Scrap Fabric Trees To Make a Christmas Arrangement
I have a handmade basket that I fill and decorate for every season. For Christmas this year, I used some scrap fabric to make some festive trees to fill my basket (and home!) with holiday cheer!
I love trying my hand at new crafts. A few years ago, I took a basket making class on a whim, and since then I've been hooked. I made the basket pictured above a few years ago and it remains one of my favorites. I hung it on the wall in our powder room and I enjoy filling it with different items to decorate for each season and holiday.
I try to add new decorations each year. So this year, I wanted to make some fabric trees to stick in my basket with some greenery.
I drew a simple tree stencil and used it to cut out two tree shapes from two different fabrics (though you could use the same material for the front and back pieces). I used felt because it doesn't fray, and a plaid fabric that already had stabilizer on the back. My tree is about 8 inches tall, but you could make it any size.
I pinned my two pieces together. At the same time, I pinned down this snowflake garland that I bought at Michael's. I thought it looked perfect on my tree.
Once my pieces were pinned in place, I hand sewed around the edge of my tree, tacking my garland in place as I sewed. I left about a two inch opening at the bottom for filling.
I stuffed my tree with fiber fill, using a stick to get the fill into the corners of my shape. I also used this stick as the trunk and support for my tree.
Once my tree was filled, I positioned my stick in the center of my tree, making sure it was stuck all the way to the top of my shape. Then I used hot glue to close my bottom opening and keep my stick in place.
I also used some tacky glue to adhere my snowflakes in place and add a star to the top of my tree.
I made another slightly smaller tree out of different fabrics. This time, I used pinking shears to cut my front fabric so the edges would fray. I also cut the back fabric larger so it would show around the edges of my shape.
I used some heart-shaped plastic beads to create a garland for this tree. I used hot glue to tack these beads in place.
I decided to add a little sock snowman to my basket too. I made this little guy a few years ago. You can find all the directions on my blog.
To put all of my elements together, I filled the bottom half of my basket with plastic bags, just to take up some space. Then I stuck my fabric trees in my basket with some eucalyptus and some fake berries. To add more interest to my arrangement, I took some small branches and hot glued some tiny white pom poms on the tips. They add a nice wintery feel to my basket. Then as a final touch, I put my snowman in place.
I think this is a cute holiday decoration to welcome our guests!
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