When I was little, my mom taught my brother and I how to make these adorable ice cream cone ornaments. This project is super easy and cheap, so it's the perfect project to chase away Christmas break boredom. While the ornaments are kid-friendly, make sure to keep an eye on younger kids who will want to taste the "ice cream"!
Here's what you'll need:
Ivory Snow or Ivory Soap Bars (it takes approx. 1 soap bar per ornament)*
3 inch styrofoam balls
Colored ice cream cones
Cheese grater
Hot glue
Straight pins
Ribbon
*Ivory Snow laundry detergent is very difficult to find. If you can't find it, Ivory soap bars are fine--that's what I had to use.
If you're doing the project with kids, be sure to do these two steps first as they involve heat and sharp tools.
1. Spread hot glue (on a low temp) on the rim of the ice cream cone and set a Styrofoam ball on top. Repeat for all ornaments you'd like to make.
2. Grate the bars of soap until you have a pile of shavings that look like this.
Put the flakes in a bowl and add warm water a little warm water. Using your hands (the kids might like this part!), mix the water and soap flakes until you have a mixture of this consistency:
It looks a little like thick cottage cheese. It must be thick enough to not drip yet thin enough to spread. Using an offset spatula or butter knife, spread the soap mixture on the styrofoam ball. Make sure you coat the whole ball.
At this point, you can sprinkle glitter on top to give it an extra shine.
Let the ice cream cones dry overnight.
The next day, cut 8 inch lengths of ribbon for each ornament. Fold each strip of ribbon in half and tie a knot at the top. Poke a straight pin (the kind with a ball at the top) through the halfway point in the ribbon.
Using a pen or skewer, make a small hole on the top of the ice cream scoop. Dab a little hot glue inside the hole and push the straight pin into the hole.
Now your ornament is ready to hang on the tree!
This Ivory soap mixture is also useful for making fake snowballs. Just drop the ice cream cone and you can make your own snowballs. My mom said the cones will hold up for a couple of years if you pack them carefully. We've never tried to shellac them, but that might help with preserving the ornaments. If the cone breaks, you can always pull it off and glue a new one on.
Hope you enjoy this and have a great holiday!
4 comments:
Thank you so much for sharing this craft. My Beloved Grandma did these crafts with my siblings & cousins one year, eons ago. I'm heartbroken that we can't find them. Thanks to you, I can now share this special craft with my boys! :D
So cute!! Thanks for sharing your project!
Why does it have to be ivory bars?
Ivory is softer and more forgiving texture wise for this project. It melts into the styrofoam which is why the ornaments last a long time. Other soaps (Irish Spring for instance) can be dry and crumbly, making preparing, spreading the soap mixture and keeping it from falling apart impossible. But it wouldn’t hurt to try a different soap; it’s just what we always used growing up.
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