DIY Flocked Christmas Tree Using Supplies from the Dollar Store

Being from the midwest I am a fan of a white Christmas. It doesn't happen often around here, but I love it when it does. Couple that with childhood memories of a sweet flocked Christmas tree that was deemed "the kid tree" and I decided to try my hand at flocking my own tree this year. I walked into the local Dollar Tree {you all know how much I love that store!} and picked up all the supplies I needed for under $5. I think the end result is pretty spectacular! Keep reading to get the full tutorial on how to flock an artificial Christmas tree using supplies from the dollar store.

Don't miss my whole series on What Not to Buy at the Dollar Store

How to Flock an Artifical Tree Using Supplies from the Dollar Store

There is something special about opening the front door to the home and feeling like the halls truly are decked. I love seeing this $2 garage sale tree flocked and sitting in a DIY basket tree stand {get the tutorial here} when I open the door. 

I couldn't believe how easy {but how intimidating it was!} to flock my own Christmas tree. I think it helped that I didn't tackle a larger tree to start off with and it wasn't a tree that I had paid a lot of money for either. I know artificial trees can sometimes get spendy, so if this sounds like you, perhaps you can pin this idea and come back to it after garage sale season where you will inevitably find an artificial tree you can flock.

I did a little research, but in the end, I came up with a recipe I thought would be easy to source on the cheap {my favorite!} and wouldn't take me too long to complete.  Here's what you will need for a small (3-4 foot) artificial Christmas tree: {all of these supplies were picked up at my local Dollar Tree} a paintbrush 2 cans of shaving cream {foam-unscented is the best} 2 bottles of liquid glue glitter {optional}

I mixed the supplies in my stand mixer. Shake and spray out one whole can of shaving cream. It will fill your entire bowl. Add the whole bottle of school glue {and optional glitter} and mix until you have stiff peaks. Almost as if you are making a meringue. 

Cover your work space with a drop cloth. You will be making a little bit of a mess.

Tips to flocking your Christmas tree with shaving cream:

I started at the top of the tree and did my best to flick {not brush-it looks unnatural} the mix onto the branches of the tree. I liked the mixture to be heavy on the end branches and filling up into the middle. Clusters of foam will make your tree look more natural and snow-fallen. You want your mixture to fall from the branches as naturally as possible the way falling snow does.  Continue to flick and rub {don't brush!} the shaving cream mixture onto the tree branches avoiding the underside of the branches as much as possible.

I had to continue this process with another bottle of shaving cream and another bottle of glue. In total, I used 2 bottles of each for the whole tree. In fact, I brought out several other small trees to try flocking as well. so this mixture would probably be enough to cover about a 4-foot tall tree. If your tree is larger, you will need more bottles of each, but I found that one bottle of shaving cream plus one bottle of glue mixed in the stand mixer, was the perfect combination to heavily cover about two feet of tree.

Allow your flocked tree to dry overnight.  The shaving cream flocking mixture will firm up and will stick to the branches. 

Is there a mess with a flocked Christmas tree?

There was very little mess. No more so than you would find with the set up of a real Christmas tree. This is the mess on the floor after I put lights on the tree and adjusted it in the DIY basket stand I had made.

Flocking my own tree is probably my favorite holiday DIY to date! I just love how it's turned out.

Who knew shaving cream could look so good?  Don't be intimidated! Give it a try. If you have to start small and get brave! Maybe next year I'll tackle our large tree. If you do DIY flock your Christmas tree with supplies from the dollar store, won't you tag me? I'd love to see them! I'm @msrachelteodoro on all social media. Happy flocking to you!

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