Baubles and Ornaments: What Is Actually the Difference?

In the US almost everything on a tree is called an ornament. In the UK a round one is a bauble and the word ornament is used more loosely. That is the language difference, and it hides a real difference in the objects.

For a personalized keepsake, the shape changes what is possible.

Baubles are three dimensional, which is both the strength and the problem

A bauble is a sphere. It catches light from every angle, it looks generous on a tree, and it can be filled, which flat ornaments cannot.

The problem is that a sphere has no flat surface. Anything printed on it curves away, so a photograph is only fully visible from one narrow angle and distorts towards the edges. Text wraps and becomes unreadable past a certain length.

Baubles are therefore excellent for names, short dates and fillable keepsakes, and weaker for photographs. Browse personalized baubles.

Flat ornaments show images properly

A flat acrylic, wood or ceramic ornament has a genuine printable surface. A photograph on it is visible from across the room, undistorted, at full size.

They also cost less to post, store more efficiently, and can be cut into shapes that a sphere cannot: paw prints, hearts, trees, silhouettes.

For anything photographic or shaped, flat is the right answer. See personalized ornaments.

Fillable baubles are their own category

A clear bauble that opens can hold something: a first haircut curl, sand from a honeymoon beach, a ticket, dried flowers from a wedding.

This is the one thing no flat ornament can do, and it produces keepsakes that are genuinely irreplaceable, because the contents cannot be reordered. If you are marking a specific event, a fillable bauble deserves consideration ahead of anything printed.

Which survives a household

Glass baubles are the most fragile things on any tree, and their round shape means they roll when dropped rather than staying put.

In a home with a toddler, a cat or a large dog, choose flat acrylic or wood, or shatterproof baubles. This is not caution for its own sake; the keepsake that breaks is almost always the sentimental one, because it is the one hung at eye level at the front.

Frequently asked questions

Can I put a photo on a bauble?

Yes, and it works best on a flat panel insert inside a clear bauble rather than printed on the curve. That combination gives the depth of a sphere and the readability of a flat print.

Which is better value?

Flat ornaments generally cost less for the same personalization and post more cheaply. Baubles feel more substantial in the hand, which matters when the object is the gift.

How do I stop baubles rolling in storage?

Compartment boxes, individually wrapped. Loose in a bag is how a sentimental bauble becomes fragments.

Are fillable baubles difficult to fill?

Most open at the top and close with a friction fit. Use a funnel for anything fine, and avoid overfilling, since a packed bauble looks solid rather than suspended.

Which suits a first Christmas?

Either, though flat acrylic is the safer choice with a baby in the house, and a fillable bauble is lovely if you want to keep something physical from the year. See baby gifts.

Photo means flat, keepsake contents mean bauble

Browse baubles or Christmas ornaments.