DIY Candy Dome Christmas Tree Ornament
Make a Christmas Tree Candy Dome Ornament using half of a clear fillable ornament—an easy DIY that doubles as festive decor and a fun way to gift sweet treats.
This Christmas Tree Candy Dome Ornament is a simple yet eye-catching holiday craft made from half of a clear fillable ornament. Once finished, it transforms into a cute Christmas tree complete with a hanging loop and a clear dome that can be filled with candy, small treats, or tiny surprises.
It’s an easy, creative project that adds a playful twist to traditional ornaments while still looking festive and polished on the tree.
This ornament is perfect if you love crafts that are both decorative and functional. Not only does it look adorable hanging on a Christmas tree, but it also doubles as a clever way to gift candy or small goodies.
Because it’s made from just half of an ornament, it’s lightweight, quick to assemble, and great for using up craft supplies. It’s also a fun alternative to standard gift wrap and makes holiday gifting feel a little more magical.
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Ways to Use the Candy Dome Christmas Tree Ornament
- Hang on your Christmas tree as festive, interactive decor
- Fill with candy for a sweet holiday surprise
- Use as a stocking stuffer with treats or small toys inside
- Add to wrapped gifts as a reusable gift topper
- Use as a place card or party favor for holiday gatherings
- Gift to teachers, neighbors, or friends as a simple handmade treat
How to Make a Christmas Tree Candy Dome Ornament
Supplies:
- Printed pattern
- Two 8.5” x 11” sheets of green regular cardstock
- One sheet of 12 x 12 green glitter cardstock -for the ombre tree, you would need one sheet of each of three shades of green
- One scrap or sheet of glitter cardstock in each ornament color. We used red and champagne gold for the traditional tree and purple, gold, blue, and two shades of pink for the colorful tree.
- One scrap or sheet of glitter cardstock in gold for the star.
- One paper fastener.
- One 60mm plastic ornament
- 6 inches of 1/8th-inch wide ribbon (for hanging loop).
- Two wiggle craft eyes (3/8-inch).
You will also need:
- Pencil
- Black permanent marker
- Scissors
- Hole punch
- Hot glue gun and glue sticks
- Regular craft glue stick (optional).
- Tape (optional)
- Candy
Instructions:
Print the pattern onto green cardstock.
Cut out the pattern pieces.
*If you are using a lightweight crafting cardstock (65lbs or less), you can optionally use both copies of pattern piece #1 and glue them together using a glue stick for added strength.
Punch a hole in the center of pieces #1 and #2 as shown.
If you are using glitter cardstock, trace around pattern pieces #4-#6 onto the back of green glitter cardstock, and pattern piece #8 onto gold glitter cardstock.
To make the ornaments, either use one copy of piece #7 as a template and trace it onto glitter cardstock in your choice of ornament colors (for the tree shown, I used red and gold), or use a 1cm circle craft punch to punch them out. Note: You will need 15-20 ornaments to decorate the tree as shown.
To create the dispenser mechanism, use a paper fastener to connect pieces #1 and #2 as shown.
*Note: the arms of the paper fastener should pass first through piece #1 and then through piece #2, so the arms of the fastener can be folded flat against piece #2.
Fold the arms of the paper fastener flat and secure them in place with a small piece of tape.
Glue piece #3 on top of the mechanism, to hide the paper fastener arms, being careful to align the pieces so the dispenser hole is not covered.
Use hot glue to attach the dispenser mechanism to the half-dome plastic ornament.
*Note: the mechanism should be oriented so that the head of the paper fastener is at the bottom.
Place piece #4 over the dome and secure it in place with hot glue.
*Note: when completing this step, you can align piece #4 so that it hides the original plastic hang tag of the ornament.
Roll pieces #5 and #6 into cone shapes and secure them with hot glue.
*Note: if you are using a stiffer glitter cardstock, it can help to gently bend the cardstock against your finger or a pencil to soften it before forming the cone.
If you are adding a hanging loop, use scissors to carefully snip a small hole in the top of each of the cones formed by pieces #5 and #6.
Use hot glue to attach the smaller tree cone (#5) on top of the larger tree cone (#6) as shown, taking care not to block the hole you just made for the hanging loop.
Cut a 6-inch piece of 1/8th-inch wide ribbon and knot it at one end. Note: depending on the size of the hole you cut, you might need to knot it twice so that the hanging loop doesn’t pull through.
Feed the hanging loop ribbon through the hole in the top of the tree and secure it in place with hot glue.
*Note: make sure it is secured well and that the hanging loop will not pull through.
Use hot glue to attach the tree top onto the ornament.
Create a face by attaching wiggle eyes and drawing a mouth using a permanent marker.
Use hot glue to add ornaments and a star.
Fill the dispenser with candy and close it.
Your tree ornament is ready!
This Christmas Tree Candy Dome Ornament is a fun, creative way to combine holiday decorating with gift-giving. Whether you’re filling it with candy, small surprises, or seasonal treats, it’s a charming ornament that adds personality and joy to your Christmas celebrations. Easy to make and fun to share, this craft is sure to become a favorite part of your holiday DIY lineup.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are there any alternative supplies I can use?
– Green cardstock – you can use cardstock in any color to make a tree.
– Glitter cardstock – you can use any color of either regular or novelty cardstock to make a tree.
– Glitter cardstock for the ornaments – you could use any other craft supplies to make colorful ornaments for your tree. Some ideas include pom poms, buttons, beads, sequins etc. Alternatively, you could use paint or markers to decorate your tree, depending on what kind of cardstock you used to make your tree.
– 1/8th-inch wide ribbon – the hanging loop can be made from any craft material you have on hand, including yarn, string, twine etc.
– 3/8th- inch wiggle craft eyes – you can either draw on eyes with a permanent marker, or use any other craft supply you have available, such as buttons, beads, pompoms, cardstock circles etc.
How do I use different sized plastic ornaments?
– 60mm split plastic craft ornament – if your ornament is a little larger or smaller than 60mm, you can scale the pattern when printing. The following percentages have been found to work well:
– 50mm ornament: print at 83%
– 60mm ornament: print at 100%
– 70mm ornament: print at 117%
What can I fill the dispenser with?
The tree ornament can be filled with whatever kind of candy or small gift you choose, so long as it will fit through the hole of the dispenser. If you are using unwrapped candy, make sure that your plastic dome is food safe; otherwise use wrapped candy only.
Would this project be good for kids?
This tree ornament dispenser would make a great project for kids! To make the tree ornament as shown, young kids might need assistance with cutting and hot-gluing to avoid injury. For decorating the tree, younger kids could use an alternate (safer) adhesive, such as glue dots, to attach the ornaments. A fun option for young kids could be to either pre-make the tree using regular white cardstock and let them color it in and decorate it using washable markers, or let them color the pieces and then assemble it!
