Upcyled Chair Spindle Christmas Trees {craft fail?}
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Making an upcycled chair spindle Christmas tree seems like a great idea, right?
Upcycled Chair Spindle Christmas Tree Display
They say imitation is the best form of flattery. My good friend, Holly from Full Circle Creations, makes these great trees-not this one, that one is mine. I’m sure Holly would not want to claim it. It all sounded good when I started. I put a call out on Facebook for an unwanted Christmas tree. My cousin Lois had one she wanted to get rid of. She’s always good about tossing stuff my way. Do you remember the sewing cabinet and the crib into an easel/sandwich board?
Repurposed Christmas Tree
The tree was in great shape and probably worked just fine. Dismantling a perfect tree was difficult, but I got busy removing the lights.
Here are some of the branches with their lights removed.
Bucket of Chair Spindles
I gathered some readily available upcycled chair spindles.
Cut the Pieces to Size
I cut some of the chair spindle parts.
Then, I cut some bases out of some leftover lumber.
Add Base to Upcycled Chair Spindle
These were much like I made the pedestal stands a few months ago. I drilled a pilot hole in the base and the bottom of the spindle. By screwing the screw slightly through the base, and using some Gorilla Wood Glue, then attaching the spindle, I got a tight fit.
Spindles and Bases
I made four different ones and went looking for some taller spindles.
I found these hanging out in my shed. You can see some more bases lying on the table.
I was testing out a branch from the tree. Looks pretty good, eh?
Spindle Christmas Trees
I spray-painted the upcycled chair spindles and their bases black.
Then it goes wrong. First, let’s take a look at my inspiration photo from Holly:
Holly from Full Circle Creations does beautiful work, and her trees look great!
Mine? Not so much! I mean, the trees look okay. The plan was to take a few decorated trees to show what can be done…
Maybe I should use them to show how NOT to decorate a cute spindle Christmas tree. Craft fail? You tell me, what should I do?
gail
Check out this collection of Wooden Spindle Projects
Shirley said:
I like them. I wonder if you drill holes in the spindle on a slant and add pine into them. Maybe that would make it look fuller.
Love your blog.
Not a fail at all! Just adjust the scale of the decorations and use less and your good to go. Putting the smaller decorations deeper inside the tree will help as well, rather than on the outside limbs. Tiny bunting would look cute and you could use fabric or paper for that with some twine. Or even tiny pine cones attached to twine for garland. I love the idea though!
I absolutely don’t think this is a fail project. I love your trees. I used an alpine tree that I took apart to make my trees which just gives it a different look. And it definitely is not a competition. If I didn’t already make them myself, I’d buy one of yours!
Have a great day!
Holly
I agree with the above about using smaller ornaments. The ornaments you are using are over powering the tree.
Have a great day Gail!
No need to respond; rest that shoulder.
Oh you NEVER clog my inbox… I just didn’t want you to feel you HAD to respond. ๐
They are really cute! I agree will all the above…I also think they would be cute put in groups of three. You know a tall one in the back and then one a little shorter and one shorter still… It would make a great corner display! Great job!
Good comments above. I think you should also consider cutting the branches so they are more of a tree shape. That’s the main difference I can see between yours and the inspiration photos. She used small trees.
I love the idea! The small red one with the star looks the best decorated…maybe just show them with minimal decor…with ornaments on a smaller scale. I would love to decorate with several trees like that! =D
They look okay to me, But loose the garland and use smaller ornaments. And use battery opterated lights. Check Dollar tree for both of those.
Sharon
Gail,
Yeah…. a project we have both undertaken (and here I thought I was being original, having never seen Holly’s)! First and foremost NO this is NOT a craft fail!!! That said it just needs a few tweaks…. take a pair of wire cutter and snip a few of the upper branches shorter to give it a more conical shape. We used garland which we had given a haircut so that it became mini garland (worked great and all I did was vacuum up the mess because there was a HUGE mess!) and miniature ornaments graced the trees. think super inexpensive at the dollar store…. You mini ball ornaments may look just fine once you give your garland a haircut… it will give you an excuse to watch an old favorite movie and rest your shoulder! If you have ANY questions please give me a holler!! (no I don’t have any pictures because it was pre-blogging days… sorry!)
They look fine to me!
I love the idea and I agree with smaller ornaments and no or mini garlands yours will look more professional. Frankly I like the homemade look of yours. Great tutorial.
Shorter spindles and smaller ornaments — I think they are adorable!! I’d place them on a shelf, mantel — up high.