There’s nothing quite like a fresh garland of greenery… until you make a paper version and it lasts for years! We fell in love with Magnolia leaves after working on a paper magnolia flower months ago. We love the big leaves with their two-tone coloring of brown and green. The fresh magnolia leaf garlands you can buy are always so lush and we wanted to create the same effect with a paper version. The key to this garland is lots of leaves which you can bend to create a really full look. Brown kraft paper, paint, and wire are the only supplies you’ll need, making this a piece of cake to put together! We hung ours over a door frame, but it would look super lovely along a mantle or down a staircase. And guess what? It’s under $10!
Check out the full tutorial here
Paper Magnolia Leaf Garland
Magnolia Leaf Template HERE
Materials:
- Large roll of brown kraft paper (about $5)
- Roll of brown painter’s paper (about $2 from the hardware store)
- Two shades of mossy green paint
- Paintbrush
- Cloth covered wire
- Hot Glue Gun
- Wire cutters
- Scissors
Instructions:
- Paint one side of the brown butcher paper with the green paint. Let dry.
- Water down a lighter shade of green and splatter the paper to add texture. Let dry.
- Using the provided template, cut out leaves. You’ll need about 20 leaves for 1 foot of garland.
- Score, or fold, the middle of the leaves
- For most of the leaves, glue pieces of wire onto the brown side of the leaf, leaving a tail of about 3 inches.
- For a few of the leaves, glue the wire onto the green side of the leaf.
- Bunch up the small roll of brown butcher paper. This will act as the base of the garland.
- Wrap the wired leaves around the butcher paper, keeping them quite dense.
- Bend the leaves up to create a full, and somewhat wild, appearance.
- Now deck the halls with your paper magnolia leaf garland!
