DIY Cardboard Trees
Cardboard is probably one of the most essential supplies for any crafter to have, and these DIY cardboard tree are all the proof you need to know why!
These decorative trees are neutral enough to be displayed all year long, or you can swap up the designs a little bit and turn these into cardboard Christmas trees!
How to make a DIY Cardboard Trees
I made three separate trees out of the supplies listed, so I’m going to walk you through them one at a time.
For the first cardboard tree, I started by using a ruler to mark and cut the patterned textured scrapbook paper into a triangle. You can see the size of my trees in the tutorial video, but you can make yours as small or as large as you want.
Once I cut the scrapbook paper, I traced it onto the cardboard and cut the cardboard to shape. Then, I applied a coat of Mod Podge onto the cardboard and placed the scrapbook paper onto the cardboard.
Press the scrapbook paper down firmly and allow the Mod Podge to dry. I trimmed any excess paper from the cardboard and started working on the base.
I pushed three wood dowels down into the candle holder top and glued it in place. Then, I positioned the cardboard triangle onto the wood dowels to create the height I wanted.
Trim the dowels to the height that you want, then glue the decoupaged cardboard triangle to the wood dowels. Next, I mixed a bit of white and green paint together and lightly brushed it across the scrapbook paper.
Once that coat of paint was dry, I lightly brushed some darker grey paint onto the scrapbook paper to slightly grunge it up a bit.
Lastly, I created the border for this cardboard tree out of burlap and glued it in place!
The second cardboard tree
For the second cardboard tree, I followed the same process, just with slightly different supplies. I used corrugated scrapbook paper and cut it to the size I wanted.
Then, I cut the cardboard to the same size and decoupaged the scrapbook paper onto the cardboard triangle. I pushed the dowels into the candle holder and trimmed them to the size I wanted.
I alternated between shimmering silver paint and brown paint to create a layered finish on the corrugated scrapbook paper.
Lastly, I created the border of this cardboard tree out of the 1-inch reed. I trimmed it so that it was slimmer and not too bulky for my triangle, then stained it with brown paint.
To stain the reed, mix a bit of brown paint with water and apply it with a wet wipe. Use a clean wet wipe to remove the excess, then allow the stain to dry.
Glue the stained reed around the border of the cardboard triangle, and you’re done with the second cardboard tree!
The third cardboard tree
For the final DIY cardboard tree, I used burlap instead of scrapbook paper, but repeated the same process.
I cut the burlap and cardboard to the same size triangle and secured the burlap onto the cardboard. I painted the burlap with the DecoArt graphite paint and layered a bit of brown paint to add dimension.
Secure the dowels to the candle base the same way you did for the previous two cardboard trees, and glue the cardboard triangle to the dowels. Lastly, for the border, I used wood bead garland!
I hope you enjoyed these DIY Cardboard Decorative Vases as much as I did and decide to make them for yourself! I would love to see how yours turns out!
You should totally join my FREE Facebook group called On A Budget Crafts! It is a judgment-free community for DIY crafters to show off their projects and ideas.
Watch the DIY tutorial
I shared how to make these super cute DIY Cardboard Trees during a LIVE video on my Facebook page.
If you want to see the DIY process, craft along, or just join in on the fun conversations you can watch the DIY tutorial replay on Facebook!
For this project, I will be using these items but you can substitute where you want.
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- Cardboard
- Corrugated Scrapbook Paper
- Dollar Tree wood bead garland
- Patterned Scrapbook Paper
- 3 Small wood candle holders
- Dollar Tree wood dowels
- Wood bead garland
- White Fabric (not used)
- Burlap
- Metal Ribbon (not used)
- 1-inch Reed
- Paint of choice
- DecoArt White
- DecoArt Graphite
- Apple Barrel Burnt Umber
- DecoArt Shimmering Silver
- DecoArt Desert Cactus
- Hot glue gun and glue sticks
If you loved these DIY Cardboard Trees you might also like this Chippy Rosette Home Decor!
Thanks for stopping by! XOXO Amber
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