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    Home » DIY » Crafts

    How to Make Pine Cone Christmas Trees

    By: Jane · Updated: 10 Dec, '18 · This post may contain affiliate links · 20 Comments

    Sharing is caring!

    In this post, you will find a tutorial on how to make your own pine cone Christmas trees. This is a fun craft you can make with kids during the holidays.

    Here are the directions on how to make a pine cone christmas tree
    Pine Cone Christmas Tree

    Hello everyone! Have you finished your Christmas decorating yet? If not, here is a project that I completed recently that turned out WAY better than I expected. If you have an abundance of pine cones or have access to some, then you may want to make your own...

    Pine Cone Christmas Trees!

    We have one tall pine tree in our yard that drops a ton of pine cones. Ever since I started crafting with pine cones, Leo picks them up and tosses them into a large container to save them for me. I like to think of these free pine cones as "nature's gift!" 

    A tutorial on how to make pine cone christmas trees

    I brought one of my pine cone Christmas trees out onto the front porch so that I could photograph them better in the natural light, but currently they are residing on our hearth as part of our Christmas mantel decorations. I'm still tinkering with the mantel because it's missing something, and I haven't quite figured out what that is yet!

    Directions for making a pinecone christmas tree

    As you can see, I decided to use a blue, green, and red color scheme this year. A few months ago, I found a new and gorgeous shade of spray paint called "French blue."

    Spray paint used to paint pine cones for making christmas trees

    Yes, that was several months ago when I started painting pine cones blue! Now I will have to admit that you are going to need a lot of pine cones for this project, especially if you decide to make 2 trees like I did! But spray paint dries really fast outdoors and the rest of the project can be done inside. 

    In fact, this is a great project to enlist a few helpers and I love listening to Christmas music with my family during the holidays.

    What you need to Make Pine Cone Christmas Trees

    • lots of pine cones of various sizes (I used 31 for each tree but you may need more)
    • spray paint (I needed 2 cans for 2 trees and I found the French blue shade at Walmart)
    • white acrylic craft paint
    • small artist brushes
    • glue gun and plenty of glue sticks
    • round cardboard base with a diameter of 12 inches (I used cake bases).
    • miniature Christmas ornaments (I purchased 2 packages at Hobby Lobby)

    Step 1

    The first step in making these pine cone Christmas trees is to spray paint all of your cones and allow them to dry thoroughly.

    Painting the tips of pine cones

    Step 2 (optional but recommended)

    Then, if desired, paint the tips of each cone with white acrylic craft paint. (I used titanium white by DecoArt.) This would be a really good job for youngsters to do-you can't mess up this part!

    Cake circle used as a base for a christmas pine cone tree

    Step 3

    Next, you will need a round base for your tree, and I used cake circles. I purchased these 14 inch circles, but they were too large for the wooden planters that I planned to put the trees on. So I simply cut them down to 12 inch size. You could easily cut cardboard circles from a box, and it doesn't matter if the circle is perfect or not because no one will see that part! 

    How to make a pine cone christmas tree

    Step 4

    Get your glue gun ready. Place your largest pine cones on the outside edge of the circle and glue down. (I found it easier to add the glue to the circle.) While doing this, try to nudge one pine cone into the next one. As you can see in the above photo, I didn't pull my cones all the way out to the edge. If you do so, you will have a taller tree and will need more pine cones.  My 2 trees ended up being 15 inches tall.

    How to make pine cone christmas trees

    Step 6

    Once you glue down the first layer of cones, then start with the next one. But this time, pull your cones in just a bit in order to start shaping your tree. I put some pine cones down inside the hole that started forming, but I don't think that you really need to do that. 

    As you continue your layers, use smaller and smaller cones. When you get closer to the top, start angling your cones down to make the shape of a tree.

    Making a pine cone christmas tree

    Step 7

    Oh, yes. You will have lots of glue strings to remove! At least, I did. Remove excess glue strings and continue.

    How to make pine cone christmas trees

    Step 8

    I found that the top of the tree needed a skinny pine cone, and here I've started adding some red ornaments. 

    Red christmas ornaments for miniature trees

    Step 9

    I used 2 packages of these red ornaments that I found in the section of Hobby Lobby where the miniature tree decorations are sold. Finish adding red ornaments as seen below. You can see where I tucked them into the places where 2 cones met. I did hot glue them but only burned 1 finger! Ha! Be careful in this step! 

    Red miniature christmas ornaments used on a pine cone christmas tree

    Final Pine Cone Christmas Tree

    I am just delighted with how these trees turned out! I can just imagine them done in different colors or made with bleached pine cones. 

    Pinecone christmas trees
    Close up of my pine cone Christmas Tree
    Directions on how to make pine cone christmas trees
    Full shot of my pine cone Christmas tree

    I can't wait to show you how they look on our hearth, but they would make a great gift for someone with limited space. Or, I'm thinking they'd make a great centerpiece on a table. Or...

    Well, you can see how my mind works! At the time, I'm loving the blue, red, and green combo. 

    To see more of my pine cone crafts, you can click on any of these links:

    • How to Make Pine Cone Zinnias
    • Summer Wreath Made with Pine Cone Zinnias
    • Fall Rake Wreath with Pine Cone Zinnias
    • Chicken Wire and Pine Cone Wreath

    I hope you enjoyed making this pine cone Christmas tree. And thanks in advance for sharing this with friends and family.

    More Holidays

    • Orange pumpkin on top of a painted peat pot surrounded with pipberry
      Thrifty Peat Pot Pumpkin Holder
    • Round patriotic sign, floral display, and garland on a navy mantel
      Patriotic Decorations in the Craft Studio
    • Patriotic mini easel place cards
      Patriotic Mini Easel Place Cards
    • Garden theme christmas tree in our entry
      Garden Theme Christmas Tree in our Entry

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    1. Tammy Chambers

      January 09, 2023 at 9:42 pm

      How do you bleach pine cones???

      Reply
    2. Projection Tree Topper

      March 25, 2020 at 1:32 am

      Wow! Great job! I was searching for Christmas resembling DIYs trees, and I found yours best, quick, and easy. I can’t wait to give it a try for my home-décor. Thank you so much for sharing. Please guide me a bit… how did you manage to keep it straight? I mean, it is standing straight without any support and giving a firm look.

      Reply
    3. Projection Tree Topper

      March 25, 2020 at 1:28 am

      Oh My God! My stomach is growling while reading your blog. You have covered many mouth-watering recipes, including burgers, sandwiches, and cakes. I just love them and will surely try them soon as we are planning to go and spend the night into the woods. Thank you for sharing

      Reply
    4. Jennifer

      November 10, 2019 at 9:05 am

      Love the idea of the pinecone tree , it's beautiful and I cannot wait to try and make me a couple

      Reply
    5. Kim Oliver

      July 21, 2019 at 10:47 am

      Hi; Where did you get the tree stand? These are great for seniors in retirement homes and we've got a project coming up with them!

      Reply
      • Jane Windham

        July 27, 2019 at 9:24 pm

        Yes, this will make a great project for seniors. The stands are actually wooden planters that were purchased from Lowe's. They are a little pricey for this project but you could substitute plastic planters and spray paint them any color that would match the tree.

        Reply
    6. Eva Cangemi

      March 29, 2019 at 9:23 am

      Thanks for the idea of pinecone trees. I have been making pinecone kissing balls, and pinecone wreaths. I just finished a wreath with white pinecones, red cardinals and red berries to honor my mom that passed in Nov 2018. I hand picked the pinecones from her yard last July when I went up to visit, she loved cardinals and red berries. I will definitely be making a tree this year. I love your site....

      Reply
    7. Deb

      November 24, 2018 at 7:58 am

      How did you anchor the tree to the pot?

      Reply
      • Jane Windham

        November 24, 2018 at 10:20 am

        Deb, I didn't anchor the trees to the planters because I used them indoors. The round cardboard base was large enough to simply sit on top of the planters.

        Reply
    8. Valerie

      February 17, 2018 at 10:06 am

      I just found your site and live not far from you. I love your posts!

      Reply
    9. Debra luhn

      December 08, 2017 at 10:44 pm

      I really like your pinecone trees. Thanks for the directions. I have tried 2 times to bleach pinecones, but they never bleach out pretty. Is there a special bleach that I need to use? Merry Christmas.

      Reply
      • JW85

        December 21, 2017 at 12:48 am

        I recently bleached many pine cones and found out that the harshest cheapest dollar store bleach you can find will work much better than Clorox. Just keep soaking them and flipping them preferably overnight and the next day they should be good. Pull them out let them completely dry and some of them will start to reopen just a bit and look very nice!

        Reply
    10. Marguerite

      December 08, 2017 at 8:02 am

      I have never been a fan of the Pine cone Tree but these are Beautiful and I am going to make one , love it

      Reply
    11. Robyn

      December 07, 2017 at 10:06 am

      These trees are so cute! Love the blue !!!!

      Reply
    12. Jean Windham

      December 06, 2017 at 8:21 pm

      Jane the pine cone tree is so cute. As you said I would love the blue. It is French blue which is one of my favorites. I am excited to see your porch completed for Christmas... Jean

      Reply
    13. Kathleen

      November 29, 2017 at 11:02 pm

      These pine cone trees are so pretty! What a great idea!

      Reply
    14. Jo

      November 29, 2017 at 5:00 pm

      Terrific idea! Pine cones are either difficult to keep out of the landscape or great for crafting. Have you managed to do both?

      Reply
    15. Donnamae

      November 29, 2017 at 10:32 am

      Considering we have an average sized city lot...we have tons of pinecones. Thanks for the idea....your pinecone trees look fantastic! 😉

      Reply
    16. Barbara Windle

      November 28, 2017 at 9:26 pm

      Your tree is really cute. A great idea for using pinecones.

      Reply
    17. Sandy

      November 28, 2017 at 6:51 pm

      A cute idea for sure. They look great in the red planter. Can't wait to see the inside.

      Reply

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