I absolutely love a good holiday garland, but I ran into some trouble last year. When I went to the craft store to grab some for above the fireplace, everything was SO stiff and not malleable at all. So it made it really awkward and difficult to put on my mantel or any other flat surface—places where you want a garland to be relaxed and hang correctly.
To make matters even more perplexing, there were no plain garlands that were really full and fluffy. All of the options with lots of good volume had tons of pinecones (or birds or berries or whatever else you can think of) attached to them already—not bad necessarily, just not what I was looking for.
I’m going to share the solution I landed on with you today and I hope it helps if you are running into this same problem, or if you have some garland laying around that needs some new life.
One of the best parts is that the total for this project came out to be way less than a lot of already put together garlands that are not even close to as full looking.
You’re essentially going to take two different types of garland and weave them together to make something super fluffy and full. First, grab two traditional, inexpensive garland bunches.
Make sure it’s the kind that you can bend the branches and “fluff.” Here’s what I used from JOANN. I think this one could work even better, but I didn’t see it when I was there. Once you’ve got those secured, you want to find one bunch of more decorative, voluminous garland. I used this one.
Next, fluff your two evergreen garlands the best you can!
More garland ideas
- Christmas Sweater Garland DIY (With Free Printable!)
- Paper Leaf + Mandarin Garland
- DIY Swan Garland
- Custom Photo Garland DIY
Once you’ve got ’em good and fluffed, lay them out side by side and gently twist them together. Definitely don’t worry about getting a tight twist, as you want it to be pretty loose so there’s good volume, but not so loose that there’s a lot of space in between.
After you have your evergreen branches twisted together, weave in your decorative garland. I started at one end and just wrapped it under and over the combined evergreen garlands.
You may need to make some adjustments to get it just perfect, but that’s pretty much it. Super duper easy. Now comes the fun part—add ornaments, picks, and other baubles to your heart’s content! You could even add in some bleached pinecones (here’s the DIY!). Happy decorating. 🙂
xo Keely
What a great idea. Yes I have the same old garland that I’m wondering if I should throw away but what a great idea to weave together with other greenery. I hate to just buy a new one, because in a few years it will be the same story again. I hate wasting and this is a good way to reuse. Thanks and I love your podcast! I discovered from Young House Love and it is my new go to home decor podcast. I feel like I know you (which I guess is the point). It gives me lots of inspiration and humor.
Hi! Did you use two of the evergreen twisted together first and then added in the lighter greenery? Or is is one strand of evergreen end to end and then the lighter greenery mixed in? It looks so full and beautiful, more than just one evergreen and one decorative strand together. Just curious….. Thanks!