Guide to Making Heirloom Felt Ornaments: Best Inspiration & Tips

Exquisite felt ornaments can be wonderful heirloom pieces to add to your tree each year. I’m sharing my favourite patterns, inspiration, and tips for making heirloom felt ornaments that you’ll want to make, give, and treasure.

My First Felt Ornaments

When I was a child, my grandma lovingly made felt Christmas ornaments for all of her grandchildren every year. She personalized each one on the back with our name and the year. In the first three years, Grandma made single ornaments, and then she added a small Nativity set over the next few years.

When I was younger, I appreciated crafting and handmade ornaments (as we made a lot ourselves). But I’m not sure that I fully valued these felt ornaments. They were just a cute set of ornaments that Grandma had made.

As I’ve gotten older though, I’ve moved away from home, set up my own tree with my husband, and built up my own ornament collection. And now I see them differently. I think about the time that Grandma spent making them for each of her grandchildren, and how they’ve become a part of my Christmas traditions for more than 30+ years.

I have other ornaments that my mom or I made during my childhood, but these ones are the oldest ornaments that I have on our tree. And they’re among the most special. I hope to be able to take care of them and pass them on to someone who will appreciate them. Hopefully that person will appreciate the love and care that went into making them, and that they’ve been on my tree ever since.

Why Felt Makes Good Heirloom-Quality Ornaments

In my opinion, making heirloom ornaments from felt is a good choice for several reasons:

• The texture of the felt has a cozy feel that brings warmth and charm
• Felt ornaments feel vintage and traditional from a time when more people made things by hand
• Hand stitching adds value and shows great care and effort
• You can make felt ornaments highly detailed, add embellishments, and personalize them with names and dates
• While you can damage them, felt ornaments won’t break like glass ornaments. You can repair them with stitches or glue, and they will last for many years

My Favourite Patterns for Making Heirloom Felt Ornaments

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A few years ago, I believe I stumbled across an image on Pinterest for an exquisitely embroidered felt ornament. In awe, I followed the link to a blog and an Etsy shop, and finally learned of Larissa Holland and her shop, Mmmcrafts.

All patterns described below can be purchased as individual PDF patterns, or in pattern bundles through the Mmmcrafts Etsy shop.

Twelve Days of Christmas

At the time, Larissa was more than halfway through her first ornament series, the Twelve Days of Christmas. I knew immediately that I wanted to make these ornaments. I purchased all the patterns that were released, and started planning a colour scheme – one of my favourite things to do!

From the beginning, I found Larissa’s pattern designing and writing skills inspiring. The patterns are so easy to follow because of her attention to detail. Anyone with a bit of experience crafting or stitching can easily make these ornaments by following the wonderful instructions. The use of printable stabilizer was a novel concept to me, and helps you to achieve neat stitching and crisp shapes like magic.

The Twelve Days of Christmas set is actually a set of 15 ornaments, with a bonus pear, egg, and heart (included in the 1st, 6th, and 12th patterns) beyond the “12”.

Because the series starts with the birds (which are more simple), and then ends with the people (which are more complex), your skills can build along with the ornaments.

I really enjoyed making the birds in the series, and I was delighted that the people ornaments were even more charming and full of fun details.

Even the backs of the ornaments aren’t ignored. Each one gets embroidered with the number in the song. Larissa follows the order from the original version, in case it’s not what you remember!

I am an impatient person once I get excited about something, and I could hardly wait for the last ornaments in the series to be released. Finally they were and I was ready! I think I was the first person to share a completed photo of the whole set on Instagram.

But in the time since I’ve finished my set, I’ve enjoyed seeing all the colour schemes that other people choose. It kind of makes me want to make another set . . . Some day I probably will attempt the set again because I love them so much!

View the 12 Days of Christmas Ornament patterns in Larissa’s shop.

‘Twas the Night

Luckily, Larissa started working on other ornament series after the Twelve Days of Christmas. In fact, she started two different ornament series that next year and alternates between the two.

The first is the ‘Twas the Night series, inspired by the poem, ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas. Larissa first released Santa and Mrs. Claus. These ornaments were different because they introduced sequins, beads, and more elaborate embellishments. This made them new and exciting with more fun things to purchase and plan. Though they are also a little more detailed and finicky, especially when trying to find a needle thin enough to fit through the seed beads.

The two elves were added next as a single pattern. I loved that they were smaller than the “adult” ornaments. And their little Naughty and Nice list and letters to Santa offer room for creativity, personalization and extra charm.

All ornaments from these new series are embroidered with the date on the back. Larissa provides a template of different years to choose from, and I like that they are easy to personalize.

I cannot stand how cute this set this. And I loved taking traditional red and white and adding in my favourite yellow, aqua, and turquoise for a bright and modern take on Christmas. The sequins and beads add extra sparkle.

I can’t wait to see what comes next in this ornament series as Larissa promises to return to the text of the poem. I’m hoping for “mama in her kerchief and I in my cap”, and maybe sleeping children or the mouse – not stirring, of course! But I always know that whatever Larissa designs is always better than I could imagine!

View the ‘Twas the Night Ornament Patterns in Larissa’s shop.

Ebenezer Ornament Series

The second ornament series that Larissa has been releasing is the Ebenezer ornament series. First came Ebenezer Scrooge himself. I love his little grumpy face and his candle for peering into the darkness.

Next came Jacob Marley and his chains full of tiny miniature gold things that were fiddly but fun to make. These ornaments are definitely more involved than the Twelve Days of Christmas ornaments, so I suggest beginning with the birds first if you’re new to crafting like this.

New this year is the Ghost of Christmas Past. I just finished mine on the weekend, and I had forgotten how much I enjoy making these ornaments. Choosing the colour scheme is the first – and most fun step, in my opinion. I had used very few colours in the Ebenezer and Marley ornaments and decided to branch out and more colours to the palette of this set. And because it was a ghost, and the Ghost of Christmas Past, I wanted to add lighter colours and some red for Christmas.

I love how this one turned out. I do think it is less involved than the previous ornaments and quicker to complete. Because I couldn’t find the right wire to use, I went rogue on the holly branch. I found something thicker that I liked better, wrapped in a soft green. So I wrapped 24 gauge gold wires around the end from inside each holly leaf. It’s not the most elegant solution, but I like it better than the three twisted white wires.

I’m so excited to see what comes next in this series as well. And I really can’t wait for Bob Cratchit and Tiny Tim!

View the Ebenezer, Marley and Ghost ornaments in Larissa’s shop.

My Felt Ornament Colour Schemes

In case you’d like to use similar colours to mine when making your own versions of the MmmCrafts ornaments, I’m sharing the colours of felt I used (or their closest matches). When I originally ordered my first set of felt for the Twelve Days of Christmas ornaments, I ordered from a Canadian store that no longer sells felt. Therefore, some of my original colours aren’t available anymore.

Since then, I’ve started ordering solely from Canadian Felt Shop which offers fabulous wool-blend felt in a wonderful array of colours. I then like to colour match each felt colour to DMC embroidery floss. For more information about materials I like to use and where to buy them, check out my post about the Best Materials for Felt Embroidery. (I wrote it about my Blooming Along Basket pattern, but most of the information is applicable here too).

Colours Used for the 12 Days of Christmas Ornament Series

(Again, all colours are from or are compared to Canadian Felt Shop colours unless otherwise specified)

• Fresh Linen
• Bright Red (seasonal)
• Blushing Bride
• Blue Snow
• Peacock
• Old Gold
• Baby Blue
• Royal Blue
• Pink Grapefruit
• Red Rose/Strawberry – closest match
• Mustard Seed (seasonal – closest match)
• Marine Blue (closest match from Benzie Design felt)
• A Red-orange shade – I haven’t found a good match yet for this

Colours Used for the ‘Twas the Night Ornament Series

(Again, all colours are from or are compared to Canadian Felt Shop colours unless otherwise specified)

• Bright Red (seasonal)
• Baby Blue
• Fresh Linen
• Old Gold
• Peacock
• Black

Colours Used for the Ebenezer Ornament Series

(Again, all colours are from or are compared to Canadian Felt Shop colours unless otherwise specified)

• Royal Blue
• Peacock
• Old Gold
• Mellow Yellow
• Black
• Smoke
• Olive
• Confederate Blue
• Apricot
• Baby Blue
• Fresh Linen
• Reets Relish
• Brushed Light Gold (metallic)

Tips for Making Heirloom Felt Ornaments

In order to make the best felt ornaments that you’ll be proud to put on your Christmas tree year after year and pass down to loved ones, here are some tips:

Choose quality materials, especially felt

I recommend using wool or wool-blend felt as the quality and colour selection is so much better. For more information about selecting materials and where to buy them, you can check out my post about Best Materials for Felt Embroidery. (I wrote it about my Blooming Along Basket, but most of the information is directly applicable for these ornaments as well.)

Side note: The only drawback to the Mmmcrafts ornaments is that the cost can add up between the patterns and all the extra little materials. But if you start slowly and build over time, it can be more affordable. The Twelve Days patterns also have less extra embellishments, focusing mostly on felt and floss. But I’m not going to replace any of these ornaments when I get a whim to change the colour scheme of my tree. They are heirloom pieces I will keep forever, and I loved making them, so I don’t mind investing money in them.

Plan a colour scheme

Especially if you’re going to make a set of ornaments, planning a colour scheme in advance will help your set look cohesive. Choose your favourite colours, Christmas colours, or any combination of colours that look good together. Ideally, you want any decorative stitching and embellishments to contrast and pop. For more information about choosing felt colours schemes and contrasting colours, read my post about Choosing Felt Colours Schemes. (Again, I wrote it about the Blooming Along Basket, but you’ll find the information applicable here too).

Work with care, but they don’t have to be perfect!

Don’t rush when making felt ornaments, and follow any directions carefully. You want to do the best job that you can. But at the same time, enjoy the process and don’t stress that they have to be perfect. They are meant to look handmade, which naturally means being imperfect.

Personalize your work

Add dates or names to the backs of the ornaments. If these ornaments survive decades and get passed down, adding more information makes them more meaningful. Your craftsmanship and stories make them truly special.

Store them carefully

It makes no sense to put a lot of love, time, and effort into making heirloom felt ornaments only to have them squashed, bent, or broken. Though felt ornaments are less fragile than glass ornaments, you still need to treat them with care. Currently, I store mine loosely in a few Ziplock bags at the top of my Tupperware tub of ornaments. But I’m going to look at getting a separate container just for them and wrapping each in tissue.

Other Heirloom Felt Ornament Patterns You Might Like

Maybe the Mmmcrafts ornaments feel too intimidating to begin with, or you prefer something else. The great news is that there are SO many felt ornament patterns to choose from. I have saved nearly 40 of my favourites in a curated list called Fabulous Felt.

You can view my saved Favourite Felt Ornament Patterns on Etsy HERE. You can find a wide variety of traditional, vintage and modern styles in nearly every Christmas design and some non-Christmas designs as well. I’m sure there’s something that will catch your eye and have you wanting to start making heirloom felt ornaments of your own.

Keep a set for yourself or start creating sets for your children. You can add to them each year until they have a set they can take with them to their own homes. Or give some as gifts to people on your list, or attach them as special decorations on the packaging.

Making Heirloom Felt Ornaments

Making heirloom felt ornaments is a great way to make timeless ornaments that you’ll love to decorate with and treasure for the long term.

I want to hear from you. Do you have any heirloom ornaments that have been passed down in your family? Have you ever used felt to make ornaments? Let me know in the comments below.

All the best,

Danielle