Christmas in a Minute: Easy Ribbon Trees

The holiday season is busy enough without spending hours crafting decor and DIY gifts, so a few friends and I created some super simple holiday ideas for you that we’ve called Christmas in a Minute. Have a few minutes? Great, then you can create these easy ribbon looped Christmas trees that make perfect holiday decor for tables, mantels, buffets, and even window sills. It can be made in about 15 minutes– trust me, I had literally 15 minutes to whip this up as my husband got the kids dressed for a SUPER FUN trip to the hardware store (if you have a 3 and 5 year old, you KNOW how SUPER FUN a trip to the hardware store can be!)
So grab your favorite Christmas ribbon, and follow along with the step-by-step tutorial below.

There’s actually two versions of the ribbon trees. The first is simply wrapping cardboard cones with ribbon trim. It’s a simple, easy way to add some texture to your Christmas decor, like so:

Full disclosure- I’ll admit I got the idea for the second style while browsing West Elm last month. The width of the ribbon gives the tree a little more depth and an elegant look. Check out the inspiration here:

I adapted it a little, choosing to invert the ribbon loop and using a gold and white color scheme for a pop of color. Feel free to play around with whatever type of ribbon you have on hand. I’d love to see how they turn out with plaid ribbon, velvet ribbon or even burlap ribbon for more of a farmhouse look. If you give it a try, tag me on Instagram so I can see your creation!

Supplies

The ribbon Christmas trees use
cardboard cone from the craft store
two rolls of ribbon.
hot glue gun.
scissors.
That’s it!

Instructions

I started by figuring out how large I wanted each ribbon loop, and then cut my two rolls of ribbon to that size. You may want your top loops to be a little smaller, so adjust the size accordingly.

Start by forming the loop and tuck one end of the ribbon under the other. Use a dot of glue in between the two ribbons, and then a dot on the back. Use a low-temp glue gun for this if you can. Mine was high-temp, but I’m pretty sure my fingertips are burned off permanently at this point.

And also? Mommy needs a manicure.
Attach each loop to the bottom of the cone. Repeat all the way around. I did the first row all in white, then a random alternating pattern of white and gold– 2/3 of the tree is white grosgrain ribbon, and 1/3 is gold. I promise I didn’t actually calculate that, I just know my spool of white ribbon was 18 feet long and the gold was 9 feet long. HEY! I DID MATH! {double check my numbers, I stink at math}.
Feel free to experiment with different patters, like spirals or 1:1 alternating. Just make sure to calculate and purchase the right amount of ribbon first. The last thing you want is to come up short while gluing the final few loops in place!

Then continue in circles around the tree, moving higher.

Finish off with your smaller loops. I didn’t do anything fancy at the top, but you could attach a star, bow or small ornament to act as a mini tree topper if you wish.

Trim wrapped trees

As for the trim wrapped trees, for those I raided my box of trim. Grabbed a few favorites, including sequined trim, a fuzzy gray trim, and a thick candy-cane looking trim.