Easy Holiday Crafts: Frugal Glitter String Trees

So many crafts these days involve so many expensive supplies.  Just the basics for a good "craft" require foam this and that, special paint, brushes, yarn, or beads.  I don't know about you, but I can't invest in many of the projects that are the most adorable on Pinterest.

I started seeing pictures of "string" trees on social media, and I fell in love with the idea.  I couldn't find any directions for these trees, so I guessed on a technique that worked out very well!  To make the trees even more charming, I used Krylon's Glitter Blast paints to add shimmer and shine.

To make the trees, you will need the following supplies:

• Light-weight natural twine or yarn
• Plain white glue
• White printer paper
• Waxed paper
• Krylon Glitter Blast in your choice of colors

To begin, you will need a "cone" shape for the trees.  Many crafters spend a fortune on foam cones, but making your own "frame" is simple.  Just roll a sheet of printer paper into a cone, and tape into place.  Then, take a sheet of wax paper and roll it over the paper cone.  You can use scissors to trim away any extra wax paper or to create a flat bottom for your cone. (Note: Many crafters use poster board rolled up for cones in lieu of foam cones.  This may work for other projects, but it is too stiff to use for this project.  You'll need a flimsier paper that can easily be bent and pulled out of the middle of the tree afterward.)

Now you're ready to create your glue solution.  Take a bowl and fill the bottom with your school glue.  Add a tablespoon or two of water, just enough to create a runny consistency.

Then, unroll all of the twine so that you can put it into the glue solution.  Don't swish it around -- it will tangle!  Just sort of let it float on the top and then press it down below the surface of the glue.

Next, you will take the twine and, using two fingers, squeeze the excess glue off loosely before wrapping it around the paper cone.  You will want it to cross over itself in a crazy pattern in various places on the cone.

When you feel like you have enough twine wound to get the look you want, set the cone aside to dry overnight.

After at least 12 hours have passed, and the glue is completely dry, you can remove the paper cone.  Since it will stick to the twine, you can use a pencil to push through the spaces in the twine to separate the paper.  Pull the paper out the bottom, leaving just the twine behind.

Now, you can paint!  Follow the directions on the Krylon Glitter Blast very carefully.  It's important to shake it as directed to avoid globs of glitter and keep an even application.  Overall, this is very easy to apply; you can choose to add more glitter to create an all-over metallic look, or just a little to create "dusting" of glitter with the original color of the twine showing through.

I decided to paint a few pine cones, as well.

Then, after everything was dry. I set up my trees, pine cones, and a few adorable owls from my local gift shop.

I think I'm going to do some more projects in this manner.  I think it would be pretty simple to make round tree decorations by covering small balloons with the twine and painting them.  What do you think?