In parts 3 and 4, how to use the needle sections of the artificial tree. Most artificial trees I have seen are basically 'pipe cleaner' style needle sections attached to metal rod that 'plugs' into a 'pole' or into the trunk. Part 3 and 4 are very similar ideas that result in different looks. In Part 3, I will show you how to make a 'pine garland' from your old christmas tree.
| Next you take craft wire and wrap around each needle section. Bend the needle section slightly or it will appear flat and unnatural. Then believe it or not, that's pretty much it. The nice thing about this is you can make it as long as you want. If it is too short, you can add wire by simply twisting some together and hiding under the 'needles'. Also, you can space the needle sections to be as full or sparse as you want. Also, varying the lengths of the needle sections helps with the natural appearance. |
Last step is to adorn with whatever embellishments you desire. I generally use lights and a big bow. On some I have small bows spaced along the length of the garland. After I have them up, I hang ornaments off of them as well. I have decorated them in the past with pinecones and poinsettias…it is really whatever you like. Another decorating tip, you can wipe the pine tips with glue (or use spray adhesive) and dip into glitter or snow flakes. You can also use a sponge dipped in paint to add color to the tips (like gold, silver, white….whatever). | |
You can also wrap the needles directly on a light string (use same technique for wrapping as in Part 4-Wreaths/Candle Rings). After doing so, I found two potential problems…but these may not have any bearing on your project. The plaster of my walls does not like to hold anything. Nails and push pins tend to pull out quite easily. The light string wrapped with the needles is quite heavy and stiff, so it is difficult for me to get it to stay on my walls. And secondly, I have bad luck with light strings. Each year I lose about 1/3 of my strings…for no apparent reason…they just don't work anymore. I realized after I wrapped the one string, if something went wrong with lights, I would have to remove the needle sections and put them on a new string.