DIY Vintage Camper Ornaments

Need a last minute gift or unique package tie-on? If you've got some felt scraps in your stash, you're all set! 

The inspiration for my ornaments came from...

 

 

our first camper, a little orange "Tab".

  

My sister and her husband have a Tab, too. Theirs is red and decorated with New England Patriot logos. I knew I'd have to make an ornament in their colors too!

 

I made my pattern on Mylar. I found lots of vintage camper photos to help me along in one of my favorite "eye-candy" books, Sisters On the Fly. This little book is loaded with stories and photos of women who restore, decorate, and travel together through the west in vintage campers.

I aspire to join them someday.



The book also includes recipes, but I was looking for simple camper graphics, like this one.

 

 

 

Sometimes I just use objects from around the house to inspire a project of pattern...like these camper lights from the garage.

 

 

Once you're sufficiently inspired, sketch your pattern onto oak tag, cardboard, or, in this case, Mylar. If you're like me, you'll want to have an art eraser handy!

 

 

 

 Next, cut out and label your pattern pieces.

 

 

Pin pattern pieces to a layer of iron-on Pellon to add stiffness. Some crafters use a layer of cardboard instead...your choice.

 

I ironed Heat 'n Bond onto the felt I planned to use for the smaller trim pieces so that I could iron them onto the camper body, holding them in place until I added the decorative embroidery. If you plan to use this, it's easier to iron the Heat 'n Bond to the whole felt square before cutting out the pieces.

Next, pin the pattern pieces to the felt, in the colors you have chosen for the body and trim.  

Remember to place the pattern pieces upside down for the back if you are making a two-sided ornament.

 

 

I outlined the trim pieces of my ornaments with embroidery using a simple running stitch or, on some, a blanket stitch. This is optional if you have already adhered your trim pieces with Heat 'n Bond but I like the finished look the embroidery adds..

 

My ornaments are about 4 inches long; you can design your pattern to be any size you like. Don't worry if you draw the pattern too big or too small the first time, just use your printer to shrink or enlarge it. Easy-peasy!

 

My neice, Katy, and her friend, Kelly, came over one snowy day to make ornaments with me. They are both twenty-somethings on a tight budget and worked all day making ornaments for Christmas gifts. Instead of campers, they made adorable cocktail ornaments from Pinterest at this link...




and fortune cookies from a blog called Just Call Me Mommy. The fortune cookies were originally designed for Valentine's Day but Katy and Kelly made them in Christmas colors and wrote Christmas greetings inside. They were easy (just little folded circles of felt) and came out great!

They even left a fortune cookie for me!

 

 

 I found these little charms in the jewelry-making section of Michael's Craft Store and sewed onto each ornament to personalize the gift. Each charm says, "Made with Love". The ornaments are hung with loops of red and white Baker's twine.

 

 

And there you have it...a whole RV Park full of vintage campers for the tree!

 

Here are ours...

Adding memories of camping trips gone-by to our tree.

 

Now I think I'm almost done...???

 

Merry Christmas!