Christmas Tree Dress Form Angel DIY
Christmas Dress Form Angel Decoration DIY- TUTORIAL
Yes! It’s true! I didn’t decorate my front porch for Christmas! I was lucky to put a wreath out this year. Things just got so crazy so fast. My husband and I were out of town for Thanksgiving, and thank goodness we decorated the inside before we left because I might not have gotten that done had I waited.
HOWEVER, one of my friends did a spectacular job decorating her front porch! She did something I had never seen before. She used a dress form to make a Christmas Tree Angel, and it turned out beautiful! She also used a dress form for a witch she displayed at Halloween, but that was before I started my blog, so I will have to post pictures of the witch if she does it again next year.
For her Christmas Tree Angel Dress Form, she used a champagne colored corset and white feather angel wings that she ordered. The skirt was made out of green garland and chicken wire. She also weaved in white lights, which you can’t see from the photo because I took the pictures during the day. She used ribbon and turquoise poinsettia’s to decorate the skirt with glitter and gold sprigs to fill in the skirt. I loved her version of this dress form! The angel wings really put it over the top–and I love things that are over the top!
This friend was kind enough to type up instructions of exactly what she did to complete the dress form for my blog. Here are the instructions if you would like to make a Christmas tree dress form for part of your decorations next year!
Christmas Tree Dress Form DIY Instuctions
Supplies
Dress form
6 9-ft green wired garland
http://m.kmart.com/trim-a-home-reg-9ft-x-10in-artificial-pine/p-009W007887348001P
Green zip ties – 4 inch size
http://m.lowes.com/pd/Utilitech-4-in-Nylon-Cable-Ties/999929928
Wire cutters
Needle nose pliers
Chicken wire
http://m.lowes.com/pd/Blue-Hawk-24-in-x-50-ft-Silver-Steel-Poultry-Netting/50012446
A pedestal, if possible, for the dress form to stand on.
Protective gloves
Christmas lights – 2 small boxes, green strands
Your choice of decorations. I used decorative sprigs and handmade bows.
Optional:
Wings
Corset or top for the bust
My bust really needed a size 8-10 but I squeezed it into a 4-6.
1. Adjust the bust to the desired height.
2. Form the chicken wire around the waist of the bust and secure with zip ties. I did some preliminary ties that I later cut so that I could form it around the waist tightly without tearing up the form or my hands with the wire. Trim the excess tail from the ties as you go along.
3. If the chicken wire overlaps, cut the wire with only a small amount overhanging for added strength. Secure as many places as needed with zip ties for strength. I did mine every two inches or so.
4. Add more chicken wire until you form a skirt. It’s not an exact science, so adjust as you see fit and trim where it needs to be trimmed. If you have a pedestal, place the form on the pedestal because it is easier to trim the bottom of the wire skirt this way. If you don’t, you may have to trim as you go since the floor or table will get in the way. Alternatively, if you have a good eye you can extend the dress form for longer than you will leave it permanently and then trim the wire.
5. Place the garland on the dress form vertically starting from the waist and overlapping the wire a bit to hid the wire. As you place the garland, fluff it and tie it down with zip ties. To tie the tip ties, stick the zip tie through the wire and use the needle nose pliers to pull the zip tie back to the front. Make sure the tie wraps around a single wire in the chicken wire so that the garland is secure. Trim the tie’s tail. When the garland reaches the bottom of the wire dress, use the wire cutters to cut the garland. Continue this pattern until the dress form is covered. I found it easiest to place the garland in straight lines and fill in the gaps with leftover garland. I also filled in what I perceived to be gaps. For me, one garland strand made two full passed and the remainder I used to fill gaps. You may need more or less garland depending on the size of your wire dress.
6. Wrap the dress with the Christmas lights.
7. Put the corset on.
8. Decorate your “tree”!
9. Place the wings using the elastic harnesses. I wrapped mine around the neck of the dress form and placed a red poinsettia around the neck to disguise the elastic.
A side note: the wings have a cardboard base so they are vey susceptible to humidity. If you place your free outside on the porch as I did for mine, bring it in during inclement weather or high humidity or your wings will droop. If they droop, all is not lost! Hang them upside down in a dry, warm room and after they dry, place them on a table with a few books to ensure they are straight.
