A couple of months ago I came across a photo of gilded wood block ornaments while searching for some new craftspiration. They were so elegantly simple yet bold at the same time. I loved the rustic modern look and decided it would be a fun project and a great addition to our holiday decor. I'm totally floored with how they turned out. Paired them with some matte white paper mache diamonds, and some fun new wire ornaments from CB2 (all, above). They work so well with our existing holiday trim and give our whole tree a modern look. 

G O L D   L E A F E D   W O O D   B L O C K S


You will need:

1. Some Whittler's wood (I grabbed a pack of bass wood blocks from Michael's) - Any soft wood would do
2. Pack of ready leaf gold (or silver or rose gold...)
3. Eyelet screws (Any art or frame supply shop has these. TIP: buy a framing kit at the dollar store, it's a small box filled with a bunch of different little screws)
4. Gold leafing glue and sealer
5. Foam brushes
6. String


Screw the eyelets onto the wood blocks. 
No drilling necessary! The wood is so soft.


Use painter's tape if you want to create a hard line. 
If you'd like a natural "dipped" look, skip the tape. We liked
the dipped look and how unique each piece turned out,
so we nixed the tape after a few trials.

Apply the Gold Leaf adhesive, and let it sit for about 30 minutes.


Once the glue is tacky, lay a sheet of the gold leaf on 
top and rub gently with fingers or a foam brush.


Gently peel off the wax paper and dust off excess
 gold leaf with the foam brush. Remove tape (if you used any).
Apply a light coat of the sealer and let dry.
Thread a ribbon or string through eyelet, tie and hang up!

All done!



M A T T E   W H I T E   D R O P   O R N A M E N T S :

I had planned on doing some origami paper diamonds for this, 
but came across some ready made paper mache at the craft store. 
Half my work done! All I needed was some matte white paint. 


I gave the paper ornaments 3 coats of the acrylic 
white paint, drying completely between coats. Simple and easy!


Here's another DIY ornament we added into the mix:


We grabbed a handful of plastic (less breakables in a house
 with a 5 year old, the better!) ornaments and a pack of white
 feathers at the craft store. Filled each ball with 2-3 feathers 
and voila! Yet another easy and super affordable DIY.



Are you crafting up some decor? Hope this inspired you
 to create something fresh and unique for the holidays! 
Thanks for dropping by!