Christmas ornaments
with their name on it
Type a name, and the generator puts a ring around it that hangs straight on a branch. Print it in gold or silver silk PLA at 60 to 80 mm, and a personalised ornament takes about 40 minutes per name.
By Philipp Baldauf · Updated September 29, 2026
Drag the ring in the preview to make it bigger or smaller. Add a second row for the year, like 2026.
How a name ornament works
The circle base draws a ring around the name. The inner wall of the ring touches the first and last letter, so ring and name print as one piece that hangs from the top of the ring. You don't need a hook, a hole or glue. Loop a thread over the ring, tie it, done.
Great Vibes is the preset because it looks like handwriting on a gift card, and the generator joins the script letters into one connected piece so no loose letter falls out. If you want something chunkier for a kid, switch to Pacifico, Lobster or Baloo 2. All 18 fonts work with the ring.
This is a flat ornament, about 3 mm thick, not a round glass bauble. If you want a name on a real glass ball, a paint pen or vinyl letters are the better tool. For everything that hangs flat, a printed ring is sharper, lighter and survives being dropped on the floor on Boxing Day.
Ornament sizes that work
You set the final size in the slicer by scaling the model. These are the outer ring diameters that look right on a normal tree.
| Outer diameter | Good for | Print time (A1 mini, 0.2 mm) | Filament |
|---|---|---|---|
| 60 mm | Short names up to 4 letters: Mia, Ben, Opa | about 25 to 35 min | 4 to 6 g |
| 70 mm | Most names, 5 to 7 letters: Sophie, Oliver | about 35 to 45 min | 6 to 8 g |
| 80 mm | Long names, or name plus year on 2 rows | about 45 to 60 min | 8 to 11 g |
| 100 mm+ | Door or window decoration, not the tree | about 1 to 1.5 h | 12 to 18 g |
Times are typical for a 3 mm thick ornament with 15% infill. Silk PLA printed slower adds 10 to 20%.
Make one in five minutes
- 1
Type the name
Use the generator above. One row for the name, or a second row for the year. Up to 5 rows work, but on a tree ornament two is the limit you can still read.
- 2
Keep the circle base
The preset already uses the circle base. Drag the ring in the preview if you want more space around the name.
- 3
Set the thickness
3 mm is a good default. It makes the ring stiff enough to hang straight. Go to 4 mm for long names, where the ring gets wider and thinner after scaling.
- 4
Export STL or 3MF
The 3MF puts letters and ring on separate filament slots. Bambu Studio and OrcaSlicer open it with two colours already assigned, so with an AMS you print gold letters in a white ring with no extra setup.
- 5
Scale and print
In the slicer, scale to 60, 70 or 80 mm across. Print flat, no supports. Check that the ring is at least 1.5 mm wide after scaling; if not, make the model bigger or thicker.
Colours that look good on the tree
Gold silk PLA
The classic. Silk hides layer lines and catches the tree lights. Print a little slower (around 100 mm/s outer walls) or it strings between letters.
Silver silk or white
Looks like frosted glass next to real baubles. White ring with silver letters is a nice two-colour combination on a 3MF.
Red and green
Red ring, white name. Easy to read from across the room, and matte PLA photographs better than glossy.
Glow in the dark
Kids love it. Glow filament is abrasive, so use a hardened nozzle if you print a lot of it.
Hanging thread and hooks
Cut 20 to 25 cm of gold cord or satin ribbon, 1 to 3 mm wide. Pass it through the ring above the name, tie a knot, and you have a loop of about 8 to 10 cm. Metal ornament hooks work too: hook them over the top of the ring.
A 70 mm ornament weighs 6 to 8 g, less than a glass bauble. It hangs fine on the thin outer branches of a real tree, where heavy ornaments droop.
One for every family member
Name ornaments are the one Christmas print people make in batches. A few ways to plan it:
The family set
One ornament per person, same font, same colour. For a family of five, that is about 40 g of filament and three to four hours on one plate.
The dated keepsake
Name on row 1, year on row 2. It becomes the ornament people unpack every December and remember which year it was.
The baby's first Christmas
Baby name plus "2026". Pair it with a baby name gift for the nursery.
The guest ornament
Hang one on each guest's chair at Christmas dinner. It works as a place card and a gift. See Christmas gift tags for the version that ties onto a present.
What it costs
| Plan | Price | Best when |
|---|---|---|
| Designing and preview | Free, no account | You want to see it first |
| Single download | $4.99 per design | One or two ornaments |
| Unlimited, 1 month | $9.99 | Three or more names, since it's cheaper than three single downloads |
| Unlimited, 1 year | $89.99 | You sell ornaments at a Christmas market |
Unlimited includes bulk export of up to 100 names as one ZIP, and commercial use, so you may sell the prints. Filament adds about 15 to 25 cents per ornament.
When to start before Christmas
Own a printer? The evening before works. Five ornaments fit on one A1 mini plate and are done in three to four hours.
No printer? Send the file to a print service by the first week of December. They need a few days to print and a week or more to ship in December. How to get custom 3D printed names shows the options.
Questions people ask
How do I hang a 3D printed name ornament?
Tie a thread or ribbon through the ring above the name. The ring is the hanger, so you don't need to print a hole or glue on a loop. A metal ornament hook over the top of the ring works too.
What size should a Christmas name ornament be?
70 mm across suits most names. Use 60 mm for names up to four letters and 80 mm for long names or a name with the year underneath. Scale the model in the slicer to set the size.
Can I print a name bauble, a round Christmas ball with a name?
Not a hollow sphere. The generator makes a flat name inside a ring, which hangs like a bauble but is about 3 mm thick. For a name on a glass ball, a paint pen or vinyl letters are the better choice.
Which filament looks best for Christmas ornaments?
Gold or silver silk PLA. It hides layer lines and catches the tree lights. Print it slightly slower to avoid stringing. With an AMS, a 3MF export gives you a two-colour ornament, like gold letters in a white ring.
Can I make one for every family member at once?
Yes. With Unlimited you can bulk export up to 100 names as one ZIP. For three or more names one month of Unlimited ($9.99) is cheaper than single downloads.
Do cursive letters stay attached to the ring?
Yes. Script names are joined into one connected piece, and the ring's inner wall touches the first and last letter. Very thin hairlines, like in Great Vibes at 60 mm, can get fragile, so go to 70 mm or pick Pacifico for small ornaments.
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Put their name on the tree this year
Design is free and needs no account. Download the STL or 3MF when you like it, or see more 3D printed gift ideas.