparkle is a great compliment without being overpowering or too girly. Yes, glittery things can be “non-girly”… go with it, I'm rationalizing and you can't stop me! However, I didn't want something that looked like a holiday decoration, I want to add some sparkle all year long. So, I'm going to show you how I created my own glitter balls… I used Smoothfoam because you need a consistently solid/smooth surface for the glitter to adhere to completely.
Materials:
- Smoothfoam balls in various sizes
- Craft Paint and paint brush
- Glitter
- Wooden skewers
- Large craft foam block to use as a stand for your ball skewers as they dry
- Bowl and spoon
How to make your own glittery sphere decor
- Pour the glitter into a bowl type container
- Stick a wooden skewer through each ball. This will become a handle of sorts so you can work with the paint and glittery and not have to wait for each side of the ball to dry.
- Generously paint the Smoothfoam ball
- While the paint is still wet, hold the ball over the bowl of glitter and sprinkle glitter onto the ball with the spoon. Rotate the ball as you sprinkle to cover the entire ball.
- Insert the skewer into the foam block and allow the glitter ball to dry.
For this project I wanted to string the balls together in sets of three, so before I painted the balls I created a hole that went throw the entire ball.
I did not seal these glitter pieces, but if I were making them again, I highly recommend a spray sealer to help the glitter and paint look last longer through normal wear and tear of moving the decorations around. Mine were used in part of a craft display, but I think they'd look beautiful in a bowl or basket or hung on a string near a window. I had to leave mine behind, but when I make more, I'll share more ideas with you!
What would you do with sparkly glitter spheres?
For more fun craft ideas using Smoothfoam, visit the Smoothfoam idea gallery.
Some of the products in this post were given to me in exchange for my demonstrating how to use them.
Jen, I love these! They are so you!