We are down to the wire for holiday gift making, but luckily I have a cute and quick idea that doesn’t involve a lot of supplies or time. You’ve probably noticed that modern art, and abstract objects have been trending for a while now. From art to jewelry, wallpaper to fashion the colorful, organic-modern shapes inspired by French, mid-century artist, Henri Matisse have been everywhere. In today’s DIY, we are doing the modern art moment with a holiday flair. Using different colors of oven-bake clay and imagination you can create a whole tree adorned with these shapes or make to give to your arty friends as gift toppers.

SUPPLIES:

• oven-bake clay in various colors
• clay tools
• mat or wax paper
• rolling pin
• ribbon
• scissors
• oven

ROLL OUT CLAY

Roll out clay to about 1/4″ thick. For larger ornaments I rolled out the entire block, but for smaller ornaments I rolled out half.

SCORE AND THEN CUT SHAPE

Because these shapes are organic and misshapen there is no perfect and free-hand works great. Score your shape on the clay. If you don’t like what you’ve marked, you can roll gently to erase. Use your tool to cut the shape and smooth out the edges.

SEARCH THE WEB FOR INSPO

Don’t be afraid to get creative, but feel free to use the internet and google “Matisse shapes.”

MAKE ORNAMENT HOLE & BAKE

Use a straw or skewer stick to make the hole for the ornament to hang. Then bake according to clay packaging.

PUT A BOW ON IT

Tie on a ribbon so the ornament is able to adorn your tree!

As with all our DIY tutorials, if you create one of our projects please send us a picture – We Love Seeing Your Creativity! If you use Instagram or Twitter please use the hashtag #SomethingTurquoiseDIY and it will show up on our Get Social page. Happy Crafting!

DIY TUTORIAL CREDITS

photography + DIY tutorial: Lauren Koster of Lauren Koster Creative // oven bake clay // clay tools // mat // rolling pin // ribbon // scissors