How to make a recycled kid’s play tent

There is something wonderfully cosy about Christmas decorations made from old wool blankets and felted sweaters. The slightly faded checks, worn edges and mismatched colours give these stuffed Christmas trees the sort of character you simply cannot buy new.

They are also a brilliant way to rescue damaged wool blankets, shrunken jumpers and thrift-store sweaters that are too good to throw away but perhaps a little too holey to wear. We all have at least one jumper that went into the washing machine as an adult size and came out suitable for a mildly chilly teddy bear.

These handmade fabric Christmas trees can be made in several sizes and displayed along a mantel, arranged in a basket, stacked on a bench or sold at Christmas craft fairs. Make them from traditional red and green tartan, muted vintage wool, soft pastel blankets or neutral greys for a more Scandinavian farmhouse look.

 CraftBits already has a felt Christmas stacking tree tutorial, but that design is made from separate layered pieces rather than a stuffed tree-shaped cushion. CraftGossip has also featured recycled sweater Christmas ornaments, and our roundup of 25 clever things to make with sweaters that shrunk in the wash includes plenty of ideas for using felted knitwear. This larger stuffed Christmas tree version is different enough to work as a full standalone tutorial.

What You Will Need

• Thrifted wool blanket, wool coat, felted sweater or heavy woven fabric
• Paper for making the Christmas tree template
• Ruler and pencil
• Fabric scissors or rotary cutter
• Cutting mat
• Sewing clips or sturdy pins
• Sewing machine
• Strong polyester sewing thread
• Polyester fibre fill, wool stuffing or clean fabric scraps
• Hand-sewing needle
• Optional contrasting fabric for the back
• Optional piping cord or ready-made piping
• Optional buttons, patches, embroidery thread, bells or ribbon
• Optional lavender, dried cloves or cinnamon for scent

A sharp pair of dressmaking scissors will make cutting thick wool much easier. A rotary cutter and self-healing cutting mat are also useful, particularly when making several trees for a market stall. These are easy supplies to source through Amazon, along with stuffing, piping cord and heavy-duty sewing needles.

Choosing The Best Wool Blankets And Sweaters

Look for wool blankets with interesting checks, stripes, ombré shading or slightly faded colours. Small holes and worn sections are not necessarily a problem because you can position your template around them.

For sweaters, choose garments with a high wool content. Pure wool and wool-rich blends felt particularly well, while acrylic sweaters may stretch, unravel or remain very floppy.

Before cutting into a sweater, felt it in the washing machine. This causes the fibres to shrink together, creating a dense fabric that is much easier to cut and sew.

How To Felt A Wool Sweater

Place the sweater in a hot wash with a small amount of laundry detergent. Adding an old towel or pair of jeans creates extra agitation.

Wash on a warm or hot cycle, then tumble-dry on medium or high heat. Repeat if necessary until the fabric feels thick and the knitted stitches are difficult to separate.

Do not use this method on a precious jumper you hope to wear again. Felting is permanent, which is precisely why it works so well for upcycled sweater crafts.

For more ideas once you have felted a jumper, save our guide to things you can make from accidentally shrunken sweaters.

Wash And Prepare Thrifted Wool

Always clean thrifted fabric before sewing, particularly when the finished trees will be displayed indoors or given as gifts.

Check the care label first. Many wool blankets should be hand-washed or washed on a gentle wool cycle.

Wash with cool water and wool-safe detergent, then press out excess water without wringing. Roll the blanket in a towel and lay it flat to dry.

If the blanket has a musty smell, air it outside in a shaded spot before washing. Avoid leaving coloured wool in strong sunlight for long periods because it may fade.

Inspect the fabric carefully for moth damage. Small isolated holes can be avoided or covered with a decorative patch, but heavily affected fabric is best discarded.

Make A Christmas Tree Template

The easiest template is a simple symmetrical tree silhouette with three gently rounded branch tiers.

Fold a large sheet of paper in half vertically. Draw half a Christmas tree against the folded edge, beginning with a narrow tip and widening toward the base.

For a medium tree, try these finished dimensions:

• Height: approximately 45 cm or 18 inches
• Width at the base: approximately 35 cm or 14 inches
• Trunk width: approximately 8 cm or 3 inches

Cut through both layers and unfold the paper. Folding the template ensures both sides match, even when your freehand drawing has had one of those slightly wobbly crafting moments.

Add a 1 cm or 3/8-inch seam allowance around the entire template if it is not already included.

You can also make a group of three trees measuring approximately 30 cm, 40 cm and 50 cm tall.

Cutting The Fabric

Place the template over the most attractive part of the blanket or sweater.

With plaid fabric, take a moment to position the pattern deliberately. A diagonal tartan can look particularly striking, while centred stripes create a neat, traditional finish.

Cut two matching tree shapes:

• Two pieces from the same fabric, or
• One wool front and one plain wool or sturdy cotton back

If using a sweater, avoid cutting directly through bulky side seams, ribbed waistbands or thick neckbands unless you want those details to become part of the design.

Mark a 10–12 cm opening along the lower side or base for turning and stuffing.

Optional: Add Piping

The red piping around the inspiration tree gives the project a beautifully finished, almost vintage cushion-like appearance.

Pin or clip piping around the right side of the front tree piece, aligning the raw edge of the piping tape with the raw edge of the wool.

At inward corners between the branches, snip into the piping tape—but not through the cord—so it bends smoothly.

Baste the piping in place using a zipper foot.

When you reach the end, overlap or neatly join the piping tails. Do not worry if this takes a little fiddling. Piping behaves beautifully right up until the moment it reaches a tight Christmas tree corner and decides to test your patience.

A contrasting blanket-stitch edge is a lovely alternative when you do not want to add piping.

Sewing The Christmas Tree

Place the two tree pieces right sides together.

Pin or clip securely around the edges. Clips are often easier than pins when working with thick felted wool.

Sew around the tree using a 1 cm or 3/8-inch seam allowance, leaving the marked opening unstitched.

Use a slightly longer stitch length of around 3 mm for thick wool. Sew slowly around the branch points and pivot with the needle down.

Backstitch at both ends of the opening.

Clip The Curves And Corners

Trim excess bulk from the outer points without cutting through the stitching.

Clip small notches into the inward curves between each branch tier. This allows the fabric to spread properly when turned.

Do not cut too close to the seam. Leave several millimetres of fabric between each clip and the stitching line.

Turn And Shape The Tree

Turn the tree right side out through the opening.

Use a blunt turning tool, knitting needle or wooden chopstick to ease out the top, branch tips and trunk corners. Avoid pushing too forcefully, particularly if the wool is loosely woven.

Press lightly with steam, using a pressing cloth to protect the wool. Do not flatten the tree completely; you only need to smooth the seams.

Stuff The Tree

Begin by pushing small pieces of stuffing into the very top and each branch point.

Continue filling gradually, alternating from side to side. Small handfuls create a smoother result than forcing in one enormous bundle.

Keep the tree soft enough to look relaxed but firm enough to stand or hold its shape. The examples have a charming, slightly plump cushion appearance rather than being stuffed rock-hard.

For a heavier base, place a small fabric pouch filled with dried rice or plastic craft pellets inside the lower trunk before adding the remaining stuffing. This helps smaller trees stand upright.

Do not use loose rice if the tree will be stored somewhere damp or exposed to pests. Seal it securely inside a double-layered pouch.

Add A Christmas Scent

For scented Christmas trees, mix a small amount of dried lavender, whole cloves or broken cinnamon sticks into the stuffing.

Place the fragrant ingredients inside a small muslin bag so the pieces do not work their way through the wool.

You could also add several drops of Christmas fragrance oil to a cotton pad, allow it to dry completely and tuck it inside the tree. Avoid applying oil directly to vintage wool because it may stain.

Close The Opening

Fold the raw edges of the opening inward.

Close with a ladder stitch using strong coordinating thread. Pull each stitch gently so the seam disappears into the wool.

Knot securely and bury the thread tail inside the tree.

Decorative Variations

Scandinavian Grey Trees

Use charcoal, oatmeal and soft grey wool blankets. Add simple white felt crosses, stars or hand-stitched lines.

Vintage Tartan Trees

Combine red, green, navy and cream plaid blankets. Finish the edges with red piping for a cheerful traditional Christmas look.

Pastel Wool Trees

Use pale aqua, blush pink, sage and cream. These are lovely for softer cottage-style Christmas decorating.

Patchwork Trees

Piece smaller sweater scraps together before cutting the tree shape. Press each seam flat and place the finished template over the patchwork panel.

Blanket-Stitched Trees

Sew the trees wrong sides together and leave the seam exposed. Finish around the edge with chunky blanket stitch using embroidery thread or wool yarn.

Memory Blanket Trees

Use a damaged family blanket, old school jumper or sentimental wool coat. These make especially meaningful handmade Christmas keepsakes, provided everyone is genuinely ready for the original item to be cut. It is worth asking before enthusiastically transforming Grandpa’s favourite blanket into festive shrubbery.

Making Them For Christmas Craft Fairs

These stuffed wool Christmas trees would work beautifully as a small coordinated collection.

Offer three sizes and a few colour palettes rather than making every tree completely different. Customers often like buying them in sets.

Batch production makes the process much quicker:

1. Prepare all fabric.
2. Cut every tree.
3. Add piping to all fronts.
4. Sew the trees in one session.
5. Turn and stuff them together.
6. Hand-sew the openings while watching something suitably festive.

Add a tag explaining that each tree is handmade from rescued wool blankets or felted sweaters. The upcycled story is part of the charm.

Smaller versions can also be turned into hanging Christmas ornaments by catching a loop of ribbon in the top seam before sewing.

A Few Troubleshooting Tips

The Sweater Fabric Is Stretching

It may not be felted enough. Felt it again or apply lightweight woven fusible interfacing to the wrong side before cutting.

The Branch Points Look Blunt

Trim the seam allowance closer at the outer points and push them out carefully with a blunt tool.

The Inward Corners Are Pulling

Add another small clip toward the seam, taking care not to cut the stitches.

The Tree Looks Lumpy

Remove some stuffing and refill using smaller pieces. Pay particular attention to the branch tips before filling the centre.

The Tree Will Not Stand

Add a weighted pouch to the base, make the trunk wider or display it leaning against other trees in a basket.

These thrifted wool blanket Christmas trees are the sort of decorations that look better when they are not perfectly identical. A slightly crooked branch, faded section of plaid or visible hand stitch only adds to their handmade charm.

They are cosy, practical and wonderfully forgiving—and they use the very wool blankets and sweaters that often sit neglected at the back of thrift stores. Make one as a festive cushion, create a trio for the mantel or start a small production line for your Christmas market table. Just be warned: once you begin spotting old plaid blankets as potential Christmas trees, no op shop linen shelf will ever be safe again.