Today I'm sharing how to make rustic sugar pine cone Christmas trees. 

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Have you ever heard of sugar pine cones? Don't feel bad if you haven't -- it was only last year that I learned about them myself. They come from the tallest and most massive pine trees on the planet, sometimes called the great sugar pine, that are native to the U.S. Pacific Coast.

Here's a size comparison just to give you an idea. Aren't they beautiful? Mine average 10" tall. With pine cones THAT tall you HAVE to do something awesome with them! So I did. I turned them into Christmas trees! 

My five decorated sugar pine cones have been turned into rustic mini Christmas trees, lining the DIY farmhouse shelves in the dining room!  

There are SO many ways you can "decorate" your sugar pine cones. Here's a sample of some of the mini decorations I used:

Each "tree" is topped off with some form of star, and none of the decorations are complicated or expensive. 

It's also fun to display your sugar pine cone trees in various rustic and vintage containers. I'm a huge lover of terra cotta pots and vintage tin cans. They came in very handy as vessels for my sugar pine cone Christmas trees. (I'll be sharing my vintage red cans in a future Thrill of the Hunt post.) 

NOTE: I used newspaper in the Maxwell House coffee tin to prop up the sugar pine cone tree. You could also use some type of moss or other balled up paper to fill up the can.

Don't feel constrained to using just these type of containers. Again, use your imagination! Perhaps you could use vintage ironstone pitchers, vintage silver bowls and trophies, wicker containers, old wooden boxes  -- the possibilities are endless.

I picked up my decorations at Dollar Tree (not including the sugar pine cones which I got at Michael's on sale, as well as from Goodwill). I'll supply links for your convenience in the event you can't find them at yours:

mini bell garland

mini red and green Christmas ornaments 

mini pom pom ball trim

mini star garland

mini wooden snowflake/stars 

mini Christmas cow bells

Then of course there are the actual sugar pine cones themselves. If you're not careful, you might end up paying a premium for them, especially around Christmas time. I got most of mine last year on sale at Michaels. But THIS YEAR YOU CAN GET THEM AT DOLLAR TREE!

This vintage Ritz 25th Anniversary cracker tin came in quite handy as a base for one of my faux frosted mini Christmas trees, and goes well with my other vintage red tins.

And this rustic plaid flannel Christmas tree. The mini Christmas signs came from Dollar Tree.

This three tier tray styled for Christmas sits at the end of the sideboard.

I was absolutely thrilled with how they turned out! And since nothing is permanent I can "un-decorate" them and start all over again next Christmas!   

You can also use them, unadorned, as rustic bowl fillers throughout the winter season. How would you use them in your decor?   

Well, that's it for today, friends.

 I hope you've enjoyed reading about 

DIY Rustic Sugar Pine Cone Christmas Trees

and that I've inspired you in some way. 

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