3 Pinecone Crafts

In late November, before the first snow flies, the kids and I spend days exploring the forest near our home. We each gather bits of nature to bring indoors for the long, cold winter months. With pieces of birch bark, clusters of juniper berries, and spruce or pinecones folded into arms, we head indoors for some crafting. Sometimes we use them to decorate our tree or a wreath, and sometimes they make for math counters or craft supplies. Here are a few of our favourite seasonal pinecone projects: 

Pinecone Gnomes  A pine cone, one single bead, some white paint, glue, and a piece of felt is all you’ll need to create a little gnome friend. Paint your pinecone white. Snip a triangle of felt and roll it into a cone shaped hat. Glue along the long edge of the fabric and adhere it to the base of the pinecone. This becomes the top of your gnome, with his little hat drooping over his eyes. Glue a bead for his nose, so his hat appears to be resting on it. Feel free to attach a piece of twine and hang as a decoration on your tree, attach to the top of a beautifully wrapped gift, or follow along with the next craft idea to make a garland string of gnomes.

Garland  You’ll need any kind of string or ribbon and a stack of, you guessed it, pinecones! 

Cut your string twice as long as you’d like your garland to be.

Tie the string around the pinecones, and hang on a wall or around your tree to bring a little of the outdoors in this holiday season.

Pinecone Trees  Green paint, a small paper star, and a cork can easily be transformed into a mini tree. Lightly brush the paint onto the pinecone. I like to leave a bit of the pinecone exposed for texture. Glue the cork to the base or the widest part of your cone, and add the star to the top. Repeat, repeat, repeat, to add a small forest to any Christmas village display. 

Jacquelyn Toupin lives with her family in a heritage farm house that’s been in her family for several generations. You can follow them on YouTube @oldfarmnewfarm or on Instagram @raisinghay