One of my favorite things to do during the Christmas season is to make a few new ornaments for my tree.
But if I don’t plan carefully, I quickly end up with too many projects on my plate and a million leftover supplies that I’ll probably never use again. Except for the project I’m going to share today!
In today’s post, I’m sharing a super easy to make Disney-themed project that you can make with a few simple materials that you can get at any dollar store.
OK, let’s get ready to make the viral dollar store Mickey Mouse ornaments!
Materials & tools
- 1 pack large plastic Christmas bulbs in any color
- 1 pack small plastic Christmas bulbs in same color as large
- Glue gun
- Glue sticks
- Marker (optional)
- Ribbon (optional)
We had the glue gun, glue sticks, and a permanent marker already. We opted to add ribbon, so our cost was $3.75 (not including tax) to make 6 ornaments.
That’s about 62 cents per ornament! Not bad!
How to make DIY Dollar Store Mickey Ornaments
These ornaments are so ridiculously easy to make that it only takes 3 simple steps to make them.
- Prep your materials
- Make holes for the ears
- Add the ears
Let’s get into the details. The sooner you review them, the sooner you can get to crafting!
Step 1: Prep your materials
Plug in the glue gun to let it heat up.
Next, remove the hangers from the small ornaments, as you won’t need them.
Using a Sharpie or other type of permanent marker, add a mark where you want the ears to go. The location may differ depending on the size bulbs you use.
I used the super accurate measurement of adding my thumb on each side of the neck of the ornament and marking on the opposite side. But you may want to do more or less space, depending on the size of both ornaments.
Step 2: Make the ear holes
Once the glue gun is heated up, press the tip of the gun against the marks you made for the ears. After a few seconds, the plastic will start to bend and you can push the glue gun in, softly, to make a hole.
Pull the glue gun out and double check to see if the smaller ornament can fit.
If it can’t, insert the glue gun in the hole and press it against the outline of the hole to make it larger.
Repeat until it is large enough to insert the bulb. Over time it will get easier to eyeball the correct size. My mom can do it in one go!
Step 3: Add the ears
Next, add a thin circle of hot glue around the base of the small ornament topper.
Insert the small ornament into the hole and hold for about 20-30 seconds to help the glue adhere.
Repeat on the opposite side to add the second ear and you’re done!
Contrasting colors: When choosing which color ornaments to get, I recommend getting colors that will contrast with your tree so they stand out better.
For example, avoid black or green for a traditional tree and avoid white and silver for a flocked tree, and so on.
Aim for 3:5 ratio: According to a project at Duke University, the ratio of ears to face for Mickey is 3:5. So if there are more than 2 sizes available, use this formula to pick your sizes.
There were only 2 sizes at the Dollar Tree in my hometown, which were 2:3 ratio, so we made do with that.
Mix & Match: If the bulbs in the separate packages are slightly different colors, mix and match matte with glitter or shiny with glitter, etc.
We didn’t realize until we got home that the gold ornaments we bought were slightly different colors, but we ended up liking this mix-and-match look!
Add ribbon: If the package of bulbs did not come with string or hooks for hanging the ornament, use 3/8″ ribbon.
Our ornaments came with string, but we found some cute ribbon at the store, so we opted to replace it with the ribbon.
In addition, if you can find red or pink polka dot ribbon, you can add some to the neck of the ornament and it instantly becomes a Minnie Mouse inspired ornament!
Alternative ear method: An alternative way of making the holes for the ears is to hold a lighter near the area where you want to place the ears to soften the plastic. Then, insert a stick and swirl it to create a hole for the ears.
This is probably a quicker way to create the holes, to be honest, but we just used the glue gun because it’s all we had!
Are you ready to make these super easy DIY dollar store Mickey Mouse ornaments?
I’m sure you’ll agree that making these ornaments is not only super duper easy, but super duper affordable, too!
So head to your nearest dollar store, grab all the materials you’ll need, then put on a Christmas movie from Disney+ while you get to work. Before you know it, you’ll have enough ornaments to fill up an entire Christmas tree!
I hope this post inspires your creativity, fills up your Christmas tree, and brings smiles to everyone this season.
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!
About the author
Meg Frost is the creator of The Park Pixie, where she covers Disney World, Disney+, and Disney fandom.
She holds an M.A. in Journalism from Northeastern University and B.S. in Communication & American Studies from University of Miami in Florida.
