15 Handmade Christmas Garland Ideas to Make From Paper, Yarn, Felt, and Fresh Greenery
A bare mantel in December can feel strangely empty. You want something warm, but store bought garlands cost a lot and all look the same.
A handmade Christmas garland fixes both problems. You can make one from things you already have, like cardboard boxes, scrap yarn, felt, or a few oranges from the kitchen.
This list has 15 ideas that cover every skill level. Some take one afternoon with scissors and glue. Others need a hook, a needle, or a bundle of fresh greens.
There are options for mantels, front doors, shelves, and a bed frame. Pick one, grab your supplies, and start there. Save your favorites for later.
1. Handmade Christmas Garland With Pinecone Clusters and Long Velvet Streamers
Soft, drooping greenery does most of the work here. The handmade part is what you add on top.
- Pinecones sit in tight clusters at the swag points and the ends, not spread evenly along the whole length.
- Long dark velvet ribbon tails hang down one side with a few brass bells tied in.
- Tiny warm lights are tucked inside the branches so they glow through the needles.
That long drop on the right side gives the whole mantel a finished edge.
Three or four pinecone clusters look planned. The same cones scattered evenly look random.
2. Striped Paper Chain Garland Layered Under Fresh Greenery
Kids make paper chains every December, but cream and soft grey stripes make this one look grown up.
The chain is looped in wide, relaxed swags, and the greenery sits right on top so the links peek out from underneath. The mantel stays calm because everything stays in cream, grey, and green.
Recreate this look
3. Kraft Cardboard Bulb Garland With Colored Panels
Shadows are half the charm here. Each bulb throws a soft colored shape onto the wall, so the garland looks like it has a second layer behind it.
Two ways to fill the bulbs:
Translucent film or tissue behind a cut window gives a stained glass look.
Paint straight onto the board is faster and easier for little hands.
Either way, the kraft frame and striped twine keep the bright colors from feeling loud.
4. Fresh Greenery Garland Loaded With Oranges and Dried Citrus
Orange is the loud color here, and it works because the base is plain evergreen.
Whole oranges sit in small groups, with dried slices tucked between them. Pinecones, red berries, and loose natural ribbon fill the gaps. Down on the hearth, kraft wrapped gifts and a bowl of fresh citrus repeat the color.
Build a thick base of mixed evergreen sprigs along the mantel.
Wire whole oranges on in small groups of two or three.
Tuck dried slices, pinecones, and berry stems into the gaps.
Loop a soft natural ribbon through and let the ends hang loose.
5. Paper Roll Pine Tree Garland With Tiny White Dots
Each tree is a stack of small green loops with a brown trunk, and a few white dots stand in for snow or lights. They hang from plain jute twine, so the whole thing reads as quiet and woodland.
Look at the left side of the photo and you will see the trees shrinking toward the end. That gentle change in scale makes the line feel less stiff.
Leave a brown trunk showing at the bottom.
Space the white dots unevenly.
Crowding the trees so they overlap.
Covering every loop in dots.
6. Crochet Christmas Tree Bunting With Red Pom Poms
Two yarn colors, one pattern. That is the whole trick.
Green and cream trees take turns along a jute string, and the trunks swap colors so each tree stands out.
Red pom poms sit between them as little punctuation marks, and tiny wood snowflake charms finish each connection.
On a rough wood mantel with lights behind it, the texture does the talking.
💡 Quick Tip
Give cream trees a green trunk and green trees a cream trunk. The color swap keeps each shape readable from across the room.
7. Gingerbread Cookie Look Garland Cut From Cardboard Boxes
Think gingerbread cookies, but made from a cardboard box.
- Cut mittens, houses, hearts, candy canes, and round ornaments from plain brown cardboard.
- Trace a white border around each edge with a paint pen.
- Fill in with little dots, swirls, tiny windows, and snowflakes.
- Loop the shapes onto jute twine with a loose gap between each one.
The shapes repeat but the details change, so every piece looks hand decorated.
8. Bright Paper Bulb Garland With Black Caps and Striped Twine
Black caps do a lot of work. Without them, these would be colored blobs. With them, they read as old school Christmas bulbs right away.
The shine marks on each bulb look like they were added with a white paint pen, and there is one lying in the photo. Pink, yellow, green, and blue bulbs hang from black and white baker’s twine.
| This garland | Kraft bulb garland (idea 3) |
|---|---|
| Solid bright cardstock | Kraft board with colored panels |
| Separate black paper caps | Cap is part of the shape |
| Playful and graphic | Earthy and soft |
9. Layered Mantel Garland With Magnolia Leaves, Oranges, and Plaid Ribbon
Big flower, small oranges, loud ribbon. Nothing here is quiet, and it still hangs together because the green base is thick enough to hold it all.
A large cream bloom sits near the left as the focal point. Whole oranges and dried slices repeat down the length, and gold touched leaves add a little shine.
The ribbons mix red and green stripes with a floral print and drop in long loops over the front.
- ▸Mixed evergreen base, packed full
- ▸One large cream bloom as the focal point
- ▸Whole oranges and dried slices in repeating groups
- ▸Red berries tucked in low
- ▸Two or three ribbon patterns, with long loose tails
10. Oversized Fresh Garland With Eucalyptus and Red Feathery Sprigs
Go bigger than feels safe. This garland nearly swallows the painting above it, and that is why it looks so lush.
Two textures do the work. Round, silvery eucalyptus leaves give a cool, soft contrast. Feathery red sprigs bunched at the ends bring in deep color and a bit of drama. Dark evergreen holds it all together underneath.
One thin line of greens, evenly spaced, hugging the mantel edge.
Thick overlapping bunches, heavier at both ends, with red sprigs clustered in groups.
11. Wild Vine and Velvet Ribbon Garland Framing the Front Door
Most doors get one wreath. This one gets a whole frame.
Greenery runs up both sides and across the top. Loose curls of grapevine twist through it, and big pinecones sit at the top corners with red velvet ribbon tails falling below them. The small wreath on the door picks up the same colors with bells at the bottom.
⚠️ Watch Out
Velvet ribbon can soak up rain and lose its shape. If your porch is uncovered, pick a weatherproof ribbon or hang the garland where the roof protects it.
12. Berry and Pinecone Wreath for the Door, Styled With Porch Extras
This one is a wreath, not a garland, but the porch around it is worth stealing. Make a matching garland from the same greens, pinecones, and red berries and run it along a railing or window ledge.
The dark door makes the green pop. Everything else is small and layered, and it all sits at different heights.
Porch pieces to copy
13. Dried Citrus and Clay Star Garland on a Vintage Bed Frame
A garland does not need a mantel. Here it dips across the footboard of an old wooden bed in a kid’s room.
White stars that look like air dry clay alternate with dried orange, blood orange, and lemon slices on thin twine.
Small evergreen sprigs are tied in between, and a bunch of brass bells hangs off the bedpost. The warm wood does half the styling for you.
14. Layered Tassel Garland in Sage, Cranberry, and Mustard
Three color sets repeat down a braided cream cord:
- Sage on top, deep red in the middle, a soft pink tip at the bottom
- Cream on top, rust in the middle, mustard at the bottom
- A tassel that stays cream from top to bottom
Each tassel hangs from a small wood bead, and the shelf of plants behind it makes the whole thing feel at home. Cotton cord and yarn keep it soft and easy to make.
Repeating just three color sets keeps a busy palette looking planned instead of random.
15. Felt Light Bulb Banner That Spells Merry and Bright
Letters turn a plain string into a message.
Soft felt bulbs in red, pink, mustard, and two greens hang on two cream yarn strands across the mantel.
Each one is lightly stuffed, has a white felt cap, and carries one white letter. Together the strands read “Merry & Bright” against the pine branches above.
Plan the letter order before you attach anything, or you will end up spelling something else.
Cut two felt bulbs per letter in your chosen colors, plus one small white cap each.
Attach a white felt letter to the front of each bulb.
Stitch each front and back together and add a little stuffing before closing.
Tie the caps onto cream yarn in order, leaving an even gap between each bulb.
