DIY Christmas Decorations - Peppermint Candy Tree

I suppose I should have posted these DIY crafts before Christmas, but things got a little busy in mid-December. Better late than never!

I honestly can't remember where I found the inspiration picture for the peppermint candy tree - it was probably from I Heart Naptime - I hate not giving credit but I really can't find the source!

This tree is pretty easy to make, as long as you are not as OCD with crafting as I am ;) I am a bit of a perfectionist so I made the tree, decided I wasn't happy with it and then re-did it...but you can probably make a very nice tree on the first try!

Here are the materials you will need:
- A styrofoam cone from the Dollar Tree - $1
- A styrofoam circular base from the Dollar Tree - $1

- Lots of peppermint swirls! About 2 bags worth from the Dollar Tree - $2

- Ribbon that's about an inch wide (to cover the edge of the circular base) - I bought my ribbon from JoAnn's - $2
- A star sprig from the craft store (bought mine at JoAnn's for about $0.60)

- Red spraypaint - I bought some cheap stuff at Walmart - $2

- Hot glue guns and sticks

Total for materials...about $9 assuming you already have a hot glue gun and glue sticks

And here's what you need to do to make the tree:
1) First spraypaint the cone and circular base completely. Let dry and do a second coat if needed.
2) After the circular base is dry, cut a piece of ribbon so that it goes around the edge of the circular base. Glue the ribbon to the edge of the base and cut off any unnecessary ribbon.
3) Glue the bottom of the cone to one side of the circular base and place in the middle of the base so it's centered.
3) Start gluing peppermint swirls at the bottom of the cone layer by layer. Try to place them as close to one another as possible.
4) As you continue to glue the swirls and move up the cone, you may not have enough space to do a complete row of swirls and then have leftover space. I would try to smash a swirl in half to stick in the open space. The other option is to just leave the space blank and try to line up the open spaces in the back.
5) Towards the top you will only have enough room for a layer of 3 or 4 swirls. I tried to stagger them so they covered the point of the cone.
6) Glue a layer of swirls on top of the circular base surrounding the cone.
7) Finish the tree by sticking the star swag into the top of cone (carefully poke it in so the cone doesn't break).
8) You're done! Now it's time to figure out where to put your tree :)


What I had changed from my first try to my second try:
- I wasn't completely happy with my first tree because of some of the open spaces when there wasn't enough room to put another swirl. I learned the second time to line up the open spaces in the back because no one can see them when you position the tree correctly. If you are planning to put the tree in a spot where you can see it from all angles, this may not work for you.
- I did not spraypaint my first attempt - so when I finished, I wasn't happy with all the white space between some of the swirls. Spraypainting the cone and base red helped to make the spaces less noticable.

Pretty easy project - took about 90 minutes total including drying time. And it also smells good if you get close enough to it!