Learn how to make a pinecone wreath for Christmas in minutes with just a few supplies – this DIY pinecone wreath is such a lovely holiday and winter display!
Skills Required: Beginner. Even if you’ve never crafted before, you should be able to tackle this project pretty easily. You’ll be painting and gluing pinecones to a wreath form.
Hi DIY Candy friends! This is Liz from The Pretty Life Girls and today I’m going to show you the fun holiday wreaths I made for my dining room for just pennies.
I’m going to show you how to make a pinecone wreath for your Christmas decor – one of my favorite Christmas crafts of all time.
These mini Christmas wreaths are simple to put together, will looks gorgeous in your home, and cost less than a milkshake at DQ.
Pine Cone Wreaths
Before we jump into the tutorial, I wanted to answer a few frequently asked questions about this post. If you’re making a pinecone wreath, you might want to know about these. If you’re ready to make your wreath, simply scroll down to the tutorial.
How do I prepare the pinecones to make a wreath?
First you’ll soak them in sink full of hot water + 1 cup of vinegar for a few minutes. In order to bake out all the beasties and melt the sap, you’ll want to put the pinecones in the oven on a LINED cookie sheet at the lowest temp. Bake them for about 1 – 1.5 hours and let them cool.
How do you cut a pine cone for a wreath?
I find that gardening shears or snips work the best for cutting pine cones. The 8″ pruning shears work the best. However, I’m sure you can make it work with longer or shorter snips if you need to. Just be careful when cutting!
I didn’t cut pinecones for this wreath, I left them whole. But if you want the tops to face you, you’ll want to cut them, and that’s when I’d use the shears.
How do you glue pine cones?
I recommend using hot glue for pine cones. It sets immediately and attaches well to both the pinecone and the wreath base. You can use craft glue or something similar, but you’ll need to let the wreath dry on a flat surface for several hours so the cones don’t slide.
What paint do you use on pine cones?
Chalk paint works well, as does acrylic paint. if you paint the pine cones, you’ll want to make sure to soak them and bake them as the instructions indicate (above and below) so that the paint adheres well.
Are you ready to begin the project? Learn how to make a DIY pinecone wreath below!
Gather These Supplies
- Wreath form (I used a foam one from the dollar store)
- Pine cones (found mine for free, courtesy of the trees at our local high school)
- Craft paint (I used an acrylic chalky paint from Michaels and I love the chalky/distressed/matte finish it gave the wreaths)
- A knife, X-Acto or other sharp variety
- Hot glue gun and glue sticks
- Paintbrush
1. First, you will want to prep your pine cones if you found them out in nature. To do this, soak them in sink full of hot water + 1 c. of vinegar for a few minutes.
Next, transfer them to a foil-lined cookie sheet and put them in the oven on 250 degrees (or the lowest setting) for about an hour to 1.5 hours. This will get rid of bugs, get rid of the sticky sap, and dry them out. Plus, it will make your house smell OUTRAGEOUSLY good.
2. Next, get your wreath form ready. I found it was easier to glue down the pine cones if the surface of the form was flat and not round.
To do this, I used a knife to shave off some of the form to make it flat on one side. After you have done this, paint the wreath form the color you are painting your pine cones and let dry.
3. While your wreath form is drying, paint your pine cones! I found that I paint brush with bristles worked best to get the kinds of coverage I wanted.
4. Once the pine cones are dry, hot glue them to the form! There really are no rules with a pine cone wreath. I just kept gluing pine cones until I liked how it looked.
That’s it. Hang your DIY pinecone wreath using the red ribbon and scissors. Get some hot chocolate, turn on some White Christmas and let that Christmas spirit get the best of you! I love that you can keep these up pretty much all winter as well.
DIY Pinecone Wreath
Equipment
- Knife
Materials
- Wreath form
- Pine cones
- Acrylic paint white
- Ribbon(s) Red
Instructions
- Soak your pinecones in a sink of hot water with 1 cup vinegar. Then bake them at your oven’s lowest setting for 1 – 1.5 hours.
- If the wreath form isn’t flat, use a knife to trim the front and make it flat and smooth.
- Paint the wreath form with the same paint color as your pinecones and let dry.
- While the wreath form is drying, paint the pine cones. More bristles helps you get into the tight areas.
- Once the pine cones are dry, hot glue them to the form. Keep them tight for good coverage.
- Hang your DIY pinecone wreath using the red ribbon and scissors
Now, be sure to come and visit my sister and me as we blog about style, food, and the things we love over at The Pretty Life Girls. We love making winter wreaths!
Now that you know how to make a pinecone wreath, here are some other crafts that might be up your alley: