Monday, October 3, 2011

Halloween Lollipop Tree Tutorial ~ WYLTC?


Hi everyone! 

We are excited to share this fun project with you.  We had so much fun creating our countdown to Halloween lollipop tree.  We don't think our kids get enough candy on Halloween,
so we made sure this year to give them candy all month long! ;)  That comment is oozing with sarcasm....
Our tree inspiration comes from  Garnet Hill. We saw this lovely floating around on last year and thought it would be easy to recreate!  We thought a Halloween version would be even more fun!


We promise it is easier to make than it looks, all you need is a drill- and a saw to make straight cuts.  The shoes are totally optional.  Best part is.....it all breaks down for storage.  A total must anymore with as many crafts as we make. Our husbands keep making landfill trips when we aren't noticing!

Alright, let's show you how we built our Halloween tree! Here's what you will need:

2 1x2" 8' long boards
1 36" long 5/16" threaded rod cut to 31 1/2"
2 locking nuts 5/16" size
18 1" wooden beads
1 4" piece of 4" fence post
5/16 drill bit for threaded rod
9/64" drill bit slightly smaller than lollipop stick/ to hold lollipops on 1x2
drill bit to fit & sink size of bolts on each end
optional witch feet or a larger base
31 funky lollipops
black, orange & white craft paint
die-cut numbers to fit 1x2, or number stencils 1/2" size

Here's what a threaded rod look like...if you have never seen one. 
We found ours for the best price at Home Depot.
Cut your 1x2's to desired length.
We started with an 18" 1x2 on the bottom, cutting in one inch  measurements
until the top piece which ended up being 3".
You will have 16 cut 1x2's pieces when you are finished.


Find the center on each 1x2, drill one hole with a 5/16th drill bit.
Drill holes for lollipops, about 3/4" of the way into the 1x2 on each end.
Use a drill bit that is just slightly smaller than the lollipops you are using for a snug fit.


Sand and paint each piece of wood, beads, base, and shoes.
Nicole used her Cricut to cut and size numbers from paper to a 1x2, they need to be about 1/2" in size.
You can stencil or use a paint pen to draw on the numbers too!
Drill a hole through the wood base with a 5/16 drill bit.
On the bottom, use a large drill bit (or paddle bit) to fit the bolt, to sink it.
We used a "locking" bolt at the end, so there would be no slipping and you don't need a washer
to hold it in place.
Carefully do the same to your top 3" piece.  You only need to go deep enough to fit that bolt.  It's okay if the paddle tip pokes through the other side a little bit since you'll need to drill a hole for the lollipop.
We used the wood beads as spacers.  So easy and no need for any extra drilling or parts!
Cut your threaded rod before you thread everything on or else you have a very likely chance of bending the rod and you'll end up with a crooked tree.  Yes, lesson learned the hard way on this one.:) 
A hack saw works great!
We have loved all the witch shoes we've seen everywhere lately and knew
they would be perfect for our tree base.

You can personalize them any way you want!  We used some really cute paper from K&Company from their Halloween line this year.  We loved their paper last year we used on our Spooky Villages.


If  you're not feeling confident enough to cut your own witch shoes out, we have some extra unfinished witch shoes you can purchase. Send us an email if you are interested.


The lollipops we picked up from Oriental Trading Company and they are solid and worth getting. You can also use anything you can find locally, or make your own. The Halloween pops are so popular right now.
If you don't want your kids to have candy all month long, faux lollipops would look great too!



That's it!  Not too bad?
We are definitely going to need another tree for Christmas, our kids are so spoiled!

Come on over this week to see the rest of the WYLTC? ladies knock off their version!
On Friday we will have a linky party at Wood You Like To Craft? to share 
all Halloween wood crafts, so if you have made something fun
this year for Halloween, come on over and share it!

Visit thecsiproject.com



5 comments:

  1. That is super cute. I've never seen a countdown to Halloween before. Great idea.

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  2. I just adore all that you ladies do! Thanks for sharing your creative accomplishments and thus inspiring me to be creative as well.

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  3. Oh my goodness this is adorable! Such a creative idea and perfectly festive for Halloween!

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  4. So cute! I LOVE the witch shoes!

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  5. This is A-MAZING!! Found you on Pinterest and can't wait to read more. Love your site and your crafts!!

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