Simple Redwood Christmas Decorations You Can Make

Redwood cones are very useful and flexible as Christmas decorations. They are the perfect size for a smaller tree or to add to the top of a large tree as they are not too heavy. Just painting them can make an effective ball for a tree! Adding some glitter glue adds some sparkle as well!

Tip: I paint on a coat of Tacky or white crafter glue to seal in the scent. It can be strong, especially in newer brown cones. To reduce the scent, I will often choose grey weathered cones as they don't have as much scent. This is especially important if you have someone with allergies in the house.









Materials:

acrylic paint (red, white, green)
tacky glue
glitter glue
paintbrush
water cup
ribbons (to hang them with).

dried redwood (sequoia) cones (with stems is ideal but you can also use a hot gun to glue stems on them.)

Step 1: 

Collect your materials. 









Step 2:

Start with painting some solid colors, then coating them with glitter glue. I even left a few natural!








Other options:
Painting two or three colors. Use the existing cone scale pattern to guide you in what to paint. The one on the left I painted red and white, painting one color at a time. Let dry between colors. The one on the right I painted red, white and green.








Here are the finished product after painting with tacky glue. Depending on the glue you use, it may or may not have a shine.








You can make your own bow and a piece of string to hang them from the tree. 










If you add a green leaf (large pine scale painted green or fabric cut in the shape of a leaf) to a red one, it looks like an apple! Have fun! 

You can purchase clean dry and bug-free red wood (sequoia) cones here! 

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