Looking for unique holiday decorations for your home this year? Learn how to create stunning, vintage-inspired Christmas bells with this easy DIY! Upcycle old book pages and inexpensive Dollar Tree bells to make beautiful, handcrafted ornaments that will add a touch of nostalgia to your holiday decor.
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Dollar Tree Christmas Bells Transformation
Dollar Tree is a great source of inexpensive seasonal supplies. However, most items need to be transformed before they work in my home decor. The good news is that they are inexpensive and are still budget-friendly options for repurposing.
I found these Christmas bells, and once I removed all the excessive decorations, they were perfect for this project.
Spray Paint Christmas Bells
The first thing I did was remove the shiny gold finish. It was a quick fix with black spray paint. Any multi-surface satin or flat spray paint will work.
Old Book Page DIY Christmas Bells
I had decided to create an old book page with DIY Christmas bells for my mantel decorations. I have a good supply of old magazines I purchased at a thrift store several years ago. I’ve used them for several projects and they will be perfect for this one.
The first step is to cut tear-drop-shaped pieces of paper. They are approximately 3 inches tall and 1 inch wide at the widest point. You don’t need them to be the same size. I folded the paper and cut multiple tear drops at a time, which will cause some to be smaller than others.
Add Rub N Buff
Y’all, Rub n Buff has become my best friend this holiday season. Although most of the Dollar Tree bells will be covered with old book pages, I decided to leave the top open so I covered it with a quick swipe of Antique Gold Rub N Buff.
Add Old Book Page Teardrops To Bells
You will need a hot glue gun to attach the old book page teardrops to the bells. Start at the bottom of the bell and add hot glue to the backside of the old book page. Apply the paper to the bell, extending a small amount below the rim. Add more glue if necessary to ensure the petal folds over the rim.
Insider Tip
As you apply the first row of paper to the bells, smooth it over the curves. As you apply, begin at the bottom and align the curved ends. Then, press the paper into the curve of the bell. Don’t worry if the top ends are uneven because you will cover them in the next round.
In addition, place the bell over a jar or bottle so that the tip ends don’t get crushed as you work. I used a Mod Podge bottle and it worked perfectly.
Once the bottom is covered, begin to add the second round. This time, the top points will be aligned, and you will overlap the first round. Ensure that the bell is completely covered and that there are no gaps. See the image below.
Enhance The DIY Christmas Bells
After you have all the old book page bells covered, you can choose to enhance the ornaments to make them sparkle and shine. I first used the Antique Gold Rub N Buff and lightly wiped it over the paper. I applied a heavy covered at the top and rim of the bell.
Next, I used the end of a paintbrush to add dots of glue to each of the petals. Then, I sprinkled the glue with gold glitter. Be sure to catch the excess glitter on plastic or wax paper so that you can return it to the jar.
Finally, add a ribbon to the top of the bell and decorate with them.
How To Decorate With Old Book Page Christmas Bells
You can use the old book page Christmas bells to decorate all around the house. I made mine specifically for my mantel decorations this year. I added a green bow to the top and a jute string. I used the jute to tie the bells to the garland so that they would hang slightly lower than the greenery. Once I tied the bells in place, I tucked the jute string under the branches of the garland to hide them.
The DIY Christmas bells would look great on a Christmas tree or strung on a ribbon for a garland. I allowed the bells to drop down one side of my mantel garland. I’ll share my full mantel decorations during our annual Best Bloggers Christmas tour next week.
Resource
Here are the items I used to create this Dollar Tree project.
- Old Book Pages: You can use old magazines or books that you can find for cheap at thrift stores.
- Dollar Tree Christmas Bells – $1.25 each
- Antique Gold Rub N Buff
- Black Satin Spray Paint
- Hot Glue Gun
- Elmer’s Glue
- Gold Glitter
- Green Ribbon
- Jute String
Related Articles
- Old Book Page Leaf Garland tutorial
- Upcycled Magical Christmas Village
- DIY Paper Flowers with Old Books
- Big Christmas Ornaments with Old Book Pages
Video
I hope you enjoyed this fun craft project. I’d love to see your creative ideas if you decide to try it.
Have the best week.
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Eva
Friday 15th of November 2024
Wow very pretty like yours better...Your amazing in the crafts you do .....
Rachel
Friday 15th of November 2024
Eva, Thank you so much. I'm glad you like them.