No Florist Christmas Flowers

DIY Vintage Christmas Ornaments + Book Page Flowers for a Winter Garden Display

Have you ever wished you could grow a winter garden — one filled with vintage charm instead of frostbitten plants? My gardening skills may be questionable, but my love for creating nostalgic décor is alive and well. Today, I’m sharing two projects that bloomed from the same creative spark: DIY vintage wood‑round Christmas ornaments and whimsical book‑page flowers that come together to create a sweet little vintage winter garden for your holiday table.

Both projects use simple materials, a touch of antique flair, and plenty of heart. If you’re looking for last‑minute Christmas décor with a vintage twist, you’re in the right place.

The other day, I created these cute-as-a-button ornaments, and since it is so close to Christmas — and you may be searching for last-minute ideas — I’m sharing both projects today. A two‑for‑one! With these projects coinciding with one another, they simply had to be shared together.

Materials You’ll Need to Create DIY Vintage Christmas Ornaments and Book Page Flowers

• Wood rounds (3-inch)

• MinWax Gel Stain in Walnut

• Mod Podge

• Vintage images

• Velvet ribbon

• Drill + pipe cleaner

• Book pages

• Scissors

• Hot glue

• Terra cotta pots

• Spanish moss

• Floral foam

• Popsicle sticks

• Antique Gold Rub‑n‑Buff

DIY Vintage Wood-Round Christmas Ornaments

I found these wood circles and decided they would make the perfect DIY Christmas ornaments this year. I thought a vintage flair would be perfect for the Christmas season — we all know how much I love a vintage Christmas.

Staining the Wood Rounds

I began by brushing the wood rounds with MinWax Gel Stain in the color Walnut. I liked the deep rich hue of the stain, thinking it would give my wood Christmas rounds the perfect vintage look.

Six ornaments come in a package, being 3 inches in diameter. After I had all of the wood ornaments stained, I sat them aside and let them dry.

 

Adding Mod Podge and Vintage Images

Once the wood ornaments had dried, I applied Mod Podge to each wood circle, also allowing time for each one to dry.

I just get in there and use my fingers to apply the glue. One ornament in the package does have writing on the back, but I decided to use that as the front of the ornament. No worries — the print does not show through once we apply our vintage pictures.

I used the same Mod Podge iron method (you can click the link for a more in‑depth explanation).

I learn something new with each craft I create. I found that I really liked the look of the paper having Antique Gold Rub‑n‑Buff applied to it prior to being adhered to the wood Christmas ornament. I thought it offered a more professional look.

Drilling the Ribbon Hole

I grabbed our Dewalt Cordless Drill and drilled a hole into each ornament. I found each hole needed to be cleaned, so pipe cleaner to the rescue — using it to clear away any debris left behind.  

Finishing Touches

Don't you think velvet ribbon is perfect for vintage-inspired ornaments? I thought so, and since it was already in my stash, I went with it.

I thought they turned out adorable! The cat has an angelic face, the pup looking so stoic, and the little girl with her dog reminded me of myself as a little girl. I was never far from my pups growing up.

DIY Book-Page Flowers (Your Vintage Winter Garden)

Having relished every moment of these DIY Christmas ornaments, I found myself compelled to infuse a fresh perspective into the next endeavor. Enter the enchanting world of vintage flowers — a creative twist born from the humble wood circles. I may use the term loosely, but when wandering down the winding paths of creativity, the journey can lead my imaginative mind to unexpected destinations.

In the past, I have been known for purchasing lots of books — just a bunch in a box at auction, yard sales, you name it — and I have picked them up over the years. So, you can imagine I have quite an assortment of books from these lots. In all of my book projects, I have never destroyed a book, even if I never had plans of reading it, so I will say: I felt bad about what you are about to see.

 

Preparing and Folding the Pages

I wet the pages the night before with another project in mind. I let the pages dry overnight, and then began removing the pages one by one.

I folded the pages back and forth to create an accordion style. I experimented with this a little bit. The first flower I created, I folded 8 pages. The second flower I made, I folded 7 pages.

Each page received rounded ends with my trusty scissors.

Assembling the Flower

I then began hot gluing each folded page to the previous folded page of the next stack and continued to stack them in my hand all together.

You can see our book page flower beginning to take shape. I glued the last page to the first page to create a full circle to complete our handmade flower.

Now, I love vintage pictures of children, and since I had already created the DIY Christmas ornaments with wood, I simply hot glued one to the book page flower.

I had considered stopping here and just creating another vintage ornament, but then I decided to take it a step further.

Creating the Winter Garden Display

Grabbing a small terra cotta pot, some Spanish moss, green floral foam, and a popsicle stick, I began crafting my vintage flowers.

I placed the foam inside the pot, hot glued the Spanish moss to cover the foam, and then hot glued the popsicle stick to the back of the book page flower and pushed it down into the foam. I stained the popsicle stick, but this is not a necessary step since it does not show once it is placed inside the pot. And my go‑to for vintage flair — I added Antique Gold Rub‑n‑Buff to the book page flower.

I was so happy with it, I decided to go back and make another one.

So here it is — my vintage winter garden. A whimsical creation that stole my heart. The only flowers I'll be growing, and I can already envision them adorning the Christmas table for the perfect Christmas tabletop decorations. Wouldn't you say these would be the perfect festive touch? Ready to embark on your own creative adventure? Trust me; it's worth it.

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Happy Holidays!

Cara