Making a repurposed Christmas felt garland is such an addictive festive craft. The other week, when making Christmas felt letters, I suggested that you keep the scraps to make a felt decoration (felt tinsel).

These felt garlands are very colourful and can be used in many ways. You can wrap the felt garlands around your tree, use them to hang things from and treat them like a ribbon. Or drape it over your pictures for that fun festive feel. I love to hang mine from my Christmas mantle.

Even though what happens in the craft club should stay in the craft club, I can tell you that last night, we got into the festive mood by turning mini felt garlands into adorable felt Christmas baubles whilst sipping sloe gin.

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What You Need to Make a Christmas Felt Garland

• Felted Sweaters or felt scraps – I keep mine from projects throughout the year. Felted sweaters are the best as they are nice and thick. I posted how to felt an old sweater on my Mountain Cushion tutorial.
• Pinking shears
• Tapestry needle (large needle), elastic thread or waxed jewellery thread. Any thread would do as long as it is thick and strong with a bit of give.
• Buttons or small craft bell.
• If making a felt decoration bauble, you will need craft wire.

How to Make Upcycled Christmas Felt Garlands

Step 1: Using the pinking shears, cut your felted sweaters/scraps into small squares. I tend to cut my felt into 2cm squares and not worry about them being too even. How many squares you cut depends on how long you want your felt decoration garland to be.

The pinking shears are only decorative, as they have a better effect than straight scissors.

Step 2: Next, thread a button or a craft bell onto the end of the jewellery thread, stopping the felt squares from falling off the back.

Next, using the tapestry needle, thread your felt squares in the colour order of your choice. Red and cream alternate to make a lovely festive garland.
I also love a Christmas felt garland of many colours.

Step 3: When your felt garland is the length you want, finish as you started with either a button or craft bell.

How to make Felt Decoration Baubles

The Christmas felt baubles are made the same way as the upcycled felt garlands. The main difference is in the use of craft wire instead of thread. That is because of the wire holding its shape.

Loop the wire at one end before you start to stop the felt from falling off; when you have finished adding felt squares, thread the end of your wire through the loop to create a circle and tie it off.

Again, you can make these as upcycled felt baubles as big or as small as you want.

These felt baubles are almost like mini Christmas felt wreaths. Using larger sweater felt squares, you could easily make a lovely Christmas wreath for your door.

This is a very addictive craft; once you start, you’ll find that one felt garland won’t be enough! I sometimes call these Christmas felt garlands felt tinsel. I like to wrap them around my Christmas tree as you would with tinsel.

The simplicity of this craft makes it a great one for kids. They will love it. I’ve found that kids love crafts that grow as you go, especially boys. It’s like when I get my Beavers to make paper chains, they never want to stop.

Happy felting, and remember, once you start, it’s hard to stop. If you’re like me, you will look for old, colourful woollen sweaters to turn into this fabulously festive felt tinsel.

It’s a great way to add colour to your Christmas decorations and costs nothing. They are also great to make and sell at Christmas craft fairs. Check out all these incredible recycled Christmas decorations you can make for almost nothing.

Another great use for slightly larger sweater felt scraps is to make sweater balls from them.

Check out some other cool Christmas crafts here.

If you are looking for somewhere festive to store these felt garlands from year to year, store mine in my festive painted wicker hamper basket.

Yield: Christmas Felt Garland and felt wreath, felt tinsle

How To Make An Upcycled Felt Garland

Print

These gorgeous upcycled Christmas felt garlands are so simple to make the kids could do it. The garlands are very versatile and can be used like tinsel, ribbon or even made into wreaths and Christmas ornaments.

Prep Time 30 minutes

Active Time 10 minutes

Total Time 40 minutes

Difficulty Easy

Estimated Cost $1

Materials

• Old wool sweaters and felt scraps
• Elasticate Jewelry thread
• Tapestry needle
• Christmas bells

Tools

• Tapestry needle
• Pinking Shears

Instructions

1. Felt your wool sweaters by putting them in a hot wash,
2. Using pinking shears cut the sweaters into 2cm squares
3. Tie a Christmas bell onto the thread.
4. Thread the felt squares one by one, until you reach the length you want.
5. Finish off the garland by tieing another bell to the end.

Notes

To make a felt Christmas bauble, thread the felt onto craft wire and shape into a round.

I save my old wool sweaters for crafting; here are more ideas.

• Handmade Felt Christmas Ornaments
• Felt tassels From Old Sweaters
• Recycled Sweater Felt rug
• Repurposed Felt Succulent Garden
• Felt Christmas Trees

For other fabulous upcycled Christmas crafts, visit allfreechristmascrafts.