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Christmas Tree Craft with Paint Sticks

It’s week two of our Deck the Home Blog Hop and this week we were challenged to make something with wood.  I thought long and hard about what to make and settled on a Christmas Tree Craft using paint stir sticks.  You’re going to want to make your own when you see that you don’t need a power saw to make your own.

Paint stir stick christmas tree craft completed against reclaimed boards.

The steps are pretty easy, the hardest part was deciding on a color scheme.  You could make yours all green but I wanted to follow a theme I started with the Button Ornaments I made the other day.  It’s fun to mix up your holiday decor colors every now and then and this combination is so pretty.

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Christmas Tree Craft Supplies

Getting Started

Did you know you can buy paint sticks?  They are better quality than the ones you get for free when you buy paint, and they’re not that expensive.  You can get the at Home Depot for under $1 for 10, or in larger quantities Online.

Mark and cut paint sticks in the following measurements, top to bottom:

  • 1″
  • 1-3/4″
  • 2-1/2″
  • 3-1/4″
  • 4″
  • 4-3/4″
  • 5-1/2″
  • 6-1/4″
  • 7″
  • 1-3/8″ (tree trunk affixed vertically)

Paint sticks measured with ruler and marked.

This part is fun.  You can use these little saws for so many things.  It’s really nice to cut something small without having to get out the miter saw.

  • Use a fine tooth pull saw to easily cut the paint sticks as marked.

Paint stick getting cut with pull saw for Christmas tree craft.

  • Sand the rough edges of the cut paint sticks before assembling your Christmas tree craft.

Sanding cut end of christmas tree craft paint stick.

  • Paint the paint stir sticks in alternating colors starting with Green craft paint at the top.  Then paint the remaining sticks Pink.

Paint sticks being painted green for christmas tree craft.

I didn’t have a shade of pink on my craft paint shelf so I mixed white with red until I got a shade I liked.  Make sure you mix enough the first time so you don’t run out.  It will be very hard to match later.

  • Using white craft paint give your 12″x14″ board a few coats of paint.

Plywood board being painted white for christmas tree craft.

  • When the paint is dry apply a thin layer of Mod Podge to the white paint.

Adding mod podge to white plywood christmas tree craft board.

This part is messy so I suggest you lay out some white craft paper under your project to keep the glitter contained.

  • Sprinkle heavily with extra fine glitter to cover completely and press in.
  • Shake excess off onto a sheet of craft paper to catch and return to the container.

Adding glitter to mod podge on christmas tree craft board.

  • Let the glittered board dry completely.

Assembling your Christmas Tree Craft

Normally I use a glue gun when making projects but I wanted some dry time so I could make adjustments as needed to the branches of my little Christmas tree.  I normally like to measure everything but this time I eyeballed most of this project.  Except for marking the paper beneath the board with a center mark (not shown).

  • Start from the bottom up and affix the 1-3/8″ piece vertically as the trunk with the a few lines of Tacky Glue.
  • Keep working upward leaving approximately the thickness of a paint stick between each layer.

Gluing painted paint sticks to glittered christmas tree craft board.

When all the branches are on take some time to make necessary adjustments before the glue sets.

This is where you can use the ruler to make sure you have the same distance from the bottom of the board to the bottom green paint stick.  Then make any necessary adjustments as you move upward.

Layers of christmas tree craft being adjusted and evened up.

  • Make any topper you like but I hot glued a cute flower button with a rhinestone onto a pink button I had left over from my other project.

Glue sparkly white button onto pink button for christmas tree craft topper.

Rub some glitter onto the green and pink “branches” for a little extra sparkle (glue’s not necessary as a few flakes will stick easily).

Pink and Green Christmas tree craft with glitter.

I love this little button and wish I had several more of them.  Let your cute new Christmas Tree Craft dry for at least a few hours to make sure nothing slides when you lift it.

Christmas tree craft button topper

And it’s finished!  Now you can either add a picture hanger to the back or prop it against a wall.  I haven’t decided where mine will live this season so currently it’s leaning against the wall in my office.

Side view of completed christmas tree craft

I hope you love this cute craft Christmas Tree!  Don’t forget to check out all the other creative Wood projects linked up below.

Pin it for later

Completed pink and green christmas tree craft

blog hop participant names.

Lynne B Boyer

Saturday 11th of December 2021

Love this Christmas tree. Simple and elegant. My sorority colors are pink and green. So I am definitely going to make theses as gifts. Thanks for the idea.

Betsy

Wednesday 14th of November 2018

I'm a sucker for anything built with paint sticks so I'm totally on board... it turned out so cute! I love how simple it is!

meegan

Tuesday 13th of November 2018

I am in love with your craft stick Christmas tree! So easy and those colors are magical. Thanks for the tutorial, too.

Christine

Tuesday 13th of November 2018

What a fun craft! I love how you re-purposed the paint sticks #free!

Amy

Monday 12th of November 2018

Oh my goodness, this is adorable! What a clever idea! And I absolutely love your color scheme. Pink and green are my two favorite colors. :)