Nativity Christmas Ornament SVG

A story inside a bauble

The whole Christmas story fits inside this one round shape. On the left is Mary, kneeling; at the center the manger holds the baby; and on the far side stands Joseph, gripping his staff, all of them opened right through a navy ball. A small star of Bethlehem opens above the group, and a gold cap with a hanging loop finishes the top.

Since the figures are openings and not pieces, whatever sits behind them sets the mood. Cream card looks quiet and warm, gold foil card makes the little family shine, and a bare window lets daylight do the job.

Pieces and weeding

The solid file has 5 pieces and 3 cut-outs. The openings are the figure group, joined to the ground line under it, the little star and the center of the hanging loop. Two of the pieces are what you would expect: the ball, and the cap with its loop.

The other three are small islands stranded inside the figure opening, and they come loose as soon as the cut is done. They sit around the manger’s legs and Joseph’s staff. Glue them back in position on a backing card, or throw them away if you prefer a simpler look. Without them the manger legs and the staff melt into the opening, though the group still reads as three figures.

It passes our cut checks from about 3 inches wide.

Color layers

• Base and lines in deep navy: the ball itself, with the figures and the small star as openings
• Star and gold in gold: only the cap and its loop, since the star here is a hole

Making a hanging ornament

1. Cut the ball from heavy navy cardstock and the cap from gold card.
2. Cut a plain circle a little smaller than the ball, in cream or foil, as the backing.
3. Set the three islands on the backing with a dab of glue, using the cut ball as a placement guide.
4. Glue the ball over the backing, then tuck the cap onto the top edge.
5. Thread ribbon or baker’s twine through the loop.

Make a second backing and a second ball if both sides of the ornament will be seen on the tree.

Good homes for it

• Feature-branch decorations or large gift toppers, built from layered card.
• Window decals in navy vinyl, where the glass glows through the figures.
• Christmas card fronts with a contrasting sheet behind the openings.
• Sunday school crafts, with children choosing the backing color themselves.

Size guide

At 3 inches the little star and the islands are about as small as they can go. Anything smaller is better as a print: run the color file through Print Then Cut, which shows the figures as printed shapes and cuts only the round outline.

Pairs well with

Give it company among the other pieces in our Christmas ornament collection, or repeat the same opened-figure idea on the Nativity in a Star.