Keepsake Christmas Ornament Box

I love handmade Christmas ornaments. Throughout the years I have
collected a number of them, made by myself and several family
members. These ornaments will make great keepsakes for our
children and grandchildren.

I have been looking for a creative way to store these keepsake
ornaments. In the past I have stored them with all my other tree
ornaments, but I wanted a special place to store them, especially
my daughter's ornaments that we have been collecting for her
throughout the years. After purchasing about $20 in supplies and
spending a couple of hours working on the project, I ended up
with a beautiful keepsake ornament box that I hope my daughter
will cherish for years to come.

To complete this project, you will need:

- Unfinished wooden box with lid

- Modge Podge (for decoupaging)

- Christmas cards

- Scissors

- Paint brushes

- Craft paint (optional)

- Acrylic sealer/finisher spray

All of the above items can be purchased at a craft store. The
craft store I went to had a variety of boxes to choose from. I
chose a small box that was $12.99. It was just what I was
looking for!

The box I chose has a raised border around the edges that looked
like it would be difficult to work around with decoupaging, so I
chose to paint it instead. I painted all the borders with
several coats of red acrylic paint.

Next I went through a big pile of old Christmas cards to find
suitable images to decoupage onto the box. This was the fun
part! Not only can you cut out pictures, you can also cut out
holiday sentiments from friends and family members. Just in the
past couple of years, several members of our extended family have
passed away, and projects such as this keepsake ornament box are
a great way to remember lost loved ones. Cut the cards into a
variety of sizes and shapes.

Using a paintbrush, apply Modge Podge or a similar decoupage
medium to the back of your cut out, then place the cut out on the
box. Paint a coating of Modge Podge over the cut out. Continue
pasting cut outs to the side of the box until it is covered, then
go over the entire side again with another coating of Modge
Podge. After the box is completely dry, you can apply another
coating for good measure.

After the box is complete (and dry), you can spray an acrylic
sealer/finisher spray over the entire box to protect the artwork
and eliminate the tackiness of the decoupage.

That's it! There is no limit to the possibilities of decorating
this beautiful ornament box. I haven't tried it yet, but I plan
to line the inside of the box with felt to give it a more
finished look.

Photo of finished keepsake ornament box:
http://www.crafty-moms.com/christmas-ornament-box.shtml

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