How To Put Tinsel On A Christmas Tree

This post is all about how to put tinsel on a Christmas tree.

How To Put Tinsel On A Christmas Tree

If you searched for this post then, like me, you're probably overthinking how to put tinsel on a Christmas tree. Once I started adding the strands of tinsel I realized you can't really go wrong with any method. I started by draping clusters of 6-8 strands of tinsel over the branches. I realized it looked better when I spread out the strands of tinsel over the entire branch so the tinsel wasn't just hanging off the end of the Christmas tree. Initially I spaced out the branches where I put tinsel but by the end of decorating I had tinsel all over the entire tree! I seriously couldn't stop adding more haha! I ended up using 2,000 strands but I didn't really decorate the back of the tree. I wasn't sure how the tinsel would look on a flocked tree but I think it turned out really pretty! 

This year I decided to put our Christmas tree up right after Halloween! It's the earliest I've ever put the tree up but since my baby was born in September, I didn't have a chance to put put out my fall decor and I was eager to get the house decorated for the holidays! We have a pre-lit, flocked Christmas tree and it honestly looks really pretty without any ornaments! I decided to wait until after Thanksgiving to actually decorate the tree but the thought of doing that with a newborn was starting to feel overwhelming. I had a thought... what if instead of putting on all of the ornaments, I just put tinsel on the Christmas tree?

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I had never seen tinsel on a flocked tree and I wasn't even sure how to put tinsel on a Christmas tree! I bought the last pack of 1,000 strands from Target and figured surely that would be more than enough. I was warned it would be difficult to get the tinsel off of an artificial tree but I decided to go for it anyway. Once I started throwing on the strands, I realized I was going to need much more tinsel for our 9 ft tree. I was shocked to learn that tinsel was sold out from all of our local stores and Amazon was selling it for 3x the regular price! I guess tinsel is making a comeback!

It turns out the original tinsel was created from silver in the 1600's and it was a sign of wealth to put tinsel on a Christmas tree. Since silver tarnished easily, aluminum tinsel started being made in the 50's making it more accessible and very popular. However, tinsel was eventually banned by the FDA in the 70's for containing lead. Although tinsel was brought back in the form plastic, it was viewed as cheap and tacky.

I love the vintage look and extra sparkle that tinsel adds to the Christmas tree! It truly looks like icicles falling from the branches and is so beautiful both during the day and at night! 

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