Growing up, Christmas was a huge deal in our home. My mom literally transformed our house with Christmas decorations. Since my mom passed, I’ve struggled to make the holidays feel as magical as they once did. Now that I have a house and family of my own, I hoping to bring some of that magic back in my own way, by creating new traditions and transforming our home similar to the way my mother once did.
So, this year I decided to step it up a bit with decorations. With that, I decided to upgrade to a larger tree – something I’ve been wanting to do for a while now. With a new tree comes new tree decor, so I began looking for tree decoration inspiration on Pinterest, of course. I was drawn to all of the flocked trees. I had never considered a flocked tree until now and I really loved how they looked. Because I knew pre-flocked trees are so much more expensive, I explored ways to do it myself. After finding a few tutorials and videos, I was confident I could flock my own Christmas Tree.
My Supplies
Flocking powder
I used SnoFlock flocking powder from Amazon. I purchased 5 pounds based on the recommendations listed under the product information. How much flock you need depends on how much coverage you want to achieve. I ended up using maybe 3 of the 5 pounds to cover my 9 foot tree and skinny 6 foot tree.
Strainer
A strainer is needed to spread the powder evenly on the tree. I purchased this medium sized one and it worked well for me. It is large enough to hold a good amount of the flocking powder without having to go back and refill too often. However, it is small enough to get in between branches as well.
Spray Bottle
I already had a spray bottle laying around at home. So, if you do as well, no need to purchase anything special. As long as it sprays out water you’ll be fine. I only wish my bottle was bigger. I had to refill it about 4 or 5 times, which isn’t a big deal but keep that in mind if you do have to purchase one.
Painters Paper
I also had a roll of this as well. We’ve done a lot of painting since we’ve moved into home almost 2 years ago, so the extra paper came in handy for this project. I just rolled out 3 sheets to cover about a 9 foot wide area of the garage floor. I read how messy the process can be, so I wanted to make sure I had plenty of space to work with. Really anything that can cover your work area that’s disposable or something that you don’t mind getting messy will work fine.
Artificial or Real Tree
I am using an artificial tree, but I’ve read that this process works for real trees as well. I’ve also read that pre-lit artificial trees can be flocked too. I purchased our tree online from Wayfair. The price was reasonable and it was delivered right to our door – hard to beat that. My personal preference is artificial trees mainly because I don’t have to worry about the maintenance, or spend money every year on a real tree. I also had a bad experience with e real tree. I’ll spare the details, but it involved insects. After that, I told me husband we were NEVER getting a real Christmas tree again!
The process
The SnoFlock powder comes with directions, and the process is pretty simple. You spray a section of the tree with water using your spray bottle, apply the powder with the strainer and spray that area again with water to set the powder. The directions actually tell you to spray the flock as it’s falling onto the tree, which can be tricky. If you do it that way, you must be extra careful not to spray the strainer, full of flocking powder, with the water. If that happens, the powder will start to expand in the sifter and clog it up. I went around my large tree twice to get the coverage I wanted. The last step is to wait and let it dry. I recommend waiting at least 48 hours before moving the tree indoors to decorate. Manipulating it too soon can result in a big mess.
Tips
- Flock your tree in a in a garage or basement. This process was messy and you don’t want to have to deal with the cleanup inside of your home. A garage or covered outdoor area is best.
- Wear socks you don’t mind throwing away or an old pair of shoes. Between the powder and the water, you’ll be stepping in and out of everything that falls to the floor.
- Cover the base or tree stand before you begin, to keep it clean and protected from the flocking powder
- Keep the bag of flocking powder away from the work area to make sure you do not accidentally get it wet while it’s still in the bag. And again, be careful not to spray the strainer with water for the same reasons.
- Because I did not have a taller stool, I removed the top section of my tree and flocked it separately. I’d recommend doing the same for tall trees or using a stool or ladder that’s high enough to allow you see the very top of the tree so you’re not working blindly.
- To make the process more enjoyable, listen to a podcast, audio book or your favorite playlist. It felt less like work or more therapeutic for me!
I really love how everything turned out. It definitely makes my artificial tree look more like a real one. Can’t wait to get the lights and ornaments on to make it all come together. Let me know if you have any questions. If you give this a try on your own tree, I’d love to see it! Tag me on social media using #AsiaNatashaTheBlog.
Also, if you are on Pinterest, follow me @ Asia Natasha where you can save and “pin” my blog posts as well!
