Tricks + Treats: Rachel's Acorn Garland

I'm Rachel from Smile And Wave, a place where I write about life with two little people, a lot of vintage, and the good-looking man with the scooter. 

I love decorating the house to reflect seasonal changes and tend to want to make it rather than buy it so this year I opted to use what I always have on hand to create a fun acorn garland.  Wood grain contact paper will probably be in my top five must haves for awhile for it's versatility and trendiness.  I have used it in art journals, mini books, to create wall art, to line the inside of a wardrobe, etc. and love how easy it is to work with!  You can whip up your own acorn or (insert icon here) garland with a few basic low cost materials and add a little autumn coziness to your space.

You'll need two tones of wood grain contact paper, preferably one lighter and one darker.  You can find them at most hardware stores including Ace, Lowe's, K-Mart, and Wal-Mart.  Substitute this with vintage wallpaper, found paper, book pages, etc. and you'll be my hero.  You'll also need three pieces of 12" x 12" thin chipboard (available at scrapbooking stores) or about three to four cereal boxes, twine or yarn, a hole punch, paper scissors, a pen, thumb tacks or other device for hanging your garland.

Print out the acorn pdf and trace it onto your cereal box or chipboard as many times as you want depending on how long you want your garland to be.  Cut them out and stack them so that they're all facing the same way. (Pattern PDF:  Download Acorn)
 

Then place your acorn template over your lighter woodgrain and trace about 1/2" around the edge of your template up to the point you want the lighter woodgrain to stop.  Once you attach this to your chipboard you'll trim off the edges.  Use your same acorn template to judge where the darker wood grain should slightly overlap the light and then cut about 1/2" around the top edge of your acorn.  Attach it to your chipboard so that it slightly overlaps the lighter woodgrain and then trim around the edges.  Repeat with all of your acorns.

Punch holes in the first finished acorn and then use it as a guide to punch holes in the same spot on the other acorns.  String them through with twine and hang them festively on your wall.  Take it even further and hand cut letters from the darker wood grain contact paper to spell something out on the light part of the acorns!  

Can I say how excited I am about the end of the month's store opening at Red Velvet Art!  I really need to nail down my costume but I'm thinking it needs to be based around a vintage dress, don't you think?  Do you have any end of the month Halloween or otherwise festivities going on?  What were you for Halloween last year?

Thanks for having me, Elsie!  Happy decorating, ya'll!
xoxo,
Rachel

Comments

[katie w]

this garland is so cute! i am thinking i need to buy some wood grain contact paper!

[Puri ideku handmade]

thank for sharing!

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[Haylee]

These are the absolute cutest!

[Erika M]

Too cute and adorable!

[eva]

Love, love, love this!! Now to find some Wood grain contact paper!! I am also envisioning using the acorn template for a little photo book for the grandparents for fall! Thanks!!

[Krystal]

Ahh! Love it! Gonna try it this weekend. :)

[I See Elephant]

So cute and such a fun idea.

[Christine Leigh]

Oh my goodness these are too cute!! :D

[chelz]

Last year I borrowed my friends candy corn witch costume which I thought was absolutely adorable!! This year, however, I'm attempting making a mad hatter costume!! With a dress and a vest (if i can find it). But I'm basically making everything, so I hope I can finish by Sunday! *is determined*

[laser cutting machine]

wow,good.how google

[Jaime]

http://thebaezablog.blogspot.com/2010/11/acorn-garland.html

thank you!! I love it!

[Ashley A.]

so gorgeous! Contact paper is one of my newest favorite materials to play with so this is fitting!

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wow. it is unbelievable. I love it so much . Thanks for your sharing. cool .great. I sure I'll come back soon.

[laser cut]

I had seen this! So fun!

[laser engravers]

I like this very much and it's beautiful

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[Avril]

the only thing saving me right now is the hope that doing what i am doing will get me the one thing i want more then what my brain is teilnlg me i want. sigh. we have been trying for another child for a year and i have been told to gain 10 pounds. i was told in august to gain 5, but lost 5 more. it took forever for me to get the baby weight off and to a point i liked myself, so i was in denial i had to gain some back. as much as i hate to admit it though, i am not at a healthy weight and NEED to gain the weight even if i didn't want another baby. just not easy to see the numbers on the scale going up when i worked so hard and so long to see them go down. it is a constant struggle within my mind, but i am trying to beat down the voice that tells me to lose what i gained. it is a season in my life if i want that baby, i have to let go for now. it is just so hard.

[Minly]

Andrew,Bitterness depends on the type of acnros you use, and how you process them. For the cookies, I ground Black Oak acnros (White are better, less tannins and thus, less bitter) up and then leached them with water several times. Once this has been done you can grind them up into meal or into flour. Enjoy, it's a wild ride. Andrew McMartin