I’ve always wanted to get my children a felt wall tree for Christmas, one that they could decorate all on their own. But I always seemed to miss the shipping windows when the tree would arrive on a decent date before Christmas. So this year, I took matters into my own hands and made my own. At first, I imagined it to be this stunning, perfect decoration, with hand-crafted felt ornaments that looked just like what I would order online. But as I started making the felt wall tree, my 4-year-old took an interest in what I was doing and wanted to make the ornaments on his own.
And I’m so glad I involved him in the process. My 2-year-old also got involved, sticking on the velcro pieces and cheering on his brother in making the ornaments. My 4-year-old practiced drawing shapes and brainstorming what to make next. The whole project turned out to be a great way to engage both of my children in exploring shapes, brainstorming ideas, and making a special holiday decoration together.
Of course, after we made the felt wall tree, I found this Felt Tree Craft Kit that I could have purchased from Michaels.com all along. To be honest, the time spent making this tree with my children was worth the effort on our own.
Materials
- 1 36″ x 36″ Basic Felt by Creatology™ in Kelly Green
- Permanent marker
- Fabric scissors
- Cardboard
- Glue gun and glue sticks
- 1 VELCRO® Brand Sticky Back for Fabrics Tape, 24″ in Black
- Twine
- Strong tape (I used clear packing tape.)
- Command hook
- Several sheets of felt in a variety of colors
Directions to Make a Felt Wall Christmas Tree
- Fold the sheet of green felt in half. Draw a tree shape on one side.
- Cut out the tree and unfold the felt. You should have a full tree.
- Glue pieces of cardboard to the back of the felt. This will help keep the felt flat against the wall.
- Glue and tape a loop made out of twine to the top of the tree on the back. This will be used to hang the tree from the Command hook, so make sure it’s secure. I used hot glue and a piece of strong packing tape to secure my loop.
- Place the two pieces of Velcro tape so that they are stuck together. Cut 1-inch squares.
- Stick one side of the Velcro tape to the front of the tree in various spots. It’s so easy, a 2-year-old can help! I placed the soft side of the Velcro on the tree, but you can use the rough side too if you want. Make sure to press the Velcro pieces so that they are secured to the felt.
- Hang the Command hook on the wall. Attach the loop to the Command hook and make sure the tree hangs so that it’s flat against the wall.
- Now it’s time to make the ornaments! Together with your child, brainstorm what you’d like to make. We decided to make stars, triangles, candy canes, gingerbread people, presents, and race cars. If your child would like to, have your child draw the ornaments on different colored pieces of felt. Cut the shapes out with fabric scissors. Then, stick the other side of the Velcro pieces to the back of the shapes.
- Invite your child to hang the ornaments wherever they’d like on the tree!
