How to Make a Christmas Garland

1. 1

   Step 1: Lay Out Cranberries, a Large-Eye Needle and Your Stringing Material

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   Set out two to three bags of fresh cranberries, a needle with an eye big enough to thread without squinting, and whatever you plan to string them on. The Merrythought puts four options on the counter side by side: jute twine, paper-wrapped floral binding wire, 20-gauge floral wire and red and white bakers twine.

   All four work. They hang differently, so choose based on where the garland is going. Twine and binding wire drape. Bare floral wire holds a line.

   Tip:

   A large eye matters more than a sharp point here. Cranberry skin gives easily, and a bigger eye means you are not re-threading the needle every time the end of the twine frays.

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   Used in this steplarge-eye yarn needlejute twinefloral bind wire

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2. 2

   Step 2: Empty the Cranberry Bags Into a Bowl

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   Tip the bags out into a bowl and keep a second bowl beside it. Any berry that feels soft, or has gone dark and wrinkled, goes in the discard bowl. Mushy ones split when the needle goes through and they leak onto the twine.

   Two bags give you a strand long enough for a mantel. Three gets you around a tree. Buy an extra bag if you are stringing with kids, because the reject pile grows faster than you expect.

   Tip:

   Cold berries straight from the fridge are firmer and split less. Leave the bags in there until you are ready to sit down and string.

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   Used in this stepceramic mixing bowl set

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3. 3

   Step 3: Push the Needle Through Each Cranberry the Long Way

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   Thread the twine through the needle, then push the point into one end of a cranberry and out the other, going the long way through the berry. It takes very little pressure. Slide the berry down the thread and pick up the next one.

   You can go through the short way for a chunkier look. The long way uses fewer berries per foot and gives you the classic strung-cranberry line.

   Tip:

   Leave six inches of bare twine at the start so you have something to knot later. Losing a whole strand off the open end is the one mistake that costs you the evening.

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   Used in this steplarge-eye yarn needle

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4. 4

   Step 4: Slide the Cranberries Down the Twine and Keep the Spool Attached

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   Leave the spool connected instead of cutting a working length first. Every few inches, push the strung berries down toward the far end so the needle always has bare twine ahead of it. The strand grows without tangling and you never run out mid-berry.

   Once it reaches the length you want, cut it off the spool and leave a few extra inches for the knot.

   Tip:

   Measure the mantel or the tree before you cut. A garland that lands two feet short is hard to fix once both ends are knotted.

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   Used in this stepcraft scissorsjute twine

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5. 5

   Step 5: String Cranberries on 20-Gauge Floral Wire Without a Needle

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   Swap the twine for 20-gauge floral wire and put the needle away. The wire is stiff enough to push through a cranberry on its own, which makes this the version to hand a child. The berries slide along it easily, so you can space them out however you like.

   Anything thinner bends before it pierces the skin. The trade-off is that this garland keeps whatever shape you bend into it and will not drape.

   Tip:

   Use the wire version where you want a straight run, along a shelf edge or a window frame. For a swag that dips between two hooks, go back to twine.

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   Used in this step20 gauge craft wire

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6. 6

   Step 6: Try Red and White Bakers Twine for a Garland That Drapes

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   Bakers twine strings the same way and gives the softest drape of the four. The red and white stripe mostly disappears between the berries, so you get the color without a cord showing.

   The catch is threading it. The twist separates as soon as you push the end at the needle eye, and you end up trimming it back every few feet. Worth knowing before you commit a whole evening to it.

   Tip:

   Dab the cut end with a little clear glue and let it dry hard before you thread it. A stiffened tip feeds through the eye without splitting.

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   Used in this stepbakers twine

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7. 7

   Step 7: Knot Both Ends of the Cranberry Garland

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   Tie a knot in each end once the strand is the length you want. Cranberries slide freely on twine and on wire, and one open end empties the whole garland onto the floor.

   An overhand knot pulled tight against the last berry is enough. Trim the tail to about an inch so it tucks out of sight in the greenery.

   Tip:

   On floral wire, bend the last quarter inch back on itself with pliers instead of knotting it. Wire will not hold a knot the way twine does.

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8. 8

   Step 8: Drape the Cranberry Garland Along a Mantel or Tree

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   The Merrythought weaves hers in and out of a fresh cedar garland on the mantel, so the red sits on top of the green instead of sinking into it. On a tree, lay it along the branch tips rather than pressing it back into the depth of the branches.

   A stair rail, a window frame and a doorway all take it. Fresh cranberries weigh almost nothing, so a few small hooks or a loop of twine at each end will hold the whole strand.

   Tip:

   Keep it away from a radiator or a lit fireplace. Direct heat shrivels the berries in a couple of days instead of a week.

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Keep going

How to Make a Paper Pumpkin

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