Use trimmings from the Christmas tree to make a lovely Christmas swag. This post contains affiliate links which, when purchased through, add no cost to the consumer but help support this site. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Three years ago, my husband and I decided that we wanted to create a new family tradition. The weekend after Thanksgiving, we load up in the car and drive to the mountains. For us, this is only about an hour and a half away, and the kids always have a great time. We’ve continued the tradition each year since. We drive to the same specific tree farm, climb the hill, and find the perfect Christmas tree. My daughter and my husband take the task very seriously. The triplets take rolling down the hill very seriously. In the end, we have all made fabulous memories, and it has become something that the kids look forward to after Thanksgiving each year.
We bring our chosen tree home and get it ready for decorating. My husband cuts away any low hanging branches that hinder placing the tree into the tree stand. It is never a large amount of trimmings, but we always have a small stack left over.
I enjoy the fragrance of a fresh Christmas tree, and I wanted to do something simple with the trimmings. I decided to make a swag. A swag is a wreath alternative that, instead of being the traditional round wreath shape, is vertical. I had enough trimmings to make two swags, one small and one large. With the additional of a bow and a few pinecones that I already had on hand, I had two cute swags that cost me nothing to make other than 30 minutes of my time.
Here are the items that I had on hand that I used to create these swags:
I cut the trimmed branches and arranged them on top of one another until they were the desired fullness. I then wrapped the top branch portion where they all came together with floral wire. For maximum security or for larger, tie branches together one at a time. For the smaller swag, I tied them all together at once.
*I have seen some crafters use duct tape to secure the branches together, but I have not personally done this.
I used the hot glue gun to attach a bow around the top, covering the floral wire. I cut a small portion of ribbon and hot glued it around the floral wire. I then created a separate bow and hot glued it in the middle of the ribbon.
Lastly, I secured the pine cones with floral wire. I wrapped the floral wire around the pine cone and then secure it around a branch. I placed the pine cones around strategically until I was happy with the look.
Swags are easy to make a customize. Ornaments, bells, ribbon, and any other embellishments are great items to use to decorate a swag. If you are inspired to create a swag from Christmas tree trimmings this year, use what you have in your home first to make this an inexpensive project.
Prop the swags up within your Christmas decor or use floral wire to create a hanger to hang the swag from the door.
