They always say one man’s trash is another man’s treasure… and that couldn’t be more true in my world! I love to take items that were thrown away and forgotten about and make them new again, breathe new life into them– it’s like normal recycling but more fun and still good for the planet! I personally feel like there HAS to be a way to make paper towel rolls and toilet paper rolls without the center, but since that hasn’t been figured out yet, I’m going to show you how to create farmhouse decor… with an old paper towel roll!
what you’ll need to create your new farmhouse decor
- Paper towel or toilet paper roll (obviously)
- Scissors or guillotine cutter
- Drop cloth or old sheets
- Wire (I used 26 gauge but you can use whatever you’d like)
- Upholstery needle
- Hot glue gun
- Glitter (optional)
- Paint (optional)
turning your paper towel roll into farmhouse decor
- Use scissors or your guillotine cutter to cut the paper towel roll into strips about 1 inch thick.
- Once you have your circles, you’ll fold one side inward, towards the middle, creating a heart. Once the pieces are together, you can hot glue it so it stays in place.
- Optional Step: You can dip one side of the hearts in paint, or paint them all together if you’d like. On one of my garlands, I dipped one side of the heart in paint and then immediately glitter, just to jazz it up. Note, you do need to make sure the hearts have one flat side if you plan to do this, or else dipping it in the paint and/or glitter will be challenging.
- Now, thread your wire through the upholstery needle and poke through both sides of the heart, stringing it onto the wire. I went ahead and put all the hearts on at once.
- After the hearts are all threaded on, you can separate them out about 1/2 inch to an inch or so (don’t overthink this too much, it’ll work itself out and can be adjusted towards the end).
- Rip or cut your drop cloth or sheets into strips (about 1 inch thick or so and 10-12 inches long would work great for this)! I personally rip instead of cutting because I like the distressed look more!
- Tie your drop cloth (or sheets) in between each heart, and then adjust the hearts so everything is touching!
- You can tie a loop at each end of the garland to make it easy peasy to hang!
Once you’re done, hang this stunning garland up in your home for beautiful farmhouse decor, made simply from old paper towel rolls! I love when we get to take what would otherwise be trash and make it into something that can be used for years to come– it’s satisfying! A win for the planet and for me!
Now go dig in your trash!!
If you want to see more DIY garlands, click HERE!
Nice project, Kim. I have made strips from an old bed sheet that had been used for a plant cover but was so worn it was ineffective. First I soaked it overnight in tea then tore it into strips. Another choice is denim. I tore my husband’s old jeans into strips. All these strips are stored-you guessed it-on paper towel rolls.
Super cute! Would make a fun wreath, too. I’m going to do it!