If you want to deck out your cabin with colorful decorations in the spirit of our troops, have we got the arts and crafts project for you! In this tutorial you’ll learn how to make your own pom pom garland with just some basic supplies and yarn.  Let’s get started!

Equipment

  • Bakers twine
  • Pom pom maker (I use the Clover ones, which I highly recommend, but I’ll also show you how to make your own)
  • Sharp scissors
  • Darning needle
  • Large scissors or fabric shaver to neaten up pom poms (optional)

Yarn For Troop Lovegood:

  • Sirdar Hayfield Bonus DK Pink
  • Sirdar Hayfield Bonus DK Cerise
  • Sirdar Hayfield Bonus DK Turquoise

Yarn For Troop Invictus:

  • Sirdar Hayfield Bonus DK Royal
  • Sirdar Hayfield Bonus DK Denim
  • Sirdar Hayfield Bonus DK Sunshine

Yarn For Troop Chimera:

  • Sirdar Hayfield Bonus DK Flamingo Pink
  • Sirdar Hayfield Bonus DK Juniper
  • Sirdar Hayfield Bonus DK Silver

Example of store-bought pom pom maker.

If making your own pom pom maker you’ll need:

  • Cardboard
  • Pencil
  • Compass or some thing to draw a circle with
  • Scissors or a pen knife

Making your own pom pom maker

Draw two circles on a piece of cardboard 8cm in diameter, then draw a circle in the centre of them approximately 2cm in diameter. Cut them out, then cut a pie shaped wedge in each of them approximately 2cm wide.

Example of homemade pom pom maker.

How to make the garland

  1. Shop bought pom pom makers usually come in two halves. Wrap your yarn around each half nice and tightly until they’re both full, then close them as indicated below.  For the cardboard maker, put both circles together so that the pie shapes and the holes in the middle match up, then start wrapping your yarn through the pie hole. The thicker you wrap the fluffier the pom pom will be.
  2. Once you have wrapped your yarn to the desired thickness take a sharp pair of scissors and cut through the middle of yarn all the way round. For the shop bought maker there will be plastic grooves showing you where to cut through. For the cardboard it’s a little trickier as you have to carefully cut between the two circles. Try to cut in as straight as line as possible. 
  3. Take another piece of yarn and tightly tie it in between the yarn a couple more times to make it extra secure. 
  4. Carefully remove the plastic or cardboard circles. 
  5. Take a large pair of scissors or a fabric shaver and neaten up the pom pom. It really is worth spending a few minutes with this. 
  6. Once you’ve trimmed your pom pom to the desired size, thread the darning needle with bakers twine and push it through the centre of the pom pom. Arrange them in alternating colours. I’ve used 2 of each colour but you can use as many as you like. 

Show us your troop-tastic pom pom creations! We’d love to see pics of the garlands that you’ve created. Reply in the comments below to share with your fellow campers.

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