DIY Resin Gift Tags for Christmas

It’s that time of year again, friends! When the holiday crafting gears up to full throttle. We will be sharing some great holiday projects with you this season! For the first one of the year, Karen Horvath of MG Creations by Karen is showing us how to make DIY resin gift tags for Christmas.

We really love that these DIY resin gift tags aren’t just tags. They also double as Christmas gifts! Karen shows us how to make our tags into key chains, Christmas ornaments, or bag/purse charms. All you need is the simple hardware for each and you have yourself a resin craft project that serves double duty.

We also love that we get to customize each tag. It allows us to match what our loved ones like. Or to match the wrapping paper of each gift. Either way, these DIY gift tags will be a beautiful and personal touch for your Christmas gifts this year!

DIY Resin Gift Tags for Christmas

Gift tags, presents, and Christmas go hand in hand. Making our own gift tags is a great way to make the people in our lives feel extra special. And they are just so darn cute! So grab your beads and let’s get crafting.

Choosing your Gift Tag Decals

The personalization of your gift tags comes from your decal and glitter choices. And you have about 8 zillion options to choose from here. When it comes to decals, you can either design and make your own, purchase SVG files from other artists, or snag some adorable stickers or decals from your local craft store.

Karen uses her Cricut software to design her own vinyl decals. She downloads free images online and turns them into the designs she wants. Then she uses the machine to cut her vinyl and they are ready to apply to her tags. If you have the cutting machine but not the software know how, no worries!

There are artists who specialize in designing SVGs and they sell them as instant downloads. Etsy is a great place to go for this. You’ll find tons of adorable options and will be supporting other artists at the same time.

No vinyl cutting machine? That’s ok too! You can often find great decals for sale online. Again, Etsy is a great place to start for this. You won’t be able to customize them like you would an SVG file. But you should be able to find some fabulous designs that will work for you.

Another option would be to browse your local craft stores or dollar stores. You can find some really cute stickers and decals that you could add to your tags. Just give them a good seal of Quick Coat before you add your resin. The Quick Coat will keep the resin from repelling from your stickers.

Choosing your Gift Tag Glitter

Amery Glitter

The glitter that you choose for this project will depend on whether you want it as a back drop to your decal or the main event. If you decal is going to be taking up the majority of your gift tag, your glitter should be an accent or neutral color. If the decals will be smaller so that your glitter is the eye catcher, go with a bolder color.

Karen reminds us that, no matter what color glitter we choose, it is easiest to use a glitter that is a combination of chunky and fine together. The combo will give you great coverage and you won’t need an additional layer of glitter or resin.

If you have your hear set on chunky glitter, that’s ok! You will just need to add another layer of resin to get your tag nice and smooth.

Her Highness Glitter

Really want to use a fine glitter? You may just need a second glitter layer in order to get the coverage you need.

You can also mix your own glitters! Grab a chunky and a fine that you love and make your own mixture to use. There are lots of options and you are sure to find one that you love!

You Can Use Traditional Artist Resin Instead!

Karen used UV Resin for her gift tags. The UV Resin allows her to make her tags so quickly that it is her go to for this project. But we know that, while it does take longer to cure, Artist Resin is a much less costly option. And there is no reason that you can’t use it for this project too.

Just keep in mind that you need to mix a minimum of 2 oz of resin for the chemical reaction to occur properly. And each tag will only need a little bit of resin. This is no problem though! Simply make sure that you have a whole batch of blanks sanded and ready to go. Then mix your resin, add your glitters, and knock out a whole bunch of tags at once.

Come back the next day and add your decals. Then mix your final layer of resin and top off each tag. Once they have cured, you can add your beads and hardware. It’s just as easy, you will just be doing one large batch one step at a time. Instead of smaller batches of all three steps.

Watch Part 1 of the Tutorial Here!

Watch Part 2 of the Video Tutorial Here!

DIY Resin Gift Tags for Christmas

Learn how to make your own beautiful gift tags for Christmas. They double as ornaments too!

Yield: gift tags

Materials

Instructions

Start by removing the paper from one side of your acrylic blank.
Then use sand paper to lightly scuff the acrylic.
Use a bit of rubbing alcohol to remove any dust.
Add a little bit of UV Resin to 3 medicine cups. Then add one of the glitters to each of the cups. Mix to combine and add more UV Resin until you have enough in each cup to cover one tag.
Spread one of the glittered resins onto one acrylic blank. Set it aside to level for a minute or two. Then put it under the UV lamp to cure. This should only take about 2 minutes.
Repeat the same process for the other two tags.
Cut and weed your vinyl decals in whatever design you like. Then apply them to your glittered tags.
Next, apply a thin layer of UV Resin to your tags and spread it out. Allow them to sit and settle again. Then cure them under the UV lamp for about 3 minutes.
Cut 3 lengths of the cording while you wait for the resin to cure.
Holding the ends together, put the ends of one cord through the whole in your tag and pull them through. Then open the loop on the other side and feed your ends through. Then pull it tight and your cord will be secure.
Next, add your spacers, beads, and charms. Then tie a knot where your beads end. Then add your ornament hook or other hardware.
Now feed the ends of your cord back down through the first bead. Then wrap the cord around itself under the bead. And knot it twice. Snip any left over cord.

The Finishing Touches And that’s how to make your own Christmas gift tags! A simple project that adds a whole lot of love to your gifts or your product line up. And these tags aren’t just for the holiday season! Make them for birthdays and other holidays throughout the year. There are some really cute shapes available in acrylic blanks. And the gift tag shape is always a classic!

We also want to give a big thank you to Karen for sharing her skills and knowledge with all of us again. If you loved learning from her and want to see more of here work, you can find her on Facebook and Instagram. And you can find more awesome video tutorials like this one on our YouTube channel!

You can find more awesome video tutorials like this one on our YouTube channel!

Be sure to follow us on Pinterest so you can stay on top of everything that’s new and never miss a blog post!

If you want more inspiration and information we have a Facebook group for that. Join us in Counter Culture DIY Artist Support where we, and other artists, offer ideas, answer questions, and support each other!

Do you have an art project using any of our products that you want to share? Send it to us at support@counterculturediy.com, and we can feature them here!