Watercolor Christmas Tree Ornaments

Even a beginner can paint these watercolor Christmas tree ornaments of a quiet nativity scene.

For several decades I have made a different Christmas tree ornament each year. And every year attempt a different media (beads, quilling, sewing etc.) and a different subject (stars, cardinals, candy canes.) So when the good folks at Bas Bleu sent out their new catalog this year with the book, 15 Minute Watercolor Masterpieces by Anna Kolidadych, I thought, "Why not give it a try?" The fact that I've never painted with watercolors - or anything else - shouldn't stop me. Right?

I'm not sure the author is going to want to take responsibility for my artwork (it IS the first time I have painted with watercolors.) But I do want to give a well-deserved shout out for this book. She begins with the basic techniques of layering, blending, dry brush, etc. And she provides instructions for simple paintings for newbies to practice these techniques. I got all the way to the second section and her project "Galaxy in a Circle" and my decision for the 2022 Christmas ornaments was born. Instead of a galaxy, her directions became the background for the nativity scene.

Materials Needed

Depending on how one chooses to frame their painting, the materials might be different. Here's my list:

• 15 Minute Watercolor Masterpieces by Anna Kolidaych - Highly recommended for beginners
• Basic watercolor paint set from your craft or hobby store
• Tubes of blue and black watercolor (I used enough that it was helpful to have the extra. Particularly the black.)
• Gauche Paint - one tube of white (for the white stars splattered in the background)
• Set of paint brushes - I used round #3, 5, 6, and 10
• Tiniest brush you can find for nativity: 20/0 is the size used here.
• Toothbrush - to splatter-paint the white gauche stars
• Tablet of watercolor paper (standard 140 pound)
• Optional: Curate Micae Powder for the star. (Near the glitter section)
• Flat silver ornaments as the base (obtained from Hobby Lobby)
• Crazy Glue
• Mason Jar Rims (See below regarding the framing.)

Painting the Nativity Scene in Watercolor

Setting Up

Trace circles onto your watercolor paper. Using 5.5 x 8.5 inch paper, I made three circles per page using the rim of a mason jar. I happened to make 10 pages - or 30 circles - but you don't have to be so nutso.

I also set up seven cups of water so I could move quickly through the first few steps.

Part One: Paint The Background

You will need to move quickly through these first five steps.

Each page was taped to a board. Then I did Step One on all circles on a single page; then put down that brush and did Step Two on all circles on the page, then quickly through all five steps in Part One. The glasses of water and brushes were set up in the order they were used so I only touched each brush once per page.

Then I untaped that page, taped the next page down, and repeated step one to five quickly.

This only takes one to two minutes per page to do all four steps.

Step One: Water

Using a larger brush, wet each circle. You need to make it wet enough the paint can spread over the canvas - but you don't want a puddle of water either.

Step Two: Pink & Violet

Across the middle of the circle, add three quick dots of pink and three dots of violet. The water will cause the paint to spread out.

And right from the start you can see that each of your masterpieces will be unique.

Step Three: Blue

Quickly paint the entire circle in blue, using large motions. Leave a small area near the middle with no paint. (Apology: the picture above doesn't show a lot of empty space in the middle, but you can see from the picture below how you want to leave a little room for some yellow.)

Step Four: Yellow

Add yellow around the pink and violet where there is no paint. (If you put the yellow down in the first step, it would have turned to green when painting with the blue. Hence, it is done after the blue.)

Step Five: Dark Blue

Finally, brush over part of the blue with dark blue (half blue and half black.) Darken the outside of the circle particularly.

Whew! The background is done. Let all the circles dry before going to the next part.

Part Two: Stars in the Sky

Use white gauche and a toothbrush to splatter-paint the stars in the sky. (I learned the hard way that you want to do this before the next step - making the ground - otherwise you have stars on the ground.)

Part Three: Black Bottom

Use black water color paint on the dry canvas for the ground. It should underline the splotches of color in the center. Make the line slightly curved instead of perfectly flat.

I did use the black watercolor from the tube, rather than the dry paint.

Part Four: Nativity

A 20/0 spotter was the smallest watercolor brush I could find at the craft store. A simple nativity sketch was made using black watercolor paint after the previous paint was completely dry. For this, I also used the tube of black watercolor to get the desired thickness. Only a tiny bit of water was used on the brush to make the drawing.

In the rough - they all are different!

Part Five: Silver and Gold Star

I debated using silver vs gold mica powder; then ended up using both. The silver brought in the background of the silver circle I glued the canvas to, and the gold matched the mason lid rim. You also could use any gold, silver, yellow, or white gauche paint. (I like the metallic effect of the mica powder.)

Here's the basic design of the star using two different colors:

1. Draw a simple cross. The horizontal bar is about one third the way down.
2. Draw a simple "X" over the cross. The arms are shorter.
3. It can be in one color or two.

Every One Is Different

No Two Are Alike!

Framed in its own Shadow-Box

Crazy glue (or gorilla glue) can be used to glue your masterpiece to almost any surface. I used silver discs found out the craft store in the Christmas ornament section.

I used a mason jar rim as the frame which gave a three-dimensional effect.

On the Tree

We continued our familly tradition of giving the annual ornament to family and friends. Guests who come to our home can chose the ornament from off the tree. Relatives afar never know what this year's box will hold. After all the ornaments were distributed, one ornament remains on our tree - a reminder of God's Greatest Gift in 2022.

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