How to Make a Pinecone Wreath

Looking for instructions on how to make a pinecone wreath? With these easy-to-follow steps you can make a pinecone wreath in no time. It’s a fun, fast, and easy craft; you only need free pinecones and a straw wreath. A pine cone wreath is perfect for fall but can easily be turned into a gorgeous Christmas wreath too.

Top image in progress making of pine cone wreath. Bottom hero image of pinecone wreath on front door. Text overlay: How to make pinecone wreath for fall.

I made a large and luscious pinecone wreath for fall and then turned it into the perfect Christmas wreath in an instant. I l still love this fast, easy, and affordable project so much. I am sure you will love it too. Simple and easy fall decorating ideas are my preference and this pine cone wreath fits that perfectly.

pine cone wreath on front door
Homemade pine cone wreath

The topic of today is one of my hobbies, and that is making wreaths. I love wreaths. Outdoor wreaths, indoor wreaths, wreaths as a focal point in a mantel decoration, or a wreath turned centerpiece, I dig them all.

I especially dig today’s big and beautiful DIY pinecone wreath. Now that was a fun fall project to do. She is shining on my front door as we speak and doing wonders as my new homemade outdoor wreath.

I love crafting with pinecones any day. They are nature’s free jewels that we get to collect and use for our crafting and decorating. If you are into pinecone crafts as well, you might like my pinecone centerpiece fall table decor project too. With so many natural decorations in abundance, it really is not that hard to come up with the best inexpensive fall decorating ideas.

pinecone wreath on door
Handmade pine cone wreath DIY

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How to Make a Pinecone Wreath: The Steps

Step 1 Collect Plenty of Pinecones.

The first order of business for this fall project is to take a nice long walk in nature. Autumn is beautiful, and nature is showing off. Take advantage of that. Gather and collect a whole lot of pinecones from your garden, local park, or somewhere in the woods. I got a bucket full of pinecones from the garden at work. They were scattered all over the ground, just waiting to be picked up and loved on.

Step 2 Gather your Materials.

You will need a straw wreath as a base (I used an oversized one because I had so many pinecones, and I felt like it) and a hot glue gun with lots of glue sticks.

making a pinecone wreath

Step 3. Glue the Pinecones onto the Wreath Form.

Start gluing the bottom of each pinecone to the wreath base. I started at the center and chose the prettiest ones for that. I then worked on the outer rim and then on the inner rim. I used the smaller ones for the inside circle. The biggest cones were used center stage, the medium pinecones were glued to the edges, and I used really small pinecones to fill in the gaps.

Step 4. Fill up the Wreath Form with Pine Cones.

Try to push the pinecones as close together as you can. Don’t worry too much about gaps showing through. We will take care of that in the next step. Just keep gluing and adding pine cones. Adding the pine cones will take a bit of patience and a lot of hot glue. The pine cones can be quite heavy, so use a generous amount of glue and press the pinecone into the wreath until the glue has cooled.

glueing pinecones to a straw wreath

Step 5. Continue to Fill Gaps.

Fill small gaps with loose petals. Medium gaps can be filled with extra small pinecones or with the tops of the pinecones left over after filling bigger gaps. As you can see, I turned some pinecones upside down to fill the bigger openings. I loved the added color and texture that this gave my wreath. When necessary, I used strong pruning shears to snip the tips of the pinecones. This way, they would lay flat among the pinecones. As I said, the snipped tips can also be used to fill some more gaps.

To hang the wreath, it is best to leave the back of the straw wreath form empty. That way, the wreath will hang or lay down flat.

pinecone wreath on door close up

Step 6. Hang your DIY Pinecone Wreath.

If you are going to hang your wreath with a ribbon, you should leave a gap in between the pine cones so your ribbon can lay flat. But this is an optional step. For my fall pinecone wreath, I used a wide dark brown burlap ribbon. I loved how the textures worked together.

Related Reading: Gorgeous DIY Fall Wreaths Ideas

How to Hang a Pinecone Wreath

Hanging a big luscious pinecone wreath can be a bit of a challenge. This wreath is quite a bit heavier than your average wreath. If you can hang the wreath on a large hook on the wall or on your door, you are good to go. I would advise using a strong fishing wire to make an invisible loop and hang it on that.

If you can’t use a hook, an over-the-door wreath hanger could work too. Just make sure it is a heavy-duty wreath hanger because, as I said, this baby weighs a ton.

I ended up using several layers of duct tape to tape my ribbon to the top and back of my door. (my door is plastic and glass, so no hooks and a door hanger wouldn’t work with our door). This wasn’t the prettiest of solutions (from the inside), but it held.

And of course, now I have several ugly strips of duck tape on the inside of my door….

pinecone wreath on door

How to Paint Pine Cones for a Wreath

Come Christmas, I really wanted to use my luscious and grand fall pinecone wreath in my decor. But it needed to look a bit more like Christmas. So I gave it an update with paint, and then I had this:

The white pines look all wintery and Christmassy, don’t they?

Pinecone Christmas winter wreath

To paint pinecones, you can use several methods. The easiest method to paint pinecones is to dip them in some acrylic paint. For the look of a whitewashed pinecone, I would water the paint down. For a stronger white look, I would dip the pinecones in the paint as it is.

Of course, dipping the pinecones in paint was no longer an option for me because they were all already stuck on the wreath. So instead, I used a small craft brush and simply slapped on some white latex based paint. It turned out to be surprisingly fast and easy to take my brown fall pinecone wreath into the Christmas season with some white paint.

You could try white spray paint too. That might work well and is fast. Just remember to keep moving the spray paint can all the time so you don’t oversaturate parts of the wreath with paint.

It’s a lovely wreath for Christmas this way, isn’t it? Well, the wreath in its wintery version was part of a whole spread of Christmas outdoor decor. I really love looking back at those garden Christmas decorations. I still love them.

You Might Also Like These Handmade Wreath Projects

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How to Decorate With a Pinecone Wreath

Did you know that wreaths are the perfect starting point for a centerpiece too? Lay a wreath flat on a table or buffet, and you have the start of an easy and pretty centerpiece. Nest a smaller wreath inside your wreath for a full look. Or use a big candle as the center point. I have used wreath centerpieces as a four candle Advent decoration, and I turned a fall walnut wreath into the perfect Christmas centerpiece decor

Related Reading: 50+ Fall Table Setting Ideas

For a winter table centerpiece, I used my painted pinecone wreath and nested a smaller wreath inside. I added some faux poinsettias for a festive touch and used a hurricane candle holder as the center. See how quick and easy you can transform a wreath into a statement centerpiece! Nothing to it. Anyone can do it with a little bit of imagination and some rummaging through your decor stock.

Pinecone Christmas winter wreath centerpiece

Want to see more of those outside Christmas decorations? Well, just click the link: outdoor Christmas decorations.

F.A.Q. about homemade pinecone wreaths

Through the years, I have had some questions about my pinecone wreaths so in case you have the same questions too, I decided to answer them here.

” Did you prepare your pinecones at all, before you used them?”
I did do a little preparing before I started using my pinecones on my wreath. First, I shook off any debris and dirt. Then I laid them out flat on my garden table to dry some more in the sun. This also allowed any critters that were living in the pinecones to take a leave. I didn’t do more than that, and my wreath has held up beautifully for years. If you are worried about bugs and stuff and you plan to use the wreath indoors, you can get rid of any bugs by placing the pinecones in a hot oven for about 20 minutes. That will sanitize your pinecones thoroughly.

“How is the back of your wreath looking?”
As I said, I left the back of the wreath empty to keep it flat. I worked on the wreath while it was lying on the table. That way, I could make sure that my pine cone wreath would also lay flat against the wall.

Don’t forget to pin, like, and share this post for future reference!

Fall and Christmas pinecone wreath diy

Loving this little pine cone wreath DIY in all seasons

Songbird | Website | + posts

Marianne Songbird is the founder of Songbird, where she hopes to inspire everyone to create a home they love, one DIY project at a time. She shares anything from craft ideas to home decor inspiration and from DIY projects to decorating hacks. Originally from the Netherlands Marianne and her husband Lex are currently renovating a 250-year-old farmhouse in Germany.

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30 Comments

  1. Mayflower says:

    Wat een prachtige krans Marianne. Ik vind het altijd nog moeilijk te maken, vooral met de dennenappels. Ik probeer het wel, want ik ben dol op kransen en soms…..dan lukt het me ook nog.
    Je krans staat prachtig zo aan de deur.
    Fijne week.
    Lieve groet, Mea

  2. i love how it turned out, Marianne! We have one of those doors. It's metal, though. There is no way to attach anything to it!

    xo
    Claudia

  3. Beth@The Stories of A2Z says:

    It looks great on your door Marianne!

  4. nannykim/spindlecottage says:

    Gorgeous. Our church made a few of these but I like yours better! I agree they are very hard to cut!

  5. Beautiful! You are a clever, clever woman! Thanks for sharing these great photos!

    Malisa

  6. Marianne, the wreath is beautiful! So earthy! I love the earth elements in decor!!!

    (and yes the ribbon may slip. be prepared. I know from experience…especially as the below zero temps hit!)

    ~Kolein

  7. That is so beautiful. I love pinecones, but never know what to do with them. I think my girls and I will have to go collecting so we can make this!

    As an aside, I had a metal core door and I couldn't put a nail in either. I bought an over the door wreath holder. It was pretty cheap and worked really well.

  8. Lisa @KarmaPerDiem says:

    I really like this. I have some pinecones I need to do something with, but they're HUGE–really love the wreath!

  9. very nice wreath…I'm loving the neutrals great for Thanksgiving and Christmas. Wonderful job! Lezlee

  10. Blondie's Journal says:

    The wreath is very original and creative. And of course, lovely!! Nicely done! 🙂

    XO,
    Jane

  11. Stephanie says:

    I too love how the pine cones are different colors. The duct tape cracks me up!

  12. Marianne@Songbird says:

    @7 Jamie. One of those wreath holders might be a very good idea. I just don't know if they have something like that here, never seen one. Most go hunting for one. Thanks for the tip.

  13. All That Jazz says:

    I LOVE this! I am a pinecone freak and have them all over my house during the holidays, LOL! I need to collect some new ones to make a wreath~ it's less "holiday" than some of the green ones and therefore more versatile, I think!!
    ~michelle~

  14. linnea-maria says:

    Wow your pine cone wreath is stunning. Fits your front door perfectly. Have a wonderful day /Therese

  15. Brenda Kula says:

    It's beautiful, Marianne! I have lots of pinecones, living in the piney woods of Texas.
    Brenda

  16. Don't let the pinecones dry out all the way before glueing onto the straw wreath. When they dry out they will open up completely and fill in. But your finished project turned out great.

  17. THE BLACK BARN says:

    DIE IS ERG MOOI GEWORD.
    PAST HELEMAAL IN DEZE HERFST SFEER.

    LIEVE GROET,
    MIRANDA

  18. Funky Junk Interiors says:

    LOL on the duct tape front!

    Your wreath is magnificent! Heck.. the entire front entry is so pretty. Love the no colour/high texture elements. Nicely done!

    Donna

  19. It's gorgeous, Marianne! I love the bottom of the cones too!

  20. BailiwickStudio says:

    I love it! What a great solution to all those pesky pinecones laying around in our side yard!

    You might want to look for a wreath hangar – those narrow strips of metal with a couple of bends at each end – one to go over the top of the door and the other to hold the wreath. No tape, no nails, no fuss! ::Jill

  21. tales from an oc cottage says:

    HOW neat! You did such a meticulous job too! It's stunning!

    m ^..^

  22. Lynne (lynnesgiftsfromtheheart) says:

    You made a gorgeous wreath. I love anything dealing with nature. Beautifully done
    hugs ~lynne~

  23. Anonymous says:

    Gorgeous wreath! I collected a large number of small and medium pine cones on my property, and am planning to make a wreath. I found your post while looking around to see what methods other people used.

    Here's a good tip for hanging wreaths on doors which cannot be nailed into – use a "Command" hook by 3M. They attach to anything, are durable and weather-resistant, and come off cleanly. We have a metal front door with a large window in it. We've had a hook on the glass for two years, through severe northern New England winters. I position it about where I want the center of the top of the wreath to be (meaning not just centered from side to side, but center from top to bottom of the upper part of the wreath (so, if your wreath is 2" wide, the hook should be about 1" down from the very top of the wreath.) Then I wrap a wire around the wreath, if it doesn't already have one, and position the loop of the wire so it's behind the wreath, totally hidden by the wreath. I loop that over the Command hook. Et voila! The wreath is secure, stays on in all weather, and has no noticeable hanging gear. The hooks can be used the same way indoors, too. I do NOT like those over-the-door hangers for either indoors or outdoors, as they are very visible, and can also damage paint or allow fading on the exposed areas around it, leaving a darker area where the hanger is. The other problem with them is that since they're not adjustable, you cannot always position the wreath exactly where it would look best. For instance, the window in our door is arched at the top, with divided lights. For aesthetic purposes, the wreath should be aligned with an inner arch on the window. (Hard to explain… take my word for it.) An over-the-door hanger would not hang down quite far enough. I'm a little obsessed with wreath positioning… I've noticed on houses in my area that a lot of people have wreaths up way too high, or too low, or with no regard for the features (panels, windows, etc.) of the door. Using a small stick-on hook allows you to position the wreath perfectly.

  24. Anonymous says:

    I have a super strong two piece magnet that has a hook on one of the pieces. It's specifically for glass doors. You put one piece of the magnet on the inside and the piece with the hook on the outside of the door. The magnet is very, very strong and you can hang your wreaths on the glass door! I think the piece with the hook would stick strongly enough to a metal door that it would work in that instance, as well. You can find them at most craft/home decor stores.

  25. Pingback: DIY Fall Wreaths
  26. If you soak the pine cones in water first it causes them to close up. Let them sit for a little bit out of the water until they are just still damp. It is much easier to fit them on when they are glued on and when they dry, they open back up again, they will fill out and the wreath will be beautiful and very full looking.

  27. It’s beautiful and you placed them all just right. If you will put them in very hot water first, they will close up tight. Let them air out on a paper towel for a while and then glue them on while they are damp. When they dry, they will open up again and be very tight together. Then you can just fill in the spots if you need to.

    I like how you did the top to hang it. It looks very professionally done.

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