DIY Christmas Tree Votives Tutorial

My daughter’s decided that they wanted their own Christmas trees in their room this year. However, they don’t have the world’s largest rooms, even if they had a 2 to 3 foot tree. So to satisfy my girls, I decided to come up with a solution and create small DIY Christmas tree votives. This way my daughter’s could enjoy a Christmas tree in their room for the holidays, but these were also compact enough that they could fit on top of their dresser or bookshelf. The best part about these DIY Christmas trees votives are all of the colors when they’re all lit up. My daughter’s loved them, and they actually go to sleep with them on. I think they’re dreaming of sugar plums dancing in their heads.

DIY Christmas Tree Votives Supplies:

Paper Clay
Darice Paper Mache Cones (I used 4″ x 2″ & 7″ x 3″)
Darice LED DecoLights Strand
Darice Ceramic Tree Multi Color Bead Pins
Darice Ceramic Tree Clear Bead Pins
Darice Ceramic Tree Star
Rolling Pin
Ruler
Skewer
X-Acto Knife

Step 1: Roll out the air clay to roughly 1/8″ to 1/4″ thick. For the larger DIY Christmas tree, you will want to roll it out at least 8 to 9″ in length.

Step 2: Roll the paper clay around the paper mache cone. Trim the excess off of the bottom and the side. You can always go back and roll the clay over again if you have trouble trimming the excess paper clay.

Step 3: Create the holes for the ceramic tree accessories to be placed in. If creating a small tree, you can use a skewer. It’s the same thickness as the colored mini tree accessories listed above. If you are creating a large tree, use one of the ceramic tree accessories to create the holes.

Step 4: Let the bead pins dry on the paper mache cone for several hours. When the trees are firm, remove the pins from the paper mache cone to allow more air to circulate. This will help speed the drying time up. Drying times is 1 to 3 days unless you want to bake them at very low heat for a little bit in your oven.

Step 5: Remove the excess clay that may have formed on the inside of the cone by very carefully scraping it away with the skewer. One of the best things about this paper clay is how white it dries. There’s no need to bother painting the trees, unless you want to make them a different color.

Step 6: Place the miniature bead pins into the holes. Stuff the strand of lights into the cone from the bottom and turn it on!

My daughter’s and I love how “bejeweled” these DIY Christmas tree votives look!