Voronoi flame ornament, a bold eerie Christmas piece

A voronoi flame ornament takes the familiar teardrop shape of a Christmas bauble and reworks it into an open lattice that moves like fire caught mid-flicker.

The idea is simple: instead of a solid shiny ball, you get a structure that lets light pass through the gaps and throw shadows across whatever it hangs near. On a tree, pinned to a branch, or hung on its own near a window, it behaves differently depending on what’s behind it and what light hits it.

What does the flame shape do on a tree?

Because the voronoi pattern is irregular rather than a repeating grid, each piece catches light a little differently depending on how it’s turned. Hung among string lights or near a window, the gaps in the lattice throw small shadows that shift as the light source moves or flickers. It reads as warm rather than sharp, which fits a holiday piece better than a geometric pattern with hard edges would.

The flame silhouette itself is the other half of the idea. It’s not a literal flame with curling tips, more a tapered, dynamic shape that suggests movement without trying to be realistic. That restraint is probably why it works in a minimalist setup as easily as on a fully decorated tree.

Voronoi flame ornament in two sizes

Both sizes ship together, which means you’re not stuck guessing whether one scale will look right once it’s actually hanging. Mixing the two across a tree, a garland, or a cluster of branches gives some depth instead of a flat row of identical shapes. If you’re planning a themed set rather than a single ornament, printing a batch of both sizes side by side is the straightforward way to fill out a tree without every piece looking the same.

The loop for hanging is already part of the model, so there’s no separate hook or ring to source. You print it, thread a ribbon or thin cord through, and it’s ready.

How does filament choice change the look?

This is where the ornament changes character the most. A matte black filament gives it a quiet, almost silhouette-like presence, good for a modern or monochrome tree where you don’t want much glare. Silk filament goes the opposite direction: it picks up more shine and reads as more festive, closer to what people expect from a traditional ornament finish. Translucent filament is mentioned as a third option for a glowing effect, which makes sense given how open the lattice structure is; light would pass through the body itself rather than just through the gaps between struts.

None of these are called out as better than the others; it really comes down to whether you want the ornament to recede into the tree or stand out against it.

Printing notes worth knowing before you start

The surface is designed to print cleanly on any FDM printer, and a smooth finish is specifically recommended, which lines up with the matte or silk filament suggestion. It’s a shape that benefits from supports given the open lattice geometry, so budget a little extra time for cleanup once it’s off the plate. Beyond that, the geometry itself does the work. There isn’t a lot of fine detail to lose if your printer isn’t dialed in perfectly, which makes it a reasonable print to hand to a printer you’re not fully confident in yet.

If you’re already printing other pieces from the Christmas Collection, this one slots in as the piece that adds motion and light play to a shelf full of more static shapes. It doesn’t need a stand or base, just a spot where it can hang and catch whatever light is nearby, whether that’s a tree, a window ledge, or a mantel display.