I am so excited to share with you how to flock trees today! This is the real, professional flocking- not the knock offs that you sometimes see on Pinterest. Don’t get me wrong, some of the knock offs are really pretty, but I prefer the look, feel, and quality of the real stuff. I have had my tree for a few years now (that I had bought already flocked) and it had lost a bit of flocking between storing and hauling it out each year. The lights on my tree completely burned out as well and I couldn’t get them working again, so I restrung lights on the entire tree and then I re-flocked it. I love a lot of heavy flocking on trees, so I was determined to find out how to add flocking to my tree the real way. I was pleasantly surprised at how easy and relatively inexpensive it was! And a little bit of flocking goes a long way!
I will show you on a single branch to give you an idea of how the process works, but I did do it to my entire tree, and I did it while it was all assembled. I highly recommend doing this outside because it can be pretty messy.
You will need:
- THIS Self Adhesive Christmas Tree Flock (Find it HERE)
- Spray bottle full of water
- Kitchen sifter
To begin you will need THIS Self Adhesive Christmas Tree Flock. I used a 5 pound bag to reflock my 9 ft. tree but, like I said, I put it on very heavily and it already had a light layer of flocking on it. You could easily do this to any artificial or live tree with beautiful results. Again, I am showing it on a single branch in these pictures just for demonstration purposes, but I did it on my big, fully assembled tree and it was very easy! If you are a visual person, I showed how to do it in a short video- Photo Tutorial Below this Video Tutorial.
First, begin by fluffing the branches on your tree (or garland).
Then spray with water. (I made a little video of this process that I will work on posting)
Then sift on the self adhesive flocking powder until desired thickness.
Spray again with water. The water activates the adhesive.
Repeat above steps until you reach your desired flocking thickness. Like I said, I love thick flocking, so I loaded up my tree, but you could definitely do it lighter for a more natural look.
Let dry for several hours until dry and hard. I let mine dry overnight just to be sure.
I love the look of a flocked tree! It is so beautiful!
Becca
I have a beautiful but older pink tree that I’m thinking about flocking. I bought a replacement for it this year, as it’s been losing its needles for the last couple of years. But before I pitch it, I wondered if flocking it might extend its life a bit. Would flocking fill in the branches a bit? Would it prevent additional needles from falling off? Curious to hear what everyone thinks!
Joanna
Beautiful job! I was wondering how you cleaned the lights off after flocking your tree? Or is it safe to be left on the bulbs?
Thanks!
Kristen Whitby
I don’t clean the Christmas lights on mine. I love the way the light glows through the flocking. My official suggestion is to always follow manufacturer instructions though! 🙂
Georgeanna Harmer
I loved flocked trees and my husband and I always used to flock our trees as they are so expensive but suddenly I could not find the flocking stuff to buy anywhere where I lived and my husband passed and it was too big a project on my own. I used to do a different themed tree every year and the kids and I would make ornaments. It was a fun time.
Jen
Your tree is beautiful. Can this be done on trees with PE branch needles, more of a “realistic” needle, stiffer plastic I guess, LOL. Thank you!
Kristen Whitby
Yes! I have done this flocking technique on all kinds of Christmas trees and wreaths!
Natalie
Did the flock cover up the pre lit lights much? Or we’re they still bright?
Kristen Whitby
I love the way the Christmas lights look under the flocking! It is a nice pretty glow! And still bright.
Carole
Beautiful work on the Christmas Tree!
Lisa scott
Hi where do I buy the powder to flock
My tree with
Kristen Whitby
I linked to it up under the supply list!
Jade Hillier
I really want to do a door frame garland on my front door this year but really want to Flock it but my husband sets the flock can’t go outside in the weather, is this true bearing in mind I live in England xx
Kristen Whitby
I’m not sure about that one- you may need to contact the manufacturer
Nancy
Absolutely gorgeous!
How much flocking do you lose when you decorate the tree?
Kristen Whitby
It probably depends on how careful you are. I would probably estimate 10 percent
Katharine Sawhill
when you were ready to store your tree till next Christmas, did the flocking come off or was it able to stay on the branches?
Kristen Whitby
We store our trees in Christmas tree bags (not the box)- Some of it always comes off, but not terrible.
Bobbiharwel
Can i do this to a pre lit tree?
Kristen Whitby
I did! I love the look of the snow covered lights. But, as with anything I recommend double checking the manufacturer’s recommendations.
Val Jones
Did you use SnoFlock I found some on Amazon. I have flocked trees that need additional flocking from years of packing in tight boxes. Thanks for the information, looks great.
Kristen Whitby
I linked to the one I used up under the supply list
Vivien
Looks really lovely! Also it looks EASY! Great stuff 🙂
Kristen Whitby
It is SO easy! And fun!
Maureen Beech
Love your blog and your generosity in sharing so many amazing ideas and inside scoops! Thank you! Ordered some of this product and I was curious how this works year to year. Is it permanent? Washed off and reapplied? Touched up? Would appreciate your insights on that. Thanks again.
Kristen Whitby
What a kind comment! Thank you so much! I love to share! It is permanent. It will dust off a bit here and there, but for the most part it lasts year to year
Jenny
You are amazing.
doing all this with kids. My house would not look this good if I had a realitly small home(I do 1028 sq ft) and your beautiful family. I am thankful for your posts and sharing. You are so talented.
Marcie Kendall
This is gorgeous! I am thinking about getting a cheap tree for my studio and doing this next year. Thanks for the info.
Ty
Beautiful!! I love how your tree turned out!