Here's a darling gift for coffee and tea lovers alike. Select a festive mug and simply pop in a small artificial tree decorated with popcorn, cinnamon sticks, small fruits, and more. A delightful idea that will be enjoyed all season long.
Materials
- 12" tall artificial evergreen tree (including round base)
- Ceramic Christmas mug
- 3-1/4"-dia. x 1" thick Styrofoam disc to fit mug
- Sixteen 3/4"-dia. red and yellow apples
- Fourteen 1-1/2" long cinnamon sticks
- Air-popped popcorn
- Fourteen 4" sweet huck branches (or similar variety)
- Ten 3/4"-dia. larch cones (or similar variety)
- 2 large Forster Woodsies stars
- Three 36" strands of natural raffia
- Two 1/2"-dia. red buttons
- Small amount of Spanish moss
- Yellow acrylic paint
- Small paintbrush
- Clear acrylic spray sealer (optional)
- FPC Corporation Surebonder dual temperature and all-purpose
Stik glue sticks
- Scissors
- Ruler
Instructions
1. Paint both the sides and edges of the stars with one to
two coats of yellow paint. Set aside to dry. If desired, spray with
a sealer of choice.
2. Place the foam disc in the bottom of the mug. If necessary,
cut to fit using a serrated knife. Test the tree to be sure it rests
firmly on top of the foam disc inside the mug and that the bottom
branches rest on the rim of the mug. Glue the foam disc into the bottom
of the mug and the round base of the tree onto the top of the foam
disc. Tuck a small amount of Spanish moss into the mug around the
base of the tree.
3. Cut 3" from the end of one length of raffia. Slit that
piece into tiny threads small enough to lace through the two red
buttons. Bring both ends of the raffia through to one side of each
button, tie a knot to secure, and cut off the excess to approximately
1/4". Glue a button in the center of each painted star. Position
the mug facing you so that the handle is visible on either the right
or left side. With the mug still in the same position, glue the
stars, aligned back to back, to the evergreen branch at the tip
of the tree so that the mug's handle and stars are visible from
the same direction.
4. Align the remaining lengths of raffia. To make the garland,
begin at the top branches of the tree and spiral wrap the raffia
around the tree, ending at the bottom branches. Adjust for balance
as needed.
5. Glue the remaining components to the tree at random,
balancing the types of materials and the colors. Begin with the
cinnamon sticks, gluing two back to back beneath the stars at the
top of the tree. Glue the remaining cinnamon sticks parallel to
the outer tips of the branches. In the same manner, glue some apples
to the branch tips and others in a short distance. Do the same for
the popcorn and the larch cones. Randomly glue the stem ends of
the sweet huck branches to the greenery, positioning the tiny branches
to extend beyond the tips of the evergreens.
