DIY POM POM TREE

It is the weekend and I have caught the worst cold.

I will spare you the details on my aching muscles and the rainbow-colored goo coming out of my nose. (Always had a feeling I was of unicorn descent though, need to look into that!)

But I do mention it anyhow because although not a pretty sight, I feel oddly inspired by my indisposition.

You see, on this sunday, I have made it my mission to create a cozy little nook where I can retreat, have a rest, and if need be - and let's be honest, it is much needed - sniff and cough and whine and... well, you get the picture.

(I wonder, do unicorns ever get ill? And do they cough up glitter?)

So at the prospect of spending the entire day in bed amidst piles and piles of pillows, wrapped in a comfy blanket, with a good book in one hand (The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle maybe) and tea in the other, I took it upon myself to create a little something that would brighten up my day and make the curing process just a tad more joyful. 

Lying there, in the bed, in need of nurturing, I had many flashbacks to when I was a child and to my mom who would take care of me when I was ill. She'd bring me sliced oranges and (as I have been told, but have no recollection of) Coca Cola. (Apparently, this was the only time I was allowed to have such bad medicine.)

So when I noticed the balls of wool sitting in the corner (once intended for a project that failed miserably only recently and is in desperate need of reevaluation), I thought back to when I learned to make little woolen pom poms.

I never really understood what to do with them, though I always enjoyed the process. If I had a cat (oh, and I weren't deadly allergic) I'd make a fun, colorful toy for her. Have the pom poms dangle from a stick. Maybe add some feathers or a tiny bell...

(Do unicorns like to play with jingly pom poms on a stick? I would imagine so...)

So I started making pom poms.

(Because one day, I might get a pet unicorn.)

But until I do, I decided to enhance my little get-better-soon weekend hideaway by making this cute pom pom tree.

And it really does look quite cheerful. The pom poms appear almost like little flowed buds. And although I didn't even spray them with perfume, the bees sure thought so too!

I can only hope that I don't need to get ill everytime I wish to create.

...Or attract bees in my room everytime I get crafty.

WHAT YOU'LL NEED
- colorful yarn
- scissors
- fork
- sewing thread
- sewing needle
- vase
- branches
- optional: spray paint

I had gotten my branches from the home decor store a while back, and they were already painted. But you can just as well get some dry sticks from your backyard or your latest wanderings through the nearest forest and spray paint them as desired.

And then, the fun part.

There are many many ways to make pom poms. I used to make them (what I was taught to be) the traditional way, by wrapping the wool around little paper circles. You can also buy pom pom makers which is probably very helpful if you are making a bunch. But since I didn't leave the house this weekend and was also a tad lazy, my weapon of choice was a good old fashioned fork.

Which, to be honest, does not result in the neatest pom poms. But after a good deal of trimming, they don't actually look half bad.

So to get started, cut and thread a piece of yarn through the middle tine of a fork.

Then, wrap the yarn around the tines of the fork somewhere between 50-90 times. Cut the yarn from the ball.

Using the piece of yarn previously placed inbetween the tines, tie a tight, double knot around the wrapped yarn so that it is bunched together.

Slide the looped yarn off of the fork and cut the loops on either side.

Trim the pom pom to give it a more circular shape.

Tie a double knot as close to the pom pom as possible, loop a piece of sewing thread through the knot with the help of a sewing neelde, and trim off the ends of the yarn.

Using the sewing thread, tie the pom poms onto the branches.

Place the branches in a vase and display.

Also, if you want to know how I made that rad pillow poetry, you can check out the tutorial here.

Which colors would you go for? Maybe a unicorn pink, or a goblin green?

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!