12 Days of Christmas, Day 2, Twig Tree Card Holder

Day 2, woohoo--FINALLY!

Today's project is simple and rustic and primitive--a simple tree branch card holder.

I have lots of ideas to change it up to meet your decor, but I am getting ahead of myself. First let me give you the basics:


Start with a pile of twigs or branches.

Using the chop saw, I cut the longest piece 32 inches long.  I cut 7 other branches, making each one about 3 or 4 inches shorter.  I laid them out to make sure I had what I wanted for the size and shape tree I had in mind

Drill a hole on the ends of each of the branches about 1 inch in from the end, using a 1/4" drill bit.  Drill just one hole in the top piece, make it a little larger.

Measure out about 14 feet of jute.  Use some tape on the ends of the jute to make it easy to thread them through branches.

Find the middle point of the jute and put it through the top, smallest branch.  Tie a loop in the jute for hanging the tree. Tie a knot under the branch to secure it in place.

Measure down 7 inches and tie a double knot on each piece of the jute.  

Thread the next sized branch on the jute and then tie a double knot under it.

Continue until all of the branches are tied on.  Hold it up as you work to make sure your knots and branches are even on each side.  When you get to the last branch, tie a larger knot just to make sure everything is secure and cut off any extra jute.

I added a metal star painted red to the top.  

To hang cards as they arrive, keep a small container with ribbons cut to 10-12" long and a hole punch.

Simply punch a hole in the card and tie it on to the tree.

Variations--I always like to include ideas so you can personalize this and make it your own: use dowels instead of branches for a less rustic look--paint green, white, gold, hang ornaments from the branches instead of cards, secure binder clips to the branches for a different way to hang cards, instead of using jute, use ribbon to secure the tree together, use this as an advent calendar by tying on small, numbered brown bags with little gifts in them.