Foil Star Ornament with Cameo Effect

The two star ornaments above are made in exactly the same way as the other "cameo" style ornaments on the site: it's a kind of sandwich, with a foil-covered cardboard star between two pin-back buttons (pins removed). The red ornament features Sylvester Junior, while the gold version shows Bugs Bunny in a Santa suit.

For each star ornament, cut TWO two identical cardboard star shapes approximately 4" wide -- I cut mine from cereal boxes. Each shape was then covered with foil gift wrap (the paper kind, not the plastic kind). Cut a piece of foil about 1/2" larger all around than the cardboard star. Using a glue stick or tacky glue, glue the star to the center of the paper, then wrap the paper to the back of the star shape, slashing as needed to conform the paper to the shape of the star.  Glue down the wrapped edges. Once the two shapes are covered with foil, glue them back-to-back using tacky glue, matching the edges carefully. Press the two pieces together firmly til the glue grabs, then clamp with clothespins until it is dry. Using two layers makes the ornament two-sided and also serves to make it sturdier.  If you're concerned about the cardboard curling, weight it under a heavy book or other object; place waxed paper over the ornament to ensure that you don't get glue on your book.

I made the cameo effect gluing a 1.5" pinback button (remove the pin first) to each side of the foil-covered star. I used GOOP for this step to ensure they would hold, and carefully lined up the button shapes so the two sides would match. You may find it easier to do if you complete one side and allow it to dry before adding the button to the second side. To finish the "cameo" effect I surrounded each button with a strip of fused bead trim to give it a border, glueing the trim in place with GOOP (applied with a toothpick).

If you don't have a suitable button, you could substitute with what you have on hand -- check here to find some alternatives. For example, small images glued inside flattened metal bottle caps work well -- the fluted edges make a lovely effect and provide a frame for the picture so you could skip the bead trim. (You can find simple instructions for flattening bottle caps here.)

If you choose, you could also glue on a novelty clothing button (remove the shank first) or a piece of costume jewellery, or you could simply decoupage an image right onto the star (images from old Christmas cards  or the thumbnail pictures from the back of a calendar work well).

When the image was glued in place and dry, I punched a hole in one tip of the star for hanging, then podgied the arms of the star (avoiding the cameo motif). I sprinkled star sequins all over, doing one side at a time and allowing drying time in between. You may want to test the podgy on your foil first, as not all foil wrap takes it well.

Another cookie-cutter shape could work just as well as a star -- as long as it's not too intricate and you can wrap the foil neatly around the edges. Bells and mitten shapes work well; a Christmas tree could work provided it's a fairly simple shape. I have even made similar ornaments using a maple leaf shape.