You’re going to love these wood slice ornament ideas perfect for your Christmas tree or handmade gifts! These use a variety of craft materials and are great for beginners.
We love making Christmas ornaments around here! And there’s a very specific reason. Because an ornament is a Christmas craft that is able to meet three holiday objectives: 1) gift tag; 2) tree decor; 3) personalized gift.
Sometimes a handmade ornament is d) all of the above!
There are all sorts of materials to use for ornaments – like felt, glass, and paper. But one of my favorite surfaces for an ornament? Wood slices!
I love the natural look of this surface, and if you’re here, you probably do too. I’m excited to share with you over 35 wood slice ornament ideas I think you’re going to love!
The list is at the bottom.
But before that, I wanted to share some tips and FAQs with you. If you’re ready to craft, just skip down to get the ideas. If you want to make your own wood slices, read below.
How do you prepare wood slices to make ornaments?
If you cut your own, you’ll need to dry them. If you buy from the craft store, they are ready to craft with immediately.
I have used both wood circles purchased from the craft store in projects as well as ones that were cut from tree branches. Here’s what you should know about both scenarios.
Buying Wood Circles
Wood slices are readily available at most craft stores, but personally they are a crafting surface I always buy online. I tend to use them in a lot of different projects, so I buy large packs and just use them up. If you purchase wood circles online, make sure they are already dried.
Cutting Wood Slices from a Branch
If you’re going to cut your own, it will likely be free, but you’ll also have to go through some steps. You need a chop saw or miter saw, and you’ll cut the branches to whatever width you need for your project. Then you need to wipe away the sawdust and let them dry before using.
But here’s the catch – usually the rule for drying out wood is a year for every inch of thickness. This would mean that, depending on the thickness, it’s going to be about 3 – 6 months before you can use them.
If you cut down a tree in spring, that time frame could work depending on when you want to make your ornaments. Otherwise . . . read the next section for drying information.
How do you dry wood slices?
You can let wood dry naturally (which takes a lot of time), but my other favorite methods that cut to the chase are using denatured alcohol and baking. I discuss both below.
Baking
If you cut your own wood, baking is the easiest option. To do this, set your oven to 200°F and place the slices in on a cookie sheet. Leave for 45 minutes, then flip over to the other side.
This is an easy, fast method – but you will lose some of the wood to cracking. So make sure you have a lot of slices (you can also embrace the cracks as part of the aesthetic).
Denatured Alcohol
Another option is to use denatured alcohol. This blog post describes the details of the method, but essentially you will let the wood sit in a bath of denatured alcohol for about 24 hours, and then dry out for 24 hours.
Keep in mind that this type of alcohol is toxic, so you would have to be careful about how and where you use this method.
Are you ready to check out the wood ornaments? Take a peek at the list and let me know your favorite in the comments! And if you have a favorite technique I haven’t shown, let me know that too. Happy crafting!
Wood Slice Ornament Ideas
Learn how to make over 35 DIY wood slice ornaments, perfect for decorating the Christmas tree!
Wood Burned Ornaments for Your Rustic Christmas Tree
Learn how to make wood slice ornaments for your Christmas tree and other holiday decorating. These are SO easy and inexpensive.
Snowman with a Scarf
These snowman ornaments are absolute adorable, and they're so easy to make! Great Christmas craft to do with your kids.
Woodland Animals
Create some cuteness for your Christmas tree with these easy to create animal ornaments! Paint a different face design on each, then add felt ears.
Wood Photo Ornaments
Learn how to make easy DIY wood photo ornaments using slices of birchwood, Mod Podge, and ribbon. These are perfect for Christmas gifts!
Hand Painted Christmas Wreaths
Make your Christmas extra special with hand painted wood slice ornaments you can make yourself! There are easy step-by-step instructions so you can achieve similar results.
Rustic DIY Mickey Mouse Ornaments
Decorate your tree and celebrate your love of Disney with these Mickey Mouse ornaments. You could definitely do Minnie Mouse too with the same idea.
DIY Painted Birch Slice Ornaments
Make your own DIY painted birch slice ornaments for your Christmas tree or to give as handmade ornaments or gift toppers. You're going to love these beautiful designs!
Santa Wood Ornaments
Wooden ornaments add lovely rustic charm to the holiday season! These Santa ornaments are so easy to make that even kids can help.
Marbled Wood Slice Ornaments
Marbling paint is the most amazing craft, and it's easy! These show-stopping wood slice ornaments take just 15 - 20 minutes, minus the drying time.
Simple Rustic Birch And Pine Cone Ornaments
Birch is beautiful and adds a natural, rustic style elegance to your tree. Use pine cones along with the wood slices to make these easy ornaments.
Cricut Wood Ornaments
Crissy shows you two different wood slice ornament ideas, but I love the one with the vinyl stickers using a Cricut! Paint the rounds, add a word or phrase, and tie on a ribbon. Done!
Repurposed Paper Napkin Ornaments
Turn those pretty leftover paper napkins into a set of beautiful and unique wood slice ornaments for Christmas.
DIY Harry Potter Ornaments
You'll only need wood slices and paint pens to make this wizarding craft! Start with Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, and Dumbledore. Then make your way into the entire collection of witches and wizards!
String Art Ornaments
These cute ornaments were inspired by a Christmas children's book! You can make these yourself, or they are perfect motor skills craft for kids (with a cute result).
Fingerprint Wreath Ornament
Kids love painting with their fingers! I mean, I'm an adult and I love it. Make this cute wreath on a wood ornament base using paints and dots made with fingers.
Wood Slice Unicorn Ornaments
These unicorn ornaments are an adorable DIY project for you and the kids to tackle over the holiday season! Wouldn't they make cute party favors too?
Wood Slice Snowman Ornaments
I showed you some cute fingerprint wreath ornaments above. These snowmen are made with thumbprints as well! These are a great idea for a winter kids' party or classroom activity.
DIY Chalkboard Ornaments
Clear chalkboard paint was used on these ornaments! You can use clear and paint them any color underneath . . . or just use black chalkboard paint.
O Little Town of Bethlehem Ornament
Make a beautiful Christmas ornament with the included free O Little Town of Bethlehem printable. You just need a few simple supplies!
DIY Stamped Wood Ornaments
Can you stamp on wood? Absolutely! I love these stamped wood slices that look great in a variety of colors. I bet you could use embossing powder too.
Blue Dove Ornaments
I love the blue background with gold outlined doves on these ornaments! It goes to show that you can put just about anything on wood rounds and hang it on the tree.
DIY Rudolph Ornaments
These darling reindeer ornaments are super simple to make with just a few everyday craft materials and make a cute addition to your Christmas decor.
Pen and Ink Wood Slice Ornaments
Wood burning is a fun technique, but if you don't have wood burning tools, you can still create pretty wood slice art. Grab some black ink pens like a standard fine point Sharpie marker and just start doodling!
Stitched Snowflake Ornaments
If you can use a drill, you can make this darling stitched ornament! I love the snowflake - what other shapes could you make?
DIY Penguin Ornaments
Kids will love making these wood slice DIY penguin ornaments to hang on the tree! A fun Christmas craft and handmade gift idea.
Photo Transfer Ornament
Love the rustic look of a wood slice ornament and don't want to cover it all up with a photo? Here’s how to apply your own images and the background still shows through.
Christmas Character Ornaments
If you're decorating wood slices with kids, these are some fun ones to try! You can make a snowman, penguin, or Santa with a pom pom hat.
Stenciled Wood Slices
While these were originally magnets, it's another way to decorate wood slices! Learn how to stencil on the front (using adhesive stencils). Then just glue a ribbon to the back and hang.
Wood Slice Grinch Ornaments
These Grinch ornaments are a fun and festive holiday craft that make great gifts and look fun on a Christmas tree! The bright colors make them really stand out.
Deer Wood Slice Ornaments
These ornaments add the perfect touch to your rustic Christmas theme, especially if you decorate them with deer and Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer!
Wood Slice Owl Ornaments
This owl craft is great for fall, Thanksgiving, and (of course) Christmas! If you love owls, these are simple and look great on the tree.
Iron On Vinyl Colorful Ornaments
Wood slice ornaments don't have to be rustic! They can also be bright and colorful, like these. Did you know you can iron vinyl onto wood? I had no idea!
I’m Snow Cute Ornament
Make an adorable "I'm Snow Cute" snowman ornament on one side. And the photo on the back to make it a special personalized keepsake.
Yearly Keepsake Ornament
What cool events happened this year? Write it down - on an ornament! This would be fun to make each year for each one of your kids.
Wood Slice Christmas Magnets
These wood slices are easy to decorate with Sparkle Mod Podge, and there's a free printable too. Turn them into magnet gifts or add a string on the back to make an ornament.
Painted Nordic Patterned Ornaments
These Nordic patterns remind me of skiing and the best parts of winter! I love how bold these brightly painted ornaments are on the tree.
If you enjoyed these wood ornaments, I’d love for you to take a peek at these other posts: