Decorating a street tree with handmade toys
In this article we will tell you how to make your own Christmas tree decorations on a street tree using the available items. It is quite possible to turn everything ordinary into something beautiful and magical. 
It is important to know one important detail. On New Year's Eve, the weather is not always good, it rains often. Therefore, your crafts should not have anything that washes off or soaks. When the tree is in the house, use whatever you want there.
Foam crafts
The material is easy to process by itself. It will not crack, break, or hit anyone if it suddenly falls off a branch. DIY styrofoam Christmas toys can be made in any form and in different ways.
Getting ready for work
We need materials and tools:
- Styrofoam;
- knife;
- soldering iron;
- paints;
- sequins;
- needle with thread;
- glue;
- sandpaper.
Do not forget that you are making decorations for your outdoor tree, so the glue and paint must be water and frost resistant.
With a knife, we will process a foam blank. The knife should have a thin, sharp blade, because the cut should not be too rough. The same goes for the emery cloth, choose "zero". Sandpaper is needed for final processing: we will remove irregularities (burrs, extra bumps) with it. With the help of paints, we will color our craft, and then lightly cover it with sparkles. We will make a hole with a needle, and send the thread from which the loop will turn out.
Choose strong threads, as strong wind can easily rip off the jewelry!
With a soldering iron, if desired, you can apply indentations in the form of patterns. You will need glue if you want to attach, for example, a beautiful ribbon bow to the toy.
Observe safety precautions when working with a soldering iron! When processing foam with this device, poisonous smoke will be released that can cause cancer. Keep this in mind, work in a well-ventilated area. It is advisable to use a mask or respirator to protect the respiratory system.
Making beautiful balls
It is best to do-it-yourself Christmas decorations from foam balls. They are very common in craft stores. This option is offered because you cannot make a ball out of ordinary foam wrappers. We will need large balls, since we will hang them on a street tree. The larger the tree, the larger and brighter the toy!
So, take a clean foam ball and prepare a flat foam pad. We paint it in any color with permanent indelible paint. In order not to get your hands dirty and not to smear paint from the ball with your fingers, use two toothpicks and stick them into the ball, as shown in the photo. You can paint with a brush or a spray can. We stick toothpicks with a ball into the stand and wait for drying.
After the ball is dry, you can apply patterns with another paint or glue something beautiful to it. You can create patterns with the tip of a soldering iron, such as snakes. Here, play your fantasy. Then take a needle and thread in the eyelet and pierce the part of the ball that you think is the top. The figure shows exactly how to pierce the toy.
Many people use arcs from paper clips as a suspension, simply sticking them into a ball, and then tying a thread. In our case, this option will not work: a strong wind will calmly tear the ball away from the suspension. The simpler the design, the more reliable it is!
We tie both ends of the thread into a knot, and hide the knot itself. The finished craft will look like a store plastic ball for a Christmas tree.
Styrofoam Figures
Christmas decorations made of foam plastic can be made flat, in the form of various figures. You will need foam boards. First, we draw a drawing on foam with a pen or felt-tip pen. Then we carefully begin to cut. Sand the rough surfaces with sandpaper, otherwise the craft will not look so beautiful.
For example, we want to make a beautiful snowflake. We draw it on the styrofoam, then start cutting out the inner spaces.
Always start by cutting out the interior. This is much more convenient, and the risk of toy breakage is significantly reduced.
Now we start cutting out the snowflake itself from the foam sheet. It will look beautiful even without painting. Better, of course, to paint it in silver, gold or blue metallic. The hole must be made from the upper ends so that the snowflake on the tree is turned with its face towards the viewer. If you pierce it directly on the plane, then the snowflake in suspension will turn its edge towards us.
Don't be limited to flat figures. Cut out bulky crafts in the form of bells, birds, Christmas trees, and so on. By the way, such Christmas tree decorations can be made from foam balls. For example, a snowman. You will need balls of different sizes. One is large, one is smaller, and the third is even smaller. Glue them together carefully with strong glue. You don't need to paint such a craft, because the snowman should be white anyway. Use indelible markers to draw his mouth, eyes, nose and buttons. You can sew him a little hat.
Amazing snowflake - video
From plastic bottles
There are a lot of options, both simple and complex. Plastic Christmas tree toys are perfect for a street New Year beauty. They also do not get wet, have a small mass and are easy to manufacture.
Only large bottles of 1.5 or 2 liters will do. Toys made from small bottles will be difficult to see on a street tree.
Interesting, useful and simple
Let's make a Christmas tree toy from a plastic bottle with our own hands, which will function as a bird feeder. We need accessories:
- 2 liter plastic bottle;
- scissors and awl;
- paints;
- strong nylon thread;
- tinsel, ribbons, etc.
In this version, a large bottle is suitable so that the birds have room to eat in it.
We take the bottle and begin to paint it in any bright color, along with the lid. Spray painting will not take long. We are waiting for the paint to dry. We decorate the bottle with ribbons, for example, we knit a bow and fasten it with glue. You can also use stickers. Then we cut out a small round window (diameter 8 cm) in the bottle wall so that it is as close as possible to the bottom. The photo shows interesting options for bottle feeders, where the tops are made in the form of a roof.
First you need to paint the bottle, wait for it to dry, and only then cut out a window for the bird. The paint should not get where the food will lie. The animal can accidentally swallow a piece of dry paint and get poisoned.
Now we unscrew the plug and punch a small hole in it. We take a thread and make a loop. It is better to make the knot large (tie several times). We put in the end of the loop so that the knot rests against the bottom of the cover. A simple and useful toy feeder is ready. We hang it on a Christmas tree, fill it with food and admire the birds.
Flashlight bottle and delicate bells
A very simple option, familiar to everyone from childhood.These plastic bottle Christmas tree decorations are also easy to make and process. We need everything the same as for the feeder. Only now are we going to cut vertical stripes on the walls.
A sharp, thin knife or scalpel is perfect for this procedure. It is best not to use a razor blade as it can easily injure you.
We cut through the strips, the gap between them should be about 5 mm. The length of each strip is 15-20 cm, depending on the size of the bottle. Now we need to squeeze the bottle so that all the stripes are bent in different directions. Let's start painting and decorating. You can put something bright and shiny in the inner cavity of our flashlight.
A plastic bottle and disposable teaspoons will make a wonderful Santa Claus.
A white bottle will make a unique snowflake.
Green bottles will be the basis for the Christmas wreath.
A little patience and more bottles will turn into a big snowman after a while.