Introduction: Cone Christmas Trees
At our home we have two distinct decorations for the Christmas Season. One is a traditional red, white, green with gold thrown in look. The other is a rustic version with wood, burlap, and twine with white and silver accents. For the latter I made cone trees as accents. You will need poster board, scissors, a hot glue gun and anything you want to cover the tree with. That is all up to your personal choice and imagination. For mine, the list is as follows.
Poster Board
String with Pencil/Pen to make a large compass
Burlap Ribbon
Twine/Rope
Popsicle Sticks
Scissors
Hot Glue Gun
Tape
Cardboard (optional)
Step 1: Making the Cone Tree.
Start off by tying a piece of string to a pencil to use as a large compass. Hold the string at the corner of the poster board and make a quarter circle line. Cut along the line with scissors to create a rounded pie shape. Slowly curl the board from one edge to the other to create your cone. I tape it long enough so that I can glue it together with hot glue. An option her is to cut a circle out of cardboard smaller than the bottom of the cone and glue it in place to provide strength and keep the round shape at the bottom. You have now created the basic tree shape.
Step 2: Decorating the Tree.
This is the fun part. It can be as simple as wrapping it with paper or more complex like covering it with rope or popsicle sticks. Here I took burlap ribbon, folded it in half along the length and glued it to the cone. Once I finished the whole tree I went back and cut small slices to give the tree texture.
For the popsicle tree I cut some sticks in half diagonally to create a long pie shape. These are needed every so often to keep the rows straight since I am following the tapered shape of the cone.
For the rope tree just start at the bottom ant wrap it around the cone. Place a dab of hot glue every inch or so to secure it.
Step 3: Mix & Match
I have made several of these trees in all shapes and sizes. I include them with the glass trees I have collected over the years and some store bought trees for a sophisticated Country Christmas design.
I have a box of pinecone scales for a new tree this year. Just about anything could be used if you put your mind to it.
I hope this inspires you to create your own tree decorations for the Holidays.