Really Quick DIY Christmas Tree - Kid Friendly

The DIY Christmas Tree is a great kid friendly holiday project. And now is the perfect time to get out into your shop and start making for the holidays. This DIY Christmas tree is quick and inexpensive to make and will look perfect on your mantel or as a center piece for your holiday table. Make several and give them as a lagniappe at your next Christmas Party.

Tools and Materials

Tools are really simple. I used my table saw but a Compound Miter Saw would be better, easier, faster, frankly safer too.

Materials are common Lath strips. Mine are leftovers from my Crate and Garden Tote projects. And of course, glue, either PVA like Titebond or CA glue with an Activator.

Layout

No layout required (didn’t I say it was easy…). Just stop blocks for repeatable cuts.

Cutting

So set your stop block for 8 inches. Then knock off the end at 45 degrees. You can choose a shallower or steeper angle depending on the look you want to achieve. Cut the cross pieces (limbs) in various lengths and cut a “trunk” and a base.

And be sure you do a trial or dry fit just to make sure you have all the parts and they fit.

Test fitting part for teh DIY Christmas Tree

Finishing

No sanding for this project! We want the rough surface. Finishing is nothing more than rattle can paint. I used Green, White, and Black. If you are doing this with kids your may want to glue up first, then have them paint with Tempura Paint (link below) or Latex paint. If you use Tempura be sure to apply a final coat of spray lacquer or varnish.

Assembly

Assembly is nothing more than gluing the “limbs” to the “trunk”. Easy enough if you are using CA Glue and Accelerator. Choose a Medium or Thick gap filling glue. Be aware that you only have a few seconds to position the “limbs”. If you are using a PVA glue like TiteBond you will need to let it sit undisturbed for about an hour or so.