"The Forest Raised a Christmas Tree"
Putting up a Christmas tree at home for the New Year has always been an event! Traditionally, by mid-December, Christmas tree markets open in every city, where you can buy your favorite tree. And if you have the opportunity and desire, in many regions of Russia you can officially get a felling coupon/ticket for one tree. The coupon is issued at the local forestry, a forest area is designated, usually near a power line, and then you only need to cut down the Christmas tree you like and bring it home.
At different times, it was customary to decorate the Christmas tree in its own way. For example, in the tsarist era, toys in the shape of angels, bells and Bethlehem stars were in fashion.
With the advent of the USSR, the top of the Christmas tree began to be decorated with a red star. And in honor of the opening of the space age, Soviet designers released a pike decoration symbolizing a rocket taking off.
Quickly and easily transform polystyrene foam into a beautiful Christmas tree
For the first simple method, you will need ordinary foam in the form of sheets.
In addition to this, the following materials and tools are used in the work:
- scotch;
- sharp knife;
- heat gun;
- tinsel, Christmas tree toys.
For work, two sheets with an area of 1.3 meters are enough - you will get a medium-sized Christmas tree. It is also worth considering that the material must be cut with your own hands on a surface that you will not mind damaging. For example, it is better to put a piece of plywood on a regular table or floor.
Alternatively, you can simplify your task by printing out a template that shows the finished Christmas tree. Then you need to select it according to the size of the sheets. However, craftswomen draw the contours of the tree with their own hands.
The work begins with the outlines of a forest beauty being displayed on each sheet. If there is a template, then for convenience it is worth gluing it with tape so that it does not move while cutting out the shape. After drawing the contours, you can cut them with a sharp knife. It is important not to rush this step, otherwise the edges will turn out uneven. You can correct such an oversight by smoothing out the roughness with sandpaper.
The foam Christmas tree is almost ready! Now you need to connect two figures together to create a 3D model. To do this, draw a vertical line in the center on each part. You need to find the middle in the resulting line. On one Christmas tree, a cutout 0.5 cm wide is made from the middle, upward, and on the second, downwards. All that remains is to “put” one part on the second.
To make the Christmas tree truly New Year’s and elegant, we decorate it with our own hands. The easiest way to attach toys to the surface of the sheets is with a heat gun, and hang the tinsel on branches.
“Now she came to us dressed up for the holiday”
30-50 years ago, every home had a box with beautiful glass toys of various shapes and colors. They were carefully kept in the arms of tinsel and cotton wool for a whole year and on the eve of the holiday they were hung on the Christmas tree with special trepidation. Until now, Soviet Christmas tree decorations, especially rare ones, are valuable among vintage lovers and collectors.
It turns out that many toys in the USSR were produced in series in honor of a specific event. So it’s quite possible to trace the history of the state by looking at the New Year’s decor.
So the Star of Bethlehem gave way to the symbol of the Soviet era - the five-pointed red star.
At the beginning of the twentieth century, glass toys were very expensive, so cardboard, cotton toys and the so-called “Dresden cartonage” - two cardboard figures with a convex pattern, covered with foil - were in use.
In 1936, after the release of the film “Circus” with Lyubov Orlova, toys depicting circus performers and animals became popular.
And in 1937, the airship "SSSR-B6" made a record-breaking flight of 130 hours of continuous stay in the air. In honor of him, Christmas tree toys-airships were released.
In 1949, the country celebrated the 150th anniversary of the birth of A.S. Pushkin, so a series of New Year's toys based on his fairy tales was released. The Christmas trees of those times were decorated with the heroes of “Ruslan and Lyudmila”, “The Golden Cockerel” and “Tales of the Fisherman and the Fish”.
At the same time, toys made of glass beads and beads came into fashion.
In the 50s, toys in the form of houses, cones, birds and animals, icicles, and balls with depressions, inside of which the light from New Year's garlands beautifully refracts, were mass-produced.
In 1956, Eldar Ryazanov’s film “Carnival Night” was released. Toys in the form of a clock that show five minutes to twelve became very popular, were produced by various factories and decorated almost every Christmas tree in our vast homeland.
With the opening of the space age, New Year's toys began to appear in the form of astronauts, rockets and satellites.
In the 70s, toys in the form of favorite cartoon characters gained popularity.
In the 80s, the disco style took over not only music and fashion. New Year's toys have become brighter, shiny and abstract than ever. And rain has also become fashionable. Sometimes they hung the tree so that neither the toys nor even the tree itself could be seen. But no one cared. The main thing is that everything shines and sparkles!
In the 90s (and this was already 30 years ago!) With the fall of the Iron Curtain, the views of Russian citizens turned to the West. Everything American was new and certainly seemed better. New Year's decor was no exception. It has become fashionable to decorate the Christmas tree in a single color scheme. Bows, miniature gift boxes, bells and even artificial flowers were added to the traditional balloons. All this was produced in huge quantities in China from plastic and was proudly called “European style”. Yes, toys have become unbreakable and more varied in style and color. But the charm of handmade Soviet jewelry is a thing of the past. In grandma's boxes with fragile glass New Year's toys.
For a small Christmas tree
For a small Christmas tree there are many more materials from which you can make a frame. A small Christmas tree weighs little, so the frame can be made from available materials.
The classic version is a cardboard base
This option is suitable for further decoration using fabric, lace, sisal and so on.
- Make a cone out of cardboard.
- Fix the shape with a stapler and glue.
- Trim the excess cardboard to make the base of the cone even.
- For greater strength, the internal space of the cone can be filled with polyurethane foam. In this case, it will be easy to attach a leg to the tree.
Felt Christmas tree
The simplest option for making a Christmas tree, which will especially appeal to young children, as it promotes the development of fine motor skills:
- Twist a cone from a piece of green (or any other) colored felt.
- Glue the edges.
- Trim the base so that the cone stands straight.
- All that remains is to decorate the Christmas tree. The most interesting option: cut out small simple toys (boot, mitten, heart) from felt of other colors and glue Velcro to them. Another way is to make loops on the toys and sew buttons on the base in different places. This way you can make an interesting educational toy for kids.
Live Christmas tree
If you use a floral sponge as a frame, you can make a real living Christmas tree! To do this you need:
- Trim the sponge to the shape of a cone (but the top should not be sharp).
- Make some kind of base for the tree. Either glue the sponge to the saucer, or string it on a stick (to make the leg of a Christmas tree) and secure it in a flower pot using plasticine or plaster.
- Stick fir branches into the sponge on all sides. You need to use larger branches from below, and, accordingly, very small ones from above.
- To keep the branches fresh for as long as possible, you need to regularly water the sponge.
- You can decorate the tree like a real one: with small Christmas tree decorations (they should be light) and a garland.
Christmas tree made of threads
You can replace the threads with twine, then the tree will come out a little rougher, but stylish.
- Make a cone out of cardboard.
- Wet the thread thoroughly with PVA glue.
- Wrap the thread around the cone so that it is not visible.
- Leave the workpiece until completely dry.
- Carefully remove the cone and decorate the resulting Christmas tree.
Reference! This option can be used as a lamp if you insert an LED candle inside.
“They hung the beads and began to dance in a round dance”
Does everyone remember the children's song about a little Christmas tree? Of course, it was not the ladies’ decorations themselves that were hung on the Christmas tree, but their likeness—long multi-colored beads specially produced by toy factories. You can easily make them yourself: buy the beads you like at a craft store and string them on a thread or fishing line.What can you make a frame for a Christmas tree from?
There are several ways to make a frame. They look similar to each other, it must be a cone. But they differ in material and manufacturing method. It can be metal, wood, cardboard, paper, felt. You can purchase a foam version or a floral sponge at a craft store. In any case, a tree with a base will hold tighter and last longer than frameless options. In the future it can be tightened:
- twine;
- threads;
- sisal;
- cloth;
- spruce branches.
There is an option to leave the bare frame and simply decorate it with a garland. You can decorate the Christmas tree in any way you like, for example, use:
- Christmas decorations;
- buttons;
- rhinestones;
- sequins;
- beads;
- bows;
- ribbons;
- tinsel;
- artificial flowers;
- decorated pasta;
- beads;
- candies;
- lace.
Reference! In general, there are many options for decoration; here you need to completely proceed from your own taste preferences. Well, or from what is already available at home.
“And there are gingerbread cookies on the Christmas tree”
Gingerbread cookies and cookies were also frequent guests at the New Year tree. You can buy ready-made multi-colored products at a pastry shop, or you can bake them yourself in any shape. The recipe for shortcrust pastry can be easily found on the Internet. Even earlier, it was fashionable to hang candies on the Christmas tree - the bright candy wrappers sparkled and shimmered like New Year’s toys. And in January, when the tree was dismantled, the candies could be eaten.
Crafts from cotton pads for the New Year in kindergarten
Was your child dumbfounded by the task that you need to bring a craft to kindergarten tomorrow? And outside the window, of course, it’s already night. Then you can use a package of cotton pads. In most families they are actively used.
- Packaging of cotton pads
- Cardboard for cone base
- PVA glue
- Decor
We roll up the cardboard frame and connect the edges with a stapler.
Take a cotton pad and fold it in half.
Then we place two ends of a cotton semicircle on harmless PVA glue.
And glue the workpiece to the base, having previously smeared its fold with the same PVA glue.
We do this row by row. It is better to glue the cotton pads closer to each other so that there are minimal gaps.
All that remains is to decorate the delicate beauty!
Children in kindergarten will definitely like your product, and they won’t be ashamed in front of other parents.
“How many colored balls are there on the Christmas tree!”
Of course, traditional balls have also decorated the New Year tree at all times. They were painted, covered with beads and ribbons, and decorated with lace. We have collected six cool ideas on how you can decorate Christmas balls with your own hands in a separate article.The Legend of Tinsel
This controversial Christmas decoration has a fairytale origin story. A long time ago there lived a woman with many children who did not have the opportunity to richly decorate her tree for Christmas. On the eve of the holiday, she decorated the Christmas tree as best she could, because the children so wanted a holiday! And at night spiders came to the rescue. They crawled from branch to branch, leaving behind a shiny web. As a reward for the woman's kindness, Christ blessed the tree, and the web turned into sparkling silver.
The word “tinsel” itself comes from the Tatar and Arabic languages and used to mean a thread made of fake gold or silver. Nowadays Christmas trees are decorated less and less with tinsel, however, if you want to throw a party in a retro style, it can be very useful.
What is a frame street tree?
We are talking about simulating an artificial tree using a frame and decorating it with Christmas tree branches. Moreover, if desired and possible, you can even use live spruce or pine paws, which are attached to a metal base. Creating the complete illusion of a huge forest tree. At the same time, there is no need to cut down trees, especially considering that the greater the height, the older they are.
The metal frame street Christmas trees presented in this section are a ready-made kit for assembling a city or park holiday decoration of the selected length. It can be purchased for public or private purposes, decorating the courtyards of office premises, apartment buildings or private houses, or arranging a holiday display in a natural forest. This is facilitated by the price of street Christmas trees with a metal frame, which is affordable for everyone, including owners of private areas where a beautiful exterior decoration can be installed.
Fairy lights
The garland can consist of any decorations tied together into a long ribbon. In the Soviet Union, garlands of paper figured flags with beautiful pictures were popular, because they are easy to make with your own hands: cut out flags of any shape from colored paper, cardboard or New Year's cards.
Electric garlands in vintage style are characterized by large colored incandescent lamps. Sometimes they were even painted with their own hands. Nowadays, ready-made retro garlands can be found for every taste and color, for example, from Edison light bulbs.
Volumetric Christmas tree made of paper
Paper is always the first thing the word “craft” is associated with. And from it you can create not just one Christmas tree, but an entire spruce forest, in which not a single tree will be the same!
Let's say we want a paper tree to make us happy on the kitchen table. Then you need to make it fluffy and voluminous. And also as stable as possible.
So, I have selected several detailed master classes with a clear description of the process.
- Cardboard cone
- Glue
- Green paper in different shades.
We cut out many circles of the same size from paper.
And we begin to glue their edges to the cone, observing the rows.
The first layer always goes at the base.
This craft is accessible in terms of complexity, even to a two-year-old child. And it looks quite rich because of the different shades of the same color.
Option 2. Terry cone herringbone
Cut out 4 semicircles. Each of them is 2 centimeters smaller in diameter than the previous one.
Glue the blanks into a cone and slightly cut the edges around the perimeter to get volume. Fold the terry edges a little.
Now we glue a smaller cone onto the largest piece. And so on downward.
That's the whole simple process.
Option 3. Let's make a spruce out of paper circles
Cut out 4 circles. Each of them is 1 centimeter smaller than the previous one.
Then fold each circle in half 3-4 times.
We also make a base from paper. You can wrap green paper around a pencil or kebab stick.
We string the round blanks onto the trunk in descending order of size.
To give stability, you can place the trunk in plasticine, wax or wine cork.
We mark 15 circles, each time reducing the diameter by 1 centimeter. Then we divide each circle into 12 equal parts, drawing lines through the center.
From the center, mark half the radius and draw a circle. Now we cut the lines clearly to the drawn circle.
Glue the ends of each petal together.
When you have completed all the levels, start assembling the Christmas tree from the widest row to the smallest.
How do you like the ideas, I think you will find ideas for yourself.
New Year cards
How long has it been since you wrote a paper letter to someone? When the Internet had not yet been invented, and not every home had a telephone, people all over the country sent telegrams, letters and cards to each other for the New Year. The older generation remembers that the post office is always especially busy in December, so news with wishes was prepared in advance. Your loved ones will be pleased to unexpectedly receive a New Year's card made by themselves. After all, in any handmade there is a piece of soul.For postcards in retro style you will need: glue, scissors, colored paper, ribbons and lace, newspaper clippings, magazines and music books, twigs, threads, beads... In general, everything that you like in a craft store or has been waiting in the wings for a long time box at home with all sorts of little things.
Christmas tree made of fir cones and pine cones
Now let's move on to the master classes. And first of all, I want to show you how you can make a tree from pine cones. So the smell will remain in the house, and the mood will certainly become festive.
Collect pine or fir cones in advance. Choose open, but at the same time strong and whole fruits.
You will need: cones; hot glue; heat gun; cardboard; scissors; tinsel and toys; flowerpot; spray paint.
Manufacturing process:
1. First, decide on the size of your future spruce. Then cut out the base from the appropriate size cardboard.
2. Clean the cones from dust and sort them by size.
3. Now start laying out the cones in tiers in a circle, using the larger cones first. Connect the pine cones and tiers together using hot glue.
4. As shown in the photo, assemble the entire product. And at the very top, fix the cone vertically.
5. Decorate your beauty with any decorations. You can also paint the cones with spray paint. To ensure that the tree stands firmly on the floor, glue its base to the flower pot using the same hot glue.
I would also like to suggest you make a souvenir from cone scales.
You will need: cones, a sharp knife, cardboard, glue, cloves, brush, acrylic paint, glitter.
Manufacturing process:
1. Clean the cones from dirt and dust and separate the scales. Do this carefully with a sharp knife.
2. Roll the cardboard into a cone and glue it on the side. Trim off any excess cardboard at the base.
3. Now glue the scales in a circle, starting from the very base of the cone.
4. When you reach the top, glue a clove on top.
5. Wait for the glue to dry and start painting. Take acrylic paint and paint the scales.
6. Grease the ends of the “twigs” with PVA glue and sprinkle with glitter.
7. You can leave the product as is or further decorate it to your liking.
Now that you know two simple ways to make coniferous trees with your own hands, I can show you ideas for their design. Look and choose!
The easiest way to make a spruce from a cone is to decorate one cone, because it looks so much like a forest beauty.
New Year's decor in vintage style
Wreaths in pastel colors, hand-sewn soft toys, wooden figurines in the form of Christmas trees and snowmen - all these cute little things will help create a festive mood. In the old days, there was no mass production of New Year's decorations made of plastic. Therefore, if you decide to recreate the atmosphere of the past, choose natural materials, muted tones and natural colors.
Vintage style is always nostalgic. On the eve of the holidays, it is customary to take stock and remember the best moments of the outgoing year. Photos and postcards from memorable places and significant events will help with this. Pictures from old family albums, Instagram, Polaroid or film prints can be combined with a New Year's garland, creating an original interior decoration in vintage style.
What materials and tools will be required
For more serious frame options, you will need the following materials:
- metal sticks;
- metal rings;
- wooden slats or branches;
- metal grid;
- wire
For small decorative Christmas tree toys:
- cardboard;
- felt;
- threads;
- twine;
- stapler
- PVA glue.
Next, various methods of making a frame for a Christmas tree will be discussed in more detail.
