Seeing all my Instagram friends’ Christmas decor makes me feel anxious about mine. I know, I should’ve upped my game this year! There’s something missing.
Ah, there it is. I know what to do for the holiday house decor- something creative and unique. I’m giving myself a challenge, since now I got a little bit of free time. Why not make my own from scratch? I’m thinking paper pom poms or honeycomb balls. They’re pretty, reusable, and relatively straightforward to do.
And where would I put them? The staircase is an easy one, so let’s go with that. Honestly, once I got the stair makeover down, the only things missing are the Christmas tree, the fireplace stockings, and the wreath on the door. But I’m excited the most for the stairs!
To start, I’ll be using the same Christmas garland from last year as a base for my little homemade balls. You can’t go wrong with any basic garland you have lying around.
Baby Paper Pom Poms: How I Made Them
Get any thin, soft-textured paper of any color you like. Think tissue paper! Now that I think about it, you can actually use tissue paper for the little balls. But if you want your Christmas balls to be a bit bigger, you’d want each side to measure about 6 to 8 inches. Something like that, as long as you have a square.
Part 1: The Accordion Folding
Place about eight to ten of those squares on top of each other. If you want your ball to be denser, you should layer more. Together, fold them as one. You’re going to accordion fold the bundle of papers into about half-inch folds. If you want the balls to appear even denser, make the folds measure a third of an inch each. In my opinion, the denser it looks, the better. You don’t want it to be flimsy anyway! Remember, you can reuse this thing for the years to come.
Part 2: Remove All Corners
After that, get a sharpie. Mark then cut off all the corners of your rectangle to make curves. This step is important since you don’t want any harsh lines in your ball. Let us keep things nice and soft!
It will also make the effect look more natural. The result is a delicate-looking ball that won’t look like paper at all. You’ll see what I mean later.
Part 3: Tying It Up
When you’ve cut off the corners, tie a thin string tightly at the midpoint. This will serve as the center point of your ball. Here’s a tip: if you want a continuous line of Christmas balls, tie one long string around multiple of these, so that you end up with a lot of balls hanging on a string. This will make the decor easy to store and use again in the future.
Part 4: The Result
Then, fan out both halves of the accordion. After that, gently separate the paper layers. You should now have your DIY pom pom. Examine your work. See if there’s anything you don’t like about it, then keep tweaking and trying until you are satisfied. This step-by-step is just an outline, the details are all subject to change by you! Your personal preference is what matters.
Now you have your paper pom poms! See how easy these babies are to make? I could make a million of these whenever I’m bored.
The Christmas Stairs
Look how pretty! White’s super simple, matches well with my plain-colored stairs, and lends a classic, almost floral look against the green pine leaves. Feel free to customize the size, the density, and the colors of your pom poms! I used a string to connect the balls together.
I am so excited for Christmas, I can practically taste the eggnog. Let me know what you think. I want to see your home makeover!
As an interior designer, I like my home well-furnished, at the same time, classy and beautiful. I always take my time to pick out which items make it into my house, because I want something that would last a long time. I’m meticulous, that’s why I’m a great help to anyone struggling to choose.
