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I really liked the idea of a holiday snowglobe ornament, but couldn't find one that was exactly what I wanted. Instead of modifying an existing file, I decided to create exactly what I wanted.
I typically begin by cutting a batch of the backs with snowflakes in the empty space and a batch of centers on their respective materals. I usually leave a bit of space between the snowflakes, you'll probably end up with extras anyway. I typically stain and paint these upon completion. The color key is also included in this step, but I've found that individual laser settings vary pretty widely between material brands and even between batches. It's usually best to perform a test grid to determine the best settings for your material, but the settings I used are listed in each step.
Next, I customize the gingerbread people and ornament fronts. I like to cut these in batches, but you can obviously do them individually.
I prefer the text to have a scored outline with an engraved fill to make it look more crisp. To help myself remember, I usually start with scored text, duplicate all text at once, and make the new layer an engrave-fill layer. The image above is a preview from Lightburn. I stain the frame and use a watercolor marker on the gingerbread people and pets. The people and pets could easily be customized to fit any style or color scheme or even to match a pet!
Finally, I glue all of the pieces together. I typically start by gluing a 3 inch acrylic circle on the back, then gluing the 5 mm center frame on, adding the snowflakes and gingerbread people, topping that with another acrylic circle, and finally adding a customized top. Once everything is in place, add a festive ribbon of your choice!
Notes:
These can be made using any size of acrylic circles, just make sure to measure them and scale the exterior of the front, back, and center, accordingly. The outer diameter of the cut circle portion of the ornament should match the outer diameter of the acrylic.
These can also be made as tabletop decor using a stand like the ones pictured in the ornaments in this step. To create the stand, I recommend creating a narrow oval just wider than the ornament itself, duplicating the oval, and removing a rectangle out of the second oval. To determine the size of cutout needed, I recommend using calipers to measure the thickness of the ornament. The width can be determined in Lightroom. I used 5mm ply for the stands pictured.
