Christmas Ornaments Printable: Free Sheet to Colour and Hang on the Tree

Is your tree looking a little bare at the bottom, where small hands can reach? A Christmas ornaments printable is the easiest way to let children decorate it themselves: they colour the baubles, you help with the cutting, and together you hang ornaments that are truly theirs. Here is what is on our free sheet, colouring ideas for each design, a step-by-step guide and a few tricks to make paper ornaments last all season.

Christmas ornaments printable: what’s on the free sheet

The free sample of our Christmas craft pack includes a full A4 page with 4 round tree ornaments to colour, plus 2 Christmas cards and a page of 6 gift tags. The baubles have clear black outlines that print well on any home printer in black and white. Each one is a simple round shape, which makes cutting easier than fiddly star or angel outlines.

Colouring ideas for each bauble

The free sheet has 4 of these designs; all 12 are in the full pack.

• Santa and the reindeer: classic red and brown, or let your child invent a rainbow reindeer.
• The snowman: leave the snow white and colour the details in bright stripes. A light blue background makes the white stand out.
• The gingerbread man: brown crayon, then white or coloured “icing” dots with a felt-tip pen.
• The bell, star and present: gold and yellow, or a glitter-glue edge once the colouring is dry.
• The owl, mitten and teddy bear: perfect for patterns – spots, zigzags and checks.
• The candy cane: red and white stripes are good practice for staying in the lines.

Cut, punch and thread: step by step

1. Colour first. It is much easier to colour a whole sheet than small cut-out circles.
2. Cut out the baubles. Children aged 5–7 can often cut along the curve themselves with children’s scissors; for younger ones, cut roughly around each circle and let them snip the last bit. Scissors always with a grown-up nearby.
3. Punch a hole. Use a single hole punch near the top of each ornament, not too close to the edge so it doesn’t tear.
4. Thread the ribbon. Push a ribbon, baker’s twine or a piece of wool through the hole and tie a loop.
5. Hang it up. On the tree, a branch in a vase, a window or the handle of a kitchen cupboard.

Make them last: thicker paper and ribbon

• Print on thicker paper. 160–200 g/m² paper keeps the ornaments flat and stops them curling. Ordinary printer paper works too.
• Back them with card. Glue the coloured bauble onto a piece of cereal-box card and cut round it again – it becomes sturdy and nearly unbendable.
• Decorate both sides. Glue two baubles back to back, or let your child draw on the back and write their name and the year.
• Laminate. If you have a laminator, laminate first and punch the hole afterwards.
• Reinforce the hole. A small piece of clear tape over the top before punching helps stop the ribbon tearing through.

All 12 ornament designs in the full pack

My Christmas Cards & Decorations has 25 A4 pages for children aged 3–7: the 12 round tree ornaments on three pages (Santa, a reindeer, a snowman, a gingerbread man, a Christmas tree, a bell, a present, an owl, a candy cane, a mitten, a teddy bear and a star), 12 Christmas cards to colour and fold, 24 gift tags and a paper garland that spells MERRY CHRISTMAS. Everything prints in black and white. Paper ornaments also make a lovely small present: tie three to a gift for grandparents or a teacher.

What you need

A printer, paper (thicker 160–200 g/m² is best), crayons or pencils, children’s scissors, a hole punch and ribbon or string. Small cut-out parts are not suitable for children under 3. Start with the free sheet of 4 ornaments, and see our guide to printable Christmas cards for kids for more card ideas.

Download the free sheet See the full pack Printable Christmas cards for kids