Make Paper Decorations Using Old Newspaper
December 11, 2009 
6 Comments
Do you have lots of old newspapers or magazines waiting to be sent off for recycling? As the holidays draw closer we wanted to share some of our tips on how to make paper decorations using recycled paper.
How to Make Paper Decorations From Old Newspaper
You will need:
- Some old newspapers or magazines
- A couple of used wire clothes hangers
- Strong wire clippers
- A pair of pliers
- Paper glue (We used water based non toxic Mod Podge)
Once you have these basic ingredients it’s time to let your imagination run wild! You need to think of holiday decorations that you would normally buy to decorate your house. We picked some of our favorites to recreate from newspaper;
- Candy canes
- Poinsettia Flowers
- Christmas trees
To get started you simply take your old clothes hangers and cut a length of wire to form the frame. (Please be very careful when using wire clippers)
Let’s start by making a Candy Cane!
1. Let’s clip the old clothes hanger keeping the ”hook” at the top of the hanger intact. You want to clip the rest of the hanger off at a length which would make a candy cane with the right proportions, try clipping about 3 inches along each side of the hanger.Start by Clipping the Clothes Hanger
Start by Clipping the Clothes Hanger
2. The next stage is to use a pair of pliers to straighten out the lengths of hanger to form the candy cane shape;
Straighten Out the Hanger to form the Candy Cane Shape
3. Now that the candy can shape has been formed we can now start to cover the wire shape with old newspaper. Cut some long narrow strips of the old newspaper and start to wrap them around the wire hanger. Use your paper glue to stick the paper down all along the wire candy cane. Don’t worry if it doesn’t look very neat at this stage, we will continue adding layers in the next stage.
Wrap Newspaper Strips Around the Wire Candy Cane
4. Keep wrapping layers of the newspaper using your paper glue until the candy cane looks smoothly covered.
The Finished Recycled Paper Candy Cane
Now Let’s Make a Paper Poinsettia
1. The paper poinsettia begins by creating a newspaper snowflake, you have probably made plenty of these before, you simply fold a square of newspaper several times and cut sections out. When you unfold the newspaper again you will have a newspaper snowflake, this forms the basis for our paper Poinsettia flower decoration.
Start With a Newspaper Snowflake Design
2. Now we take the newspaper snowflake and bunch it slightly to resemble the petals of the Poinsettia. Cut a length of wire coat hanger and use a small piece of tape to fix the petals to the wire stem. Now wrap lengths of newspaper around the wire stem gradually building up layers of newspaper. You can use some paper glue to hold everything in place.
Attach the Paper Flower to a Length of Coat Hanger
3. Once the stem is completely covered you will have yourself a wonderful recycled newspaper and coat hanger holiday Poinsettia decoration.
The Finished Newspaper Poinsettia Decoration
Our Final Decoration, a Newspaper Christmas Tree!
We have to admit, the final newspaper decoration was not our idea, we bought this at a local store and we think it is a great use of old newspaper;
A Newspaper Christmas Tree!
This wonderful recycled newspaper was made using an old cotton bobbin with a length of wooden dowel glued into it. You then simply take squares of newspaper and push them onto the length of dowel. The newspaper squares get progressively smaller towards the top of the tree and the whole thing is finished off with a glittered star tree topper!
This Newspaper Tree is Made with a Cotton Bobbin, Wooden Dowel and Lots of Patience!
The tree can be finished off with some glue and glitter to add some extra sparkle!
You can see our finished ensemble of newspaper decorations below, we hope you like them, please leave a comment with your own newspaper decoration ideas;
Our Finished Collection of Paper Decorations
Cute recycled crafts!
Hi Amy – thanks for the kind words
We love your Mod Podge blog, so many cool ideas!
Is mod podge biodegradable? I want to decoupage my bike.
Hi Annie,
Mod Podge is definitely Non-Toxic and I would say that if you re-used discarded paper etc then you have an eco friendly project. We would recommend using "Outdoor Mod Podge" for a bicycle.
Also, check out our friends site for lots of Mod Podge info;
http://modpodgerocks.blogspot.com/
At last! Sonmeoe who understands! Thanks for posting!