Many people want to add fabric to their Christmas trees for added color, to fill in holes, and to add extra flair to their Christmas decor.
Your fabric can either be added straight from the bolt without any sewing (as shown in the photos below), or it can be cut into strips with the edges sewn so they do not unravel.
Here are a few interior designer tips, tricks, & ideas for how to add fabric garland to a Christmas tree.
Vertical Tuck Method
The most straight forward way of adding fabric to your Christmas tree is to use the vertical tuck method.
To decorate your Christmas tree using the vertical tuck method, simply start at the top of your Christmas tree and attach one end of fabric garland to your tree using floral wire #ad or chenille sticks #ad, also called pipe cleaners. If you have an artificial Christmas tree, you can bend one of the branches to keep the end in place.
Let the fabric garland hang down your Christmas tree and tuck in equally spaced sections. Once again, you can use floral wire or chenille sticks, or just bend a branch to keep the fabric in place.
You can have 3 to 7 sections of fabric coming down from the top of your tree, but make sure that you have the same amount of tucks in each section.
The photo to the right shows a 7-1/2 foot tall Christmas tree using approximately 3 yards of thin cotton fabric that is 45 inches wide.
Zig Zag Tuck Method
A slightly different take on the vertical tuck method is the zig zag tuck method.
The zig zag tuck method is the exact same as the vertical tuck method, except the sections go diagonally in opposite directions.
This method is easier to complete because it hides any sections that might not be perfectly the same length.
For added flair, you might want to add an ornament or other decoration at the fabric tuck locations.
The zig zag tuck method fills a bit more width than the vertical tuck method, so you won't need as many sections of fabric.
The photo to the right shows a 7-1/2 foot tall Christmas tree using a little over 3 yards of thin cotton fabric that is 45 inches wide.
Barber Pole Method
Another common way to add fabric garland to your Christmas tree is to use the barber pole method.
To decorate your Christmas tree using fabric garland in the barber pole method, attach the end of your fabric to the top of your Christmas tree.
Wrap the fabric around your Christmas tree in a diagonal.
The fabric should not be tucked far into the tree, but it should be just inside the tips of the branches.
Try to keep the distance between the fabric equal all the way down your tree, or you can slightly increase the distance as the tree gets wider.
In the photo on the right, the 7-1/2 foot tall Christmas tree is using approximately 9 yards of thin cotton fabric that is 45 inches wide.
Barber Pole Tuck Method
The barber pole tuck method is the same as the barber pole method, except the sections are tucked into the tree.
To accomplish the barber pole tuck method, follow the steps above, but make sure to tuck as you drape the fabric - don't try to tuck at the end.
Try to make your tucked sections an equal width, or you can make them a slightly wider width as the tree gets wider towards the bottom.
Don't try to get your tucks to align vertically, else it will look odd.
The photo to the right shows a 7-1/2 foot tall Christmas tree using just over 9 yards of thin cotton fabric that is 45 inches wide.
Diagonal Barber Pole Tuck Method
A more advanced way to attach fabric garland to your Christmas tree is to use the diagonal barber pole tuck method.
This method is a combination of the vertical tuck and barber pole tuck methods above.
Using the diagonal barber pole tuck method, one section of fabric starts at the top of the tree and goes diagonally to the bottom, but the next section starts slightly farther down, and so on.
The tricky part is trying to get the tucked sections approximately the same width and each section of fabric the same distance apart.
There is a similar way to complete this look using 1 section of fabric. Simply use the barber pole method, however at a more vertical angle than the barber pole method, but slightly more horizontal that the photo on the right. This method works best with a Christmas tree that is against a wall since the back side can look a bit odd.
The photo to the right shows a 7-1/2 foot tall Christmas tree using approximately 20 yards of thin cotton fabric that is 45 inches wide.
Random Method
If you want a more contemporary Christmas tree or just want to fill in some holes, the random method of applying fabric garland might be for you.
The random method creates poufs of fabric that appear randomly throughout the Christmas tree.
You can cut small sections of fabric and rubber band the ends to create a pouf and stick them randomly throughout the tree, or you can keep the fabric as one long piece running along the trunk of the tree and pull forward poufs in random places.
This method works well for Christmas trees with lots of decorations to where the fabric garland is not the focal point but used as a way to add color and make the Christmas tree look fuller.
In the photo on the right, the 7-1/2 foot tall Christmas tree is using approximately 9 yards of thin cotton fabric that is 45 inches wide.
Tips:
The photos above show a solid fabric garland, which is the most simplest. Also consider using a patterned fabric garland or multiple colors of fabric garland to customize your Christmas tree.
Consider purchasing gift wrap to compliment the colors and/or patterns in your fabric garland.
Also read the article Different Ways to Add Ribbon Garland to a Christmas Tree.
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