DIY Ribbon Trees for any Occasion Tutorial

I was browsing on an online store website looking at Christmas tabletop decorations and came across a burlap and plaid ribbon tree that I really liked, however, I was not a fan of the price tag at nearly $60. I thought that this was something that I could re-create at a fraction of the cost.

Although I really loved the burlap/plaid combo on the decoration, I didn't have that ribbon at home and wanted to use items that were available to me. So below I will post the steps that allowed me to create this ribbon tree.

Cost - under $5

Time - 1 hour

Level - Easy

DIY Ribbon Tree

Before I continue, this blog was intended to reveal my process and things that failed and worked as well as any mistakes I make along the way, because that's how we learn the best. So with that in mind, I started out making a blue/grey/lace ribbon tree (thinking I had enough ribbon), but guess what? I ran out of ribbon. So I need to see if I can locate more of that ribbon (which I had purchased at the dollar store). So you will see that tree partly done, but I have included a smaller ribbon tree (the one above) that I did manage to complete with the same process. So a note for anyone doing this, make sure to have lots of ribbon on hand, it will take a bit more than you think.

Supplies

• cone trees purchased or homemade (for homemade I have included some instructions for those).

• ribbon

• hot glue gun

• scissors (to cut the ribbon)

• ruler (to measure ribbon strips)

How to make your own cone tree.

You can purchase styrofoam cone trees from the dollar store or you can make 4 cones from one sheet of poster board which I purchased from the dollar store for 50 cents fo 2 sheets of poster board. So that equates to approximately 12 cents per cone.

Making your own cone tree is simple and inexpensive. I followed this online Youtube video from Handimade which provided an easy step by step process, so click here if you want to see the video. Otherwise, just take a look at my photos that show the process as well.

Step by Step Instructions for DIY Cone Tree.

1. Gather supplies.

• poster board

• pencil

• tape

• string

• scissors

• ruler

DIY Paper Cone Supplies

2. Measure. If you want a 10" inch tree then from the corner of the poster board measure 10" inches. For this project, I created one 10" and one 6" paper cone.

Measure 10"

3. Tie a piece of string (that is cut longer than your 10") around the end of your pencil.

Tie string around a pencil

4. Hold the other end of the string at your 10" pencil mark.

5. Place the tip of the pencil in the other corner of the paper.

6. Draw a half-circle. While holding the string tight at your 10" mark move the pencil up and draw yourself a half-circle.

Draw an arc or half circle.

7. Cut out your half circle and begin to form a cone. It's difficult to show it in photos, so watching the online video will help. Just keep playing with it until it resembles the cone shape you desire. If you measured 10 inches, then the paper cone will be approximately 10 inches in height.

Roll the paper into a cone shape

Cone is beginning to take shape

8. Tape the seams on the paper once you've reached your desired cone shape and then repeat the process to make other sizes if you wish.

Side by side comparison of the purchased foam cone versus the DIY Paper Cone

Example of different sizes: two 10" and one 6" cones.

Now that your cones are assembled, you are ready to begin prepping the ribbon to create the DIY ribbon trees!

Ribbon Tree DIY Tutorial Step by Step Instructions:

1. Gather your ribbon. For my ribbon tree, I chose silky teal, silver grey and lace ribbon.

Gather ribbon

2. Measure your ribbon and cut to 4" lengths. You can cut the ribbon to any length you like, as long as you can form a loop (as seen below) with it. You can experiment with different lengths. If you were to make a much taller tree, you may want longer loops.

Measure ribbon

It's easiest to have all your ribbon cut up ahead of time.

Create your ribbon piles

3. Begin forming loops. Use a hot glue gun to apply a drop of glue to the tip of the ribbon and then take the opposite end of the ribbon and press together to form a loop. I would lay out around 5 pieces of ribbon at a time and put glue drops on them and then make loops, instead of one at a time.

Glue the ribbon

Fold into a loop

Try to make up as many loops as you can ahead of time, that way when it comes time to assemble your ribbon tree, it's as easy as possible.

4. Begin assembly. Decide where you want your first loop to rest and begin assembling the ribbons by applying a drop of glue with the glue gun to the back of the ribbon loop and pressing onto the paper or foam cone.

Begin Ribbon Tree Assembly

Decide if you want a pattern and then apply accordingly. For this ribbon tree, I decided to use the pattern of 2 teal, one silver, one lace and then repeat. It's okay if the ends of the ribbon are frayed from where they were cut, they will be hidden when you overlap the ribbon rows.

The first row is completed.

5. Repeat the process. Now just repeat the process for the remaining rows, keeping in mind to offset the colours as you go. For example, when I began the second row, I made sure to have the teal ribbon placed on top of the silver and lace ribbon to create a staggered look.

The second row completed.

Okay, so this is where I learn from a mistake. I didn't have enough teal or silver ribbon to complete my last rows...agh! I only had 3 meters of each ribbon colour, definitely needed double that. While frustrating, it's okay because I had bought that ribbon at the dollar store in the past and I'm sure I can get it again. So I will try to get there this week, so I can purchase more and finish the tree and then I will re-post an update with the completed project. But this happens all the time with DIY projects. So, instead, I moved onto my smaller 6" paper cone tree that I had constructed and this time I used red, green and white ribbon (and I made sure I had lots of ribbon for that, I had around 6 meters of ribbon in each colour and had plenty leftover).

Again, I followed the same steps for my 6" paper cone tree as I did for the 10" DIY ribbon tree. I measured and cut my ribbon and created a bunch of loops.

I wasn't sure how to finish off the top of my cone to conceal the ribbon edges, so I played around with making bows. You probably glue a small ornament to the top too to act as a tree topper as well.

6 - inch ribbon tree

So this project cost me only 50 cents since I had the ribbon on hand and only needed to buy the poster board to create the tree cones. I'm quite pleased with how they turned out, they had a pop of colour to any tabletop decoration.

I also think you could create DIY ribbon paper cone trees for any occasion just by switching up the ribbon. Think different colours of red ribbon for Valentines or soft pastels for an Easter display.

This craft was definitely fun, simple and inexpensive.

Comment below if you have any questions or upload a picture of your DIY ribbon tree! Thanks for taking the time to read this and here's to making memories by hand!