Make a DIY Ornament out of kids Sports Medals for your Christmas Tree!

DIY Christmas ornaments are a favorite in our house!  We love to share memories each time we open up or box of holiday ornaments every year as we decorate the tree.  A new holiday tradition in our house is to take all our kids achievement medals from school and sports activities and turn them into a simple and sweet Christmas ornament. Sports medals are fun but we don’t want them shoved in a drawer.  This way we can look at our kid’s fun sports medals and school recognition for years to come.  This is also a fun way to make a sentimental and free gift for children to give to grandparents or others who hold them dear.  Follow these simple instructions and make these sweet ornaments to cherish for years to come!

Kids sports are so fun.  Our kids have played soccer, basketball, karate, flag football, lacrosse, and more over the years. It is not uncommon for one of our kids to earn half a dozen medals each year.  Kids sometimes display them in their room, sometimes they even wear them with pride for a few days.  After that, they often end up in a drawer. Sports medals are precious momentos of memories and personal achievements.  An idea hit me, what if we made an ornament out of kids sports medals. It’s simple, but so cute!

I am so happy that we have found a way to display our sports medals to enjoy over the years.  Whether the medals are generic or personalized, the kids have great memories associated with them.  While I love a perfectly coordinating Christmas tree ours tends to be a modge podge of memories.  Most of our ornaments are handmade kid’s crafts, picture frames over the years, and vacation souvenirs.  The Christmas tree seemed to be the perfect place to display our favorite sports medals over the years.  We didn’t want to get rid of them, but we also didn’t really want to display them year round. Kids Sports Medal Ornaments are displayed for about a month and they are so fun to pull out of the box every year at decorating time!

When I first thought about this idea, I thought it was so simple and perfect, surely it had already been done. A quick search on Pinterest left me surprised.  Perhaps it is so simple that it isn’t as cool as I think. I am going to take the risk anyway and share a ridiculously simple craft that I think will be so fun for kids!

Are you ready for a really simple craft friends? Most medals are ornament ready by design. Medals have a thick ribbon already looped through a hole at the top.  While the original ribbon is too long and too thick to use it as an ornament, it is really easy to replace.

Just slip that ribbon out, toss or save for later (recycling!). Grab a shorter, thinner ribbon that is just long enough to loop through and tie a pretty bow. Tada! You are done! You can easily add on cute embellishments like buttons, sequins, or charms if you want.  I think the highlight of the ornament is the medal itself so we just did a simple ribbon in the main team or school color.

Write the child’s name and the year on the back if it is not already on the medal.  Our kids are loving their new ornaments and that they can continue to display their accomplishments over the years.  If you have a child who is in several sports each year, they might even make one of these ornaments as a gift to grandparents who would love one as well.

This doesn’t just work for kids!  Have you participated in marathons, fun runs, or company sports leagues?  This can be a fun way to get those medals off the wall but still cherished….. I am side eyeing you dad….. he’s gonna need a bigger tree.

Perhaps the reason I couldn’t find another blog post about making an ornament out of kids sports medals is because it is just way too easy.  I almost didn’t share but a couple friends in real life said “I never would have thought of that!” Apparently I am a cutting edge genius and I couldn’t hold that back.  Merry Christmas all!