Friday, December 6, 2013

Easy DIY Tree & Wreath Flocking Redux

Two years ago I did a tutorial on DIY tree flocking, which was so ridiculously easy (and has proven to be so incredibly durable) that I've decided to revisit it - this time with a little mini-tree I wanted to spruce up.

I know flocking an entire tree can be a little intimidating, so maybe a smaller project like this will help more of you get your feet wet. Or snowy. Or... spackle-y.

So. Here's my $5 mini tree:

... plus a glimpse into how I do all my crafts: with those big blue eyes... just... STARING.
(She's watching me. Aaaaalwaaaays waaatching.)

The only materials you'll need for the flocking (in addition to the thing you're going to flock) are:

- Lightweight spackling (available at any hardware store or even Wal-Mart, I believe)
- a chip brush or stiff paint/artist's brush


Dump a scoop of spackling into an old bowl (it'll wash out later with water, no worries), and then add a little water. Mix it up until you get a thin icing consistency:

It even looks like icing, right? Makes me want to start piping some out on cardboard gingerbread houses... hmm.... and then add some puff paint borders...

Oh. Right. Better finish this project first, huh?

Ok, now just dip your chip brush into the spackle snow mixture, and start pouncing it on to your branches, like so:


 I find it helps to hang on to the tip of the branch, to keep it from bouncing all over the place.

If you only want a light dusting of "snow," then brush instead of pounce - that will leave smaller clingy bits, like on this top branch here:


I prefer larger clumps, though, like on the lower branch. That looks more like packed sections of wetter snow to me. To get that look, just keep pouncing on larger amounts of spackle. It will clump & melt together to give it that nice wet look:

If your "snow" starts looking too clumpy or crumbly, just add a little more water to your mixture.

Oh, and while it's wet you can sprinkle on some clear glitter for added sparkle. I didn't do that this time because it makes one heckuva mess, but it was a fun touch for my big streampunk tree.

Rest assured your flocking will dry rock hard and last for years without crumbling or cracking. (The only thing you'll want to avoid is soaking it with water, which might make it dissolve.)


Here's the finished tree:

 I find the flocking makes it look like a much more expensive tree - and the same goes for wreaths!

And here it is all decorated on our bedroom dresser:

(Target sells those tree toppers for $1. SCORE.)

Since I still haven't found the right plant for our dresser, I think this will do nicely 'til January. :)


This really is the cheapest & easiest Christmas DIY I've ever found, so I hope you guys will give it a try! Odds are most of you already have some lightweight spackle in the garage, and if so, it's FREE. Can't beat that! Plus you'll find a little spackling goes a long way; I still had this much left over with mine:


Happy flocking, guys!


And for my fellow pinners:


*****

Come see ALL of my craft projects on one page, right here!

21 comments:

  1. LOL ......always watching... ...... great craft and well explained - thanks!

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  2. Lily is such a beautiful cat! (She's Lily right?) Where did you get her from?

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    1. We got Lily from Pet Rescue By Judy, a local shelter organization. Tonks, too. (We love Judy's!) It was Lily's blue eyes that made me fall in love with her - but she was actually really scraggly as a kitten. Took her about 2 years to get this gorgeous. ;)

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    2. So glad that Lily and Tonks are rescues. If anyone reading this is thinking of getting your kid(s) that cat/dog/rabbit he/she/they've been asking for as a holiday gift, please check the shelters and rescue centers first. So many amazing and loving animals are there waiting for welcoming homes!

      KW

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  3. Watching is ok. Eating crafts on the other hand can be bad. ;) And yes, I have friends whose cats will occasionally eat something. Silly cats.
    And she is a lovely cat.

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  4. So glad to hear she's a shelter kitty! And that her eyes stayed so blue as she grew up. Why don't you do a cat post sometime Jen?? :)

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  5. Looks great. But not going to attempt this with a full size semi-living tree (unless I decide to cover my entire floor in pine needles) And we only have the tree up from the 23rd anyway...oh well, maybe when I'm a millionaire millionaire and have a house with a room just for trees... <3

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  6. Gorgeous! The mini-tree looks lovely there on the dresser with the glamor-horse and shiny lamp and the metal plate on the wall. Too bad you can't just leave the tree out year-round. It seems like it perfectly compliments all the other bedroom updates, and it would solve the plant problem. ;) I also like the little silver poinsettia/holly/pine sprig (that I'm sure you made) by the horse's hind legs.

    I would love to have your decorating ambition and skills. I'm mostly like "Ugh, why bother? It's just more to have to dust (or more to have to put away at the end of the season)." Heh.

    I'm loving all the posts lately, but please don't get burned out again! We'll gladly take fewer posts to keep a happy/healthy Jen!

    KW

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  7. WANT the so called "glamour horse"!! Please tell me he's still for sale somewhere!!

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    1. Hard to say, since I found him at Home Goods - but if you have one nearby you could check!

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  8. I want to do this so bad, but I think driving to Walmart in the middle of a snowstorm to buy a tiny tree and some spackling and glitter might be a little crazy.

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  9. When I first looked I at the picture, I thought, "Lily's wearing a top hat!" LOL

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  10. Beautiful cat! My mother and I spent today setting up her Xmas decorations- most of the discussion was about which items were to dangerous to have out around her cat. No crafting here, the cat eats everything! ~Amy

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  11. My tree has now been "frosted" with spackle and sprinkled with silver and white glitter! Thank you so much for this idea. It turned out great and now I have a "new" tree. Happy holidays!

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  12. Lily's eyes are wonderful! Know the feeling of "being watched while crafting" - my Maine Coons (also shelter cats) just love when the beads come out. They scatter so nicely!

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  13. I came across an article where a woman used shaving cream and glue I think it was...........but it stays soft and kind squishy...foam like.

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  14. Saw your DIY flocking for Christmas trees......decided to give it a try. I live in Australia so the spackle I used had a grey tinge to it, so I added a few squirts of white acrylic paint to the mixture....got the right consistency.....added some fake snow glitter as it dried....which only took about 15 minutes....pretty warm here today. Looks great! Now to decorate....

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  15. Thanks I have this Spackle in my house I just moved into so it will cost me NOTHING to do!!!! Wasn't loving the shave cream and glue recipe I found on line anyway!!!

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  16. I would suggest mixing the glitter into the spackle as a possible alternative ... We finally packed up the tree today and hauled it's cocoon downstairs only to find an explosion of glitter everywhere the tree has been - including on the dog.

    Upside, I think the tree turned out pretty well and painting the tree was a ton of fun https://flic.kr/p/RnNsJY

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  17. I have been sitting here for 3 hours trying to find a diy flock 'recipe' and was just about to give up as I was feeling guilty about 'wasting time' when I spotted your blog. THRILLED TO BITS! Exactly what I was looking for. All the others go on about diy but always add a 'snow' product. Thank you so much, although I know that it is years since your original post. I hope that your gorgeous kitty is still well. Living in Australia at this time of the year is so hot (read melting) that a bit of snow on the Christmas tree will be a 'cool' look. Best wishes.

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