I have to admit, I have not been a huge fan of flocked trees in the past.  However, over the last couple of years, they really have started to grow on me.  I am sure it has something to do with other blogger’s beautiful pictures of their flocked trees.  I am starting to really love the snowy look to them and how they show off the color of the decorations better.  It seems like ornaments can sometimes get “lost” on a normal tree depending on their color.  I was getting the itch for a flocked tree.  So what’s a girl to do?  DIY it, of course!  I am excited to share my DIY flocked Christmas tree with you.  

I already had a couple of regular artificial trees and didn’t want to spend the money for another tree.  So I started researching how to flock a Christmas tree.  As I found out, there are several different ways to do it.  I really wanted it to look and feel like the flocked trees you can buy at the store.

*There are links to products in this post that I use or are similar to products I use.  If you buy something from one of these links, I may make a small commission (with no additional cost to you) from the purchase.  I will not recommend anything that I would not buy myself.  Thank you for supporting my blog!

For this project you will need:

• Sno-Bond Flock (I used about ¾ of a 5# box on the tree and a wreath)
• Handheld mesh strainer
• Spray bottle
• Plastic drop cloth
• Artificial Christmas tree

I found out about an awesome product, Sno-Bond Flock, it is flock in a box!  You can buy it on Amazon for fairly cheap.  Way cheaper than buying a new tree, that is for sure!  This product is professional grade and supposedly what is used on professional flocked trees so I decided to give it a try.  

This product is AMAZING!  It was so worth it!  Easy to use and as long as you get it applied correctly, it stays attached to the tree and not all over your floor.  🙂

The directions on the box say to spray with water as you are sifting the flock.  I thought that would be a little difficult to not accidentally spray the strainer while you are sifting.  So I decided to try it a little differently.  I had read some other tutorials where they sprayed the branch first then sifted followed by more spraying.  That strategy worked fantastic!

After some deliberation, I decided to flock each individual branch instead of doing the whole tree at one time.  I felt like this gave me better control over how much flocking went onto the branch.  I ended up flocking the whole branch on all sides because I wanted more of an overall frosted look.  If you just want the flocking on top of the branch like snow has just fallen, you can still use this method.  Only flock the top side of the branch in that case.    

Also, I think doing each branch individually was less messy.  I read that this should be done outside because it makes quite a mess but doing it this way kept the mess more contained so I felt comfortable doing it inside.  Plus, it was much warmer inside and I didn’t want to freeze my butt off!  😉

Of course you will want to put down a plastic drop cloth first.  But cleanup afterwards was a breeze!  Just wrap up the drop cloth and throw it away.  There was a little bit of white dust right around the drop cloth but it was pretty central to where I was flocking.  It easily vacuumed up afterwards.  I did not feel the need to wear a breathing mask but that is an option you might want to consider.  

The most important part of the flocking is to make sure you spray it all with water before, in between coats and at the end.  This step is what bonds the flock to the tree.  Otherwise you will have fine white dust falling off each time you touch a branch.

Here is a gif of the sifting process.  Move your sifter around as you go so you do not dump too much flock on one area at a time.  It seemed like shaking the sifter side to side made the flock come out gently.  If I wanted an area more concentrated, I shook the sifter up and down over that area.

Let the tree dry overnight before decorating.  I am sure some of the flock will come off when packing it away at the end of the season but it will be easy to touch up in places that need it next year.

Isn’t it pretty?  It reminds me of the trees in the mornings when they are all frosty.  It really was a very easy process.  I am glad I tried it.  If you want a flocked tree, I say go for it!  Now I can’t wait to see the tree all decorated for Christmas!  🙂