Twine Wrapped Christmas Trees

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As I baked my way through Christmas this year, my usual. I wanted to do a little Christmas craft  I had pinned the Twine Christmas Trees from Thrifty Crafter. Did you read my secret? Did you catch my new addiction?…… Pinned.

I love Pinterest! Simply the best thing ever. I always used to just snatch a picture of something I liked online. Either style, a craft, an idea, anything, but now I can PIN it. Make my board and spend hours on this site. Life is good

And so after all my baking was done, I sat down at our dinning room table and got my craft on. It took me a couple of days, as I would work on them little by little. You can very easily do this craft in one day, so you can have these lovely trees by Christmas

Twine Wrapped Christmas Trees- Craft

3 foam cones:

3 7/8 in x 8 7/8 in (98 mm x 225 mm)
3 7/8 in x 11 7/8 in (98 mm x 301 mm)
4 7/8 in x 17 7/8 in (12.3 cm x 45.4 cm)

Hot Glue Gun

Lot’s of Hot Glue Sticks

1 roll of jute twine

1 piece of cardboard

Set up in an area that you can work comfortably, a table is best. I attempted to do the last large cone on my couch using a TV tray as my table. Bad idea, I got burned. So please stick to a well lit area and a large table.
Prepare your area: have available glue sticks at hand, a piece of cardboard to place your hot glue on, and the roll of twine of to the side and partially unrolled.
Unwrap the smallest cone first, place a small line of hot glue and place your twine. Try to get as close to the rim as possible

WHAT! You started from the bottom?! Yes, I started the way I start my Christmas Trees, bottom up. The original crafter started from the top. I found the bottom to be easier, as it allowed me to turn and wrap the tree.

when you get back around to the starting point, try to curve the twine around it then go over it.

As the glue cools but is still workable, pass your finger through it to remove any excess glue. Some of the glue will bulge in between the ribbons of twine, you need to flatten this by passing your finger through it. The glue will roll off and you’ll have a little pile of glue on your desk at the end of the craft. I sure did 🙂 . After you get over the starting point, it’s just a matter of glue and wrap. The easiest way is to have the twine rolled the way it’s curving. It will make the wrapping easier, so you follow the natural curve and it doesn’t get tide up.

Once you get in the groove it gets easier. Now how do you finish the top??? I froze for a second when I got there the first time. OH MY GOD, what do I do?

Okay so add glue all over the top, wrap the twine around the top once, then making sure you have loose twine ready, circle the twine freely over the top. Cut the end, leaving a little bit extra to tuck in. Once it’s all circled, push the twine in to the top and blow so the glue dries.

Now the monster tall one, isn’t that scary at all. I really was a little nervous at starting it, I didn’t know if I had enough twine. But it turned out I did 🙂 and so will you. Just start wrapping it the same way you did with the smaller ones. It will take a while but before you know it, you’ll be at the top.

Now, do a little dance, and place your little Christmas craft by your tree, on a table or even your dinning room table

It’s a Mad Hatter Kind of Day

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“Why is a raven like a writing desk?”

Oh the things I do to my poor dogs. Yes, that’s a DIY mad hatter hat, no it’s not for Diva. I just wanted a cute pic to send to you, my friends, in instagram when I completed this surprise. About 2 weeks ago, we did a bridal shower & bachelorette weekend for my little sister. I’ve been meaning to show you all how to make this, but life’s gotten in the way.

After the crazy busy weekend with my little sister, I spent this past weekend apartment shopping and relaxing. Trying to gather my energy up for the next few, even busier, weeks ahead of me. Got a trip next weekend, wedding task completion during that following week, wedding that weekend, move the following weekend, then thanksgiving. Did you pick up what I was putting down? Are you tired yet?

Okay so back to the hat. When we started planning for my sister, my oldest sister said she wanted to make a mad hatter for her. I thought it was a great idea, and searched the internet for templates. I hit the jackpot when I came across Hungry Panda Clothing site. This was it, it was on, where’s that hot glue gun?

Hope you all excuse the photos. After I made the hat, I took pics with boxes in the background. Then the weekend came and went, my sister took it back home with her, and it dawned on me! Wait, how could I not have taken a cool picture styled as a tea party. So I asked my sister to take a cool photo outside, above is what I received. I love her dearly, I want that mason jar with the handle.

DIY Mad Hatter

The Pattern from Hungry Panda Site
Hot Glue Gun w/ a couple of glue sticks
2 cardboard shoe boxes with lids or cereal boxes
Fabric to cover your hat- should be semi thick fabric
Spray Adhesive
Ribbon
Feathers
Manila folder
Black Sharpie
Bling
Bobby Pins
Let’s do this.

First, print out the pattern. It will print on letter size paper, this is the size I used for my hat. Notice that each piece is labeled, make sure you keep track. If you continue to read Hungry Panda’s post on her DIY hat making, you may see that Annie had the tip of the hat facing the back. My hat its facing the front, so both tips are in the same direction (this was done by mistake 😐 but i like it)

Cut out each piece from the pattern and cut 2 of piece “C” (one with the center cut out as in the pattern), 1 of piece “A”, and 1 of piece “B”. I changed a bit the pattern of the hat, I decided that my cardboard was not sturdy, so that’s why I printed 2 of “C”. If you cardboard is semi thick then just use one. To make it easier, I just cut the tear drop shapes first and then folded the “teeth” and tab for piece “B”.

Mold your cardboard before gluing the fabric. Piece “B” should be round, this is the top of the hat. Piece “C” just mold the tip curving it up. The cereal box I used was not firm, so I was able to mold it without lightly wetting the cardboard, as Hungry Panda suggested. If you do wet the cardboard to make the molding easier, make sure it dries before applying the fabric.

Using the same patterns for the cardboard pieces, cut the fabric to those shapes. Note: Do not cut the “teeth” in the fabric, just the shapes. I left a little bit of fabric outside of the pattern so I could cut and shape as needed. I didn’t want to risk cutting to the exact size of the pattern, since this would leave some cardboard noticeable. Okay, so once you have all your fabric cut, place the molded cardboard in an opened box or go outdoors. Spray the cardboard (work with one piece at a time) with the adhesive spray. I coated the cardboard and then quickly placed the coordinating fabric on the glue. Shape the fabric to the cardboard and let dry before continuing to make the hat. Should dry within a few minutes.

(trust me it’s easier as you are doing the hat, as I’m typing it seems like a lot)

Alright time to hot glue this ____. NOTE: The tip of the hot glue gun will get hot, do not touch it. Hot glue, is well HOT when it first comes out! So be careful.

First glue together piece “B”, then glue this to piece “A”. If you find that this piece is giving you a hard time, try cutting out a smaller tear drop shape without the teeth. Once those two pieces are together, glue them to piece “C” with the “teeth”. Use the opening of piece “C” to push the pieces together to assure they are glued. Finally, glue the second piece “C” the one without the teeth to the bottom of the hat, covering the opening.

You should now have a hat glued together, now comes the fun decorating part. Start with the trim. Using the ribbon, begin to cover the trim from the top. You should start at the back of the base of what was piece “C”. (see picture below from Hungry Panda Site) Use small line of hot glue to glue your ribbon. You will need to fold the ribbon with your fingers and fill in where more glue is needed. Don’t worry if some extra glue is visible.

Sorry I was making the hat alone and hot glue sure dries quickly so I wasn’t able to take my own photos. Once you have the trim done, you can decorate to your liking. I used large feathers, a crystal button (to symbolize the ring) and a tag for the date.

To create the tag cut out a rectangle from the manila folder. Cut the edges of the rectangle semi round. Now with the sharpie, write the date or numbers you’d like. I added this touch to incorporate her wedding date on the hat and really make this a mad hatter hat.

Now to decorate, I glued the feathers first, then the mini bow I made from another ribbon, date tag, and finally the crystal button.

Wow, this was a mouth full. How do you wear it you say?? Easy, remember those bobby pins, hot glue some to the bottom of the hat. TADA.

All done! Go rock that mad hatter hat.