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Have you seen those tomato cage Christmas trees? They have lights wrapped inside. I just think they’re so cute, and a super easy DIY for yard art this Christmas. I’m in the middle of making up a few to go throughout my yard for decorations.
Then, I got this idea to make a Santa Hat version. I bought 10 tomato cages over on Amazon and that is what I’m using to decorate the yard this year. Each is about 3 feet high. I made one today, and I just love it. I think this would be cute for outside, next to a tablescape or even next the fireplace. Let’s get started!
Supplies
- 1 tomato cage
- 1 string of 100 mini lights (indoor/outdoor use)
- white pipe cleaners, cut in half
- red pipe cleaners, cut in half
- 1 6-inch styrofoam ball
- 5-6 zip ties
- 1 roll of 21-inch red deco mesh
- 1 roll of 6-inch white deco mesh
In the picture I have an extra roll of white deco mesh in 21 inch length, but I did not end up using it.
To make these decorations, you’ll need to work with the tomato cage upside down with the points facing up. Then, gather the points and zip tie them together.
Next, you’ll gently bend the cage over to one side so it looks like a santa hat.
Now take the styrofoam ball and squish it down onto those pointy ends as far as it will go down, probably about 2-3 inches.
Next, string the lights around and around the tomato cage down to the bottom. I used zip ties placed here and there to hold the lights.
Cut the white pipe cleaners in half and set aside.
This photo is showing how I tied the deco mesh on with brightly colored pipe cleaners. I just used those colors so you could see what I was doing. I replaced them with white pipe cleaners so they wouldn’t show.
Take about a 6-inch length of deco mesh and pinch it together and wrap the pipe cleaner around it. You will do this for the entire roll of deco mesh. I was able to go around the cage about 3 1/2 times.
This is what it will look like after you’ve used all the 6-inch deco mesh.
Next, take the red pipe cleaners and cut them in half. Then, wrap one here and there all the way up and around the tomato cage to the top.
Now this is a little tricky to explain. But, I’m hoping the picture shows exactly what to do. Start at the top of the cage and tie the raw edge with a pipe cleaner. Then, wrap the deco mesh around the tree. Then, a little further down, you’ll bunch up a piece of red deco mesh and tie it with a pipe cleaner. Then, wrap the deco mesh around the entire cage at that spot to cover the tie.
Do this every time you tie the deco mesh, then wrap an entire loop around the cage to hide it. This way you’ll get a smooth look to the cage and hide the ties. I thought this was the best way to keep it looking smooth like a santa hat.
You should have plenty of deco mesh to wrap around a couple more times, before tucking in the raw edge and tying it to the bottom of the cage.
Now if you want to put these in your yard, I use three of these garden staples per Santa hat to secure it to the ground so it won’t blow away.
Each Santa hat ends up being about 3 feet high. I hope you enjoy making these as much as I do.
I made this before Thanksgiving, so I was waiting until Thanksgiving was over before I could start the Christmas decorating. But now it’s December! I can’t put the Christmas stuff outside. So here are a couple of views of it in the dark.
What’s your favorite way to decorate for the holidays?