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Wednesday 2 December 2015

Festive Series: Wooden Tree Decorations

 Hello there! And welcome to the third part of my festive series. Today's post is going to be another DIY, and this time for these adorable handmade wooden tree decorations. I watched a video by Niomi last Christmas on how to create these decorations, and I instantly knew that I had to have a go this year. I absolutely loved making these as you can make them personal both to you or to a recipient if you are giving these as gifts, and they look really professional, so I thought I would show you how easy it is!










Stage One

You will need:
-Log slices (I bought these ready drilled slices from ebay)
-Photos
-Gloss Gel Medium
-Paintbrush/glue spatula
-Scissors

You need to cut your photos to the size of the log slices. To do this draw around the slice on top of the photo, as you will need to stick the photo face down to transfer the image. Once you have cut out the photo and placed it face down onto the slice, just trim round the edges so that there isn't any of the image laying over the sides. If you've bought slices with holes already in them, be sure to push a pencil through the image so that you'll be able to hang your decorations up! Be sure to do this for both sides of the slice. 


 When you have cut out both of your photos to size, you need to paint a layer of gloss gel medium onto the image, as this will be what transfers the image onto the log slice. Stick your images onto the slice (remembering to poke the pencil through the hole again so glue doesn't get stuck inside) and leave these to dry. It's best if you can lean them against something so that both sides can dry! Leave these for a few hours but ideally overnight. As I was making a few decorations I found it easier to write numbers on the slices and corresponding photos so that I knew which ones were meant for which slice!



Stage Two

You will need:
-Cloth x2
-Bowl of ater
-Dried log slices
-Mod Podge Gloss
-Paintbrush/glue spatula 

 Once your slices are all dry you need to get a damp cloth (make sure it's damp and not soaking) and start to wipe away the paper on the slice. You need to do this gently so that the paper starts to come off but that the image is left behind. You can see the different stages below; I found that it worked best if you gently wipe it, as the paper starts to come off in one large piece as opposed to lots of tiny pieces. When you think all of the paper layer has come off, give it a gentle wipe with a dry cloth so that any excess comes off, and I found that this allowed me to see where more paper needed to come off so I could give it one more wipe with the damp cloth. 
 Once you are happy with the image on the slice, you need to paint a thin layer of the mod podge over (again poking a pencil through the hole) as this will seal the image onto the slice and give it a glossy finish. Leave this to dry for a few hours/ideally overnight.
 (If you're short on time you could do the other side now, but I personally left the other side until the next day.)
 The images aren't perfect, but I think that's a part of what makes them so effective. If they were clear cut they wouldn't look as old or handmade, and they wouldn't have the lovely rustic look that they do.




 Stage Three

You will need:
-Ribbon/thread
-Bows/moss/snow spray to decorate (basically anything you think will look nice on them!)

 Once both sides of your slice are dry, you need to decorate them! I used an array of thread, ribbon and twine to hang them with, and stuck bows and even some moss covered in snow spray on the side. It's completely up to you on what you use to hang them with/decorate. On tying the thread/ribbon be sure to make a knot at the bottom before making one at the top, as this will ensure that your decorations hang so that you can see the images properly, as opposed to them hanging at the side and only being able to see the side of the slice.
 As I said, what I love about these decorations is how you can make them personal and unique, both to yourself or friends/family. I liked doing a mix of both illustrations and my own photos, and you can pair these up how you like. It's lovely to have some more traditional Christmas images mixed in with your own personal ones amongst the tree.








 They look great when you make them, but even better hanging on the Christmas tree! Once you've added your thread/ribbon and your decorative bits, they're ready to be hung. As they're double sided you can decide which photo you would like on show, and change them around throughout the month.






 I'm honestly so happy with how these turned out; and I definitely think that come next year when Tom and I have our own bigger tree I will be having to make some more to dot about the place! Why not have a go at making your own? As always if you do recreate these please let me know in the comments/on social media, I'd love to see what images you use!

Love Jess xxx

Festive series:
Christmas coasters
Chocolate Orange Mince Pies
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1 comment

  1. That is really clever, I know you told me about them but it is even nicer seeing them made. Another excellent idea xx

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