DIY: CHRISTMAS TREE COLLAR

By DIANE HENKLER

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GETTING STARTED

Tired of your old tree skirt? This picture-perfect project is a great way to spruce up your holiday decor. Find some inexpensive frames and festive fabric, then grab your Arrow T50AC professional electric staple gun and nailer to take on this DIY Christmas tree collar.

YOU WILL NEED

Other Tools
 Iron (optional)
Materials
Picture frames (we used 7 8"x10" frames)
Fabric - see material tips for yardage
Corrugated cardboard
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MATERIAL TIPS

Frames substitution:
Use plywood pieces or another thin wood cut into 8″ x 10″ pieces.
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How to determine the amount of fabric to buy:
If you are using 8″ x 10″ frames, figure about ¼–¾ yard to cover two frames.
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Where to find corrugated cardboard:
Source it. Check the packaging of any products you’ve bought or received in the mail for bits and pieces of corrugated cardboard to make the hinges. For example, look at the packaging used for fragile items, such as china or cosmetics.
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Buy it. Corrugated cardboard is sold in two places at the craft store: in the teaching supplies section as colorful scalloped trim commonly used to decorate bulletin boards, and in the scrapbooking aisle sold as sheets of paper.

Stacked plaid fabric and photo frames with red ribbon and scissors arranged on a white surface for a Christmas tree collar craft project.

﻿START BUILDING﻿
STEP 1
Start by laying out your fabric and first picture frame. If the fabric has an image or a pattern, lay it over the frame so the image or pattern is placed as desired before you cut. Then cut your fabric larger than the frame so there is enough to fold around the edges of the frame, about 2″ around. If your fabric is wrinkled or creased, iron before securing the fabric.

Plaid fabric draped over a white frame with red-and-black handled scissors nearby during a Christmas tree collar craft project.

Blue-and-white iron pressing red, white, green, and black plaid fabric during a Christmas tree collar craft project.

STEP 2
Now lay the front of the frame onto the back of the cut fabric square. Starting on one side of the frame, pull the fabric up and over the edge, then fold the raw fabric edge under. Using your T50AC professional electric staple gun and nailer to secure the fabric, staple at the center of the frame edge. Then staple outward toward each of the corners to finish the first side. Next, pull the fabric taut to the opposite side of the frame and staple to complete that side. Be careful not to pull your fabric too tight where the image or pattern becomes skewed.

Back of a picture frame with red plaid fabric wrapped around the edges during a Christmas tree collar craft project.

Close-up of plaid fabric folded and stapled around the back edge of a picture frame for a Christmas tree collar craft project.

STEP 3
To finish a corner on the frame, pull the fabric over the corner and staple to the back of the frame. Then fold the fabric edge over what you just stapled, and staple again to hold in place, like you’re wrapping a present. Keep moving along that same edge to complete the side and repeat this step on the next three corners.
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Close-up of plaid fabric folded and secured around the corner of a picture frame for a Christmas tree collar craft project.

Close-up of plaid fabric folded and stapled around the corner of a picture frame for a Christmas tree collar craft project.

STEP 4
After you’ve repeated steps 1–3 to cover each frame, set them aside. It’s time to create the cardboard hinges for your tree collar.
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Start by cutting your corrugated cardboard down to 1″ x 3″ pieces (or larger) using your paper cutter or scissors. You’ll want three “hinges” per frame connection.
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Paper cutter trimming cardboard beside several cut corrugated cardboard strips for a Christmas tree collar craft project.

Pieces of corrugated cardboard arranged on a white surface, including one labeled “DIY Hinges” for a Christmas tree collar craft project.

STEP 5
Now it’s time to assemble your Christmas tree collar! Lay the frames face down on your work surface. Line up the bottoms of each frame and place three hinges at each connection: one at the top, one in the middle, and one at the bottom. When stapling the cardboard, the corrugated side can face down or up (either way will work). Try to get the staple as close to the frame edge so that when the stand is around the tree, you don’t see the hinges where the frames are connected.
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Be sure not to connect your first and last frames to each other – you do not need to attach the frames in a complete circle.

Person using a staple gun to secure plaid fabric and cardboard strips to the back of a frame for a Christmas tree collar craft project.

Plaid fabric-covered picture frames assembled into a decorative Christmas tree collar, surrounded by wrapped gifts beneath a lit Christmas tree.

STEP 6
To arrange the collar around your Christmas tree, find the center of the collar and place it on the floor in front of the tree. Wrap each half around the tree until the end frames meet in the back. Adjust the circle of frames if necessary so the collar sits symmetrically around the stand.

Finished plaid Christmas tree collar surrounding the base of a lit Christmas tree, with wrapped holiday gifts arranged nearby.

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STORAGE
When the holidays are over, loosely fold the frames on top of one another and place them in a box to store. If you have thicker frames, you may not be able to fold them. If this is the case, remove the hinges on one side of each frame (keeping the hinge attached to the other frame side) so you can stack and store them. The next time you use your Christmas tree collar; you can simply reattach the hinges.

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STEP 9
Once the framed pegboard is securely in place, it’s time to decorate! Additional pegboard hooks can be purchased from home improvement stores or online. This is the perfect time to put your own special touch on the project.

﻿FINISHED PRODUCT﻿

Lit Christmas tree with a plaid fabric tree collar at the base, surrounded by coordinating wrapped gifts beside a stone fireplace with hanging stockings.

This project can turn into a family tradition for years to come! 
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We’d love to see how your DIY Christmas tree collar turned out! Share your work with us on Facebook and Instagram by tagging @ArrowFastener or using #MadeWithArrow.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Woman with short gray hair and black glasses smiling while taking a mirror selfie with her smartphone.

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Diane Henkler
Diane Henkler is the creator behind the decorating and lifestyle blog In My Own Style, where she shares her love of all things creative, colorful, DIY, and thrifty. She inspires readers to decorate their homes in a style that they will love: their own.

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