October 3, 2014

DIY Fall Decorations: Falling Leaves

I have a confession to make: I JUST took down the very last of my Valentine’s Day decorations. Many Waters DIY Fall Decor Falling LeavesYes, I had my hanging hearts up for seven months!  I thought about just leaving them up but with Christmas coming and the way I love to decorate, I knew it wouldn’t happen.  So I decided to use the tension rod for some fall decor before Christmas gets here and I put the ornaments up again.  

Since I’m a New England girl at my core, Fall for me means gorgeous, vibrant leaves on the trees.  I love the reds, oranges and yellows in the fall foliage.  It one of the things I miss most about living in the PNW (and the lack of close apple picking, but that’s another post!)  I decided that having some fake falling leaves in the random empty space would be a perfect way to get a foliage fix, even if they are fakes!  Being fake means I don’t have to worry about them crumbling and making a mess, right?!?




Supplies:
Tension rod that fits the space/window you’re filling
Fishing line
Leaf Garland
Fake leaves
Hot glue gun and hot glue sticks
Scissors


What I did:

1.  I put the empty rod up and then wrapped the leaf garland around it.  I finagled it so it would stay in place by itself.

2.  I cut varying lengths of fishing line

3.  On each end of the fishing line, hot glue a leaf.  I tried to vary the colors on each string.

Many Waters Hot Gluing Leaves

4.  Once the glue was cool, I took the line over and draped it over the rod and the garland.  You can either keep the line equal so the leaves are next to each other or you can move it up and down so the leaves stop at different lengths.

*hint*  Carrying more than one strand at a time can cause them to get tangled up.  I spent more time untangling the leaves than I did making them.  Next time I wouldn’t carry as many at once.

5.  Make as many falling leaves as you want.

6. Stand back and enjoy!

I was able to complete this during nap time with a lot of time to spare.  It’s also pretty cheap.  I paid $5 for the whole thing as the only item I had to buy was the leaf garland.  I got it 50% off at JoAnn’s.  It was originally $10 so it ended up being five bucks. I saw the packages of silk leaves (50 in each one, which is MORE than enough) at the dollar store.  If you have a glue gun, glue sticks and fishing line, they’re free!  You might have to buy the tension rod but then you can reuse it for more decorations.  So for well under $10 you can have a super cute fall decoration! 

Many Waters Falling Leaves

If you make one or something similar, I’d love to see the finished product!

18 comments:

  1. The fall foliage is one of my favorite parts of living in New England! It is gorgeous here right now! What a creative way to bring that beauty into your home wherever you are!

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  2. Thanks for linking up to the Bloggers Brags Pinterest Party! Your post has been pinned to the Bloggers Brags Pinterest Board :)



    I love this! I actually have a fall leaf garland with lights going across the beam in my living room that has been there since last October. We had gotten it for our wedding and then hung it up right after. I don't think we will be taking it down anytime soon, lol.. I like the fishing line idea. I think we have some extra leaf pieces we could use for that :)

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  3. Ooh, I bet it would be really pretty in your living room!

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  4. Oh, I so miss it! There is no place like New England in the fall:)

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  5. YAY YAY YAY!! I have some individual leaves (that I bought for another project and decided not to do it), that this will be PERFECT for. Oh, I'm so excited!! Last night I started decorating for fall, and it just makes me so happy! Pinning this so I can make it tonight or tomorrow :)

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  6. I tried to do this once years ago (I was using fishing line & small butterflies to make a mobile), and I couldn't get the decorations to hang straight down since fishing line comes wrapped pretty tight. How did you get yours to hang straight?

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  7. Thank you for sharing at the Merry Monday Link Party! This is a great way to bring the colors of the season into your home - and I love that it was quick, easy and inexpensive to make!

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  8. When you make it I'd love to see it!

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  9. Um, I just let them hang and they went straight on their own. I didn't do anything to make them straight. I think the weight of the glue and leaf is enough to make it straight.

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  10. Thanks so much for coming by! I also love it for all those reasons:)

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  11. This is so cute! It would go great with the wreath I made this week. Found you on Merry Monday!

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  12. This is such a great idea! I really do want to decorate for the season. I hope I get it done this season! Thank you for linking up with Creative Style Linkup! Have a blessed weekend!

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  13. Thanks!


    Sorry it's taken me so long to respond.

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  14. Thank you!


    And thanks for coming by:)

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  15. How cute is this! I might need to use this soon. I love the fall leaves and the colors, too. I'm from NJ but we live in Arizona now. I don't even miss that about NJ actually. I'm content to stay here in my not so cold falls and winters, but I do love the way the colors look and when I see photos of nature of places that do have all four seasons. :)

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