This build was for part of my #budgetbuildbattles series on Instagram where competitors are given two weeks to create a piece within a theme using only one material type (plus glue and paint). This build's theme was Popsicle Sticks and Plant Bits where the challenge was to build a foresty piece using only foraged plant pieces and popsicle sticks. I wanted to challenge myself further and limited my build to only popsicle sticks. Are there easier ways to make a tree? Absolutely. Did I enjoy the heck out of making this piece? Also yes. Plus, it's a great way to learn/practice a number of techniques for working with popsicle sticks.
Steps
1) Take a few popsicle sticks and cut off the bottoms to make a flat end.
2) Glue the popsicle sticks together on the flat faces. The more sticks you use, the fatter your tree. I used pretty skinny popsicle sticks from the Dollar Store so I was limited in trunk diameter. 3) Using your exacto knife, carve away at the wood until you have a semi cylindrical trunk shape. Don't worry if you have lines between the popsicle sticks, that can fixed later on. 4) Use the shavings off of the popsicle sticks to create branches on your trunk. 5) Attach the smaller shavings together to create a bundle of twigs to place on the branches. 6) Cut some additional popsicle sticks into short pieces and glue together on the thin edges to create a square base. Glue your trunk to the base. 6) Using your glue gun, apply hot glue as texturing to the trunk. Add some globs to act as knots in the trunk. 7) Paint the trunk, branches, and twig bundles. Remember to highlight on the trunk to bring out the texture. Optional step: Use thin curled shavings of popsicle stick as long blades of grass for the base. 8) Apply white glue to the twig bundles and the base and apply flocking. 9) Glue the twig bundles to the branches. 10) Use your hot glue gun to create roots on the base. Optional step: Use hot glue and thin wood shavings to create accents. Examples could be mushrooms or a bird's nest like I made. |
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