Christmas DIY decoration ideas with the humble ... pallet.

And just like that it is Christmas time. Here comes the end of the longest but quickest year yet. This year has seen many people stay at home and get stuck into home projects to spruce up their yards or make improvements on their houses. If you are looking for some ideas on how to ‘Christmas’ up your yards why not convert some free pallets into works of art!?! 

 

Wooden pallets are the Australian DIY staple. Everyone in some way or another has reused a pallet to create a masterpiece of some kind. They are the most versatile piece of secondhand equipment one can utilise for their projects. 

 

Let’s explore below some Christmas decoration ideas using the trusty ol’ wooden pallet! 

• Simply take your wooden pallet and place it on its side so the slats are facing you. Draw a triangle with the point starting at the top of the pallet and the widest part ending at the bottom. Grab your hand saw and cut along your drawn lines to create a structured triangle. Paint the slats green. Nail nails sporadically on alternate slats creating hanging space for some baubles. Grab some solar fairy lights and wrap in between slats. Shove a stake in the back of the pallet and bam, you’ve got yourself an outdoor Christmas tree! 

 

•  Grab a stack of pallets and place them flat on the ground, alternating each pallet slightly off from the one below, creating a fan look. To taper the tree into a point cut each new pallet into a smaller square, smaller again, smaller again. Keep stacking pallets until you’ve reached ideal height. Add a star to the top pallet. Hang lights around the edges of the pallets. Hang decorations. Now you have a simple, stacked outdoor Christmas tree.

 

• Break up the pallets to create single long pieces of wood. Cut up 20 pieces of wood starting at 60cms and dropping two centimetres every two pieces of wood.  Paint each piece of wood green. Stack each piece of wood on top of the next, fanning the wood out so they are not in line. Glue each piece in the middle. Keep going until you’ve created a triangle. Glue a star to the top of the tree. Glue the whole tree onto a base of your choice. Alternatively you can drill a hole in the middle of each piece of wood and place them onto a piece of dow. A more detailed explanation can be found on this easy to follow 'how to' from dunnlumber.com.

 

This tree would work well as a centrepiece of an outdoor table setting or an alternative to your indoor plastic nettle tree. Recycled, reused, sustainable. 

 

• Secure four pallets into a square on the ground. This will look like a platform whilst you secure them together. Once secured lift the pallets up so the slats are facing you. Secure the pallet structure into the ground using metal stakes. Or attach to the brick work of your home. Paint a Christmas tree on the front of the pallet. Or a Santa. If you don’t want gaps in your picture secure wood to the pallet gaps to fill the voids. Add decorations. Add lights. This will create a great backdrop for your outdoor backyard Christmas lunches! 

 

The humble wood pallet is so versatile! Next time you see some free pallets on the road side, think to yourself, what can I create with these?