When I was a kid one of our favorite holiday family activities was making a popcorn/cranberry garland and putting it all around our Christmas tree. Buuuutttttt…between fishing out popcorn kernels, pieces of popcorn all over the floor and worrying about the dog eating the popcorn string we always wished there was a better way. Enter…of all places…The White House, and this viral faux popcorn garland!
Yep…The White House!
Thanksgiving weekend I was honored to join a group of eleven Pinterest creators to help decorate The White House. THE WHITE HOUSE! And lo and behold one of our DIY projects was to create this faux popcorn garland using chenille yarn. It was the brainchild of our team lead Johanna Burke (you should follow her on Instagram!) and EVERYONE kept coming by to see how we’d created this gorgeous holiday garland. She was gracious enough to allow us to share her faux popcorn design and today I am thrilled to pass it along to you!
The best part? You can use it over and over every holiday season! With an old-fashioned cranberry popcorn garland we were lucky if it lasted until Christmas was over. With this DIY garland you can create it, enjoy it, then pack it away with the Christmas decorations for next year! {FTC Disclosure: this post contains affiliate links which means I may make a small commission on sales at no additional cost to you!}
Supplies:
- red wood beads – you can also use plain wood beads and paint them!
- chenille yarn – I used a cream color to mimic the true color of white popcorn – who knows why it says the color is seed green
- sharp scissors – and some for all my lefty friends!
- jewelry wire – you can also use string, fishing line or thin floral wire
- needle with a large eye
Directions:
1. Cut chenille in to approximately 12″ lengths – you don’t need to be exact.
2. Fold the chenille in half and tie a loose knot around your finger (on the folded end), you can manipulate it until it looks like a piece of popcorn.
3. Flip the chenille around and tie another loose knot that touches the first one, then trim off the loose ends.
4. Repeat LOTS of times until you have a big pile of popcorn.
5. Thread the jewelry wire through the needle. I just leave the wire on the spool because it doesn’t twist.
Use the needle to thread your popcorn on to the wire, then add an occasional wood bead (DIY cranberry) as you go. I usually do about ten inches of popcorn between beads but it is totally up to you!
Once you’ve got a nice long garland (be sure to leave some wire on the front end) leave a few inches of wire and trim. No need to tie a knot at the end – it wouldn’t work anyway. 🙂 You can use the wire ends to tie the garland in place on your tree or on your fireplace mantel for an easy traditional holiday look.
Adding it to your Home Decor
This fake popcorn garland adds a whimsical touch to your holiday decor, you can make the garland a little bit at a time (like while watching netflix) and my biggest tip is to cut lots of 12″ yarn pieces up front, because once you make the first piece of popcorn you’ll be hooked!
I feel like this should go without saying…but this is the interwebs soooo…this is for decorative purposes only (don’t eat it!) and is only for indoor use.
And as for The White House? My friends and I have all been sharing our experiences on social media and we’re all giving you step by step tutorials for recreating some of our favorite White House decorations in your own home. I’ll add the links to additional posts as I write them (ha!) but head on over and get inspired!
Love Your Abode
First Gen House
At Charlotte’s House
Marite Does It
Crafty Lumberjacks
Ugly Ducking House
Anita Yokota
Hand Makes Home
KellMarcel
The House That Lars Built
Merry Christmas!
WANT TO HEAR MORE ABOUT DECORATING THE WHITE HOUSE? CHECK OUT THIS BLOG POST:
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