Here is what I came up with:
I initially thought I would use paper towel rolls to make small truffula trees. Then I thought big trees would be more fun. The first tree trunks I thought of using were pool noodles but I couldn't find any in stores yet. The next best thing I could think of was foam insulation for plumbing. I popped over to Home Depot and tracked down plumbing insulation. Turns out, it's super cheap! I got a pack of 4 3' insulators for $2.47 and the taller 6' insulators for $1.28 each. Then I found some yellow duct tape...perfect! I also picked up some $1 packs of tissue paper from the Christmas Tree Shop.
Here's how I went about making my truffula trees:
First, I used Martha Stewart's instructions for tissue paper pom-poms. The only change I made was to keep the floral wire long to attach the pom-poms to the foam insulators.
I used all of the same color tissue paper for some pom-poms:
and alternated light and dark shades for others:
I wrapped the foam insulators with the yellow duct tape:
Then I attached the pom-poms to the "trunks". The foam insulators are hollow, so I stuck the ends of the floral wire through the center of the foam tube and poked them through to the outside.
As much as I'm enjoying the Seuss-ified corner of my living room, I can't wait to bring these trees to school after vacation and jazz up the library!
LOVE, LOVE, LOVE these! I might just have to attempt to make these for my MC. :) How do you get them to stand up?
ReplyDelete~Jo
http://mrsnthebookbug.blogspot.com/
I love these too. And if you want your kids to grow a plant that looks and moves like a Truffula Tree, have them grow a TickleMe Plant. Tickleme Plants have the same PINK Cotton Candy like flower and they will move by closing their leaves and lowering their branches when tickled. Our school gets our tickleme plant classroom kit at http://www.ticklemeplant.com
DeleteMaybe try hanging them from the ceiling, a la Martha Stewart's pom poms (as I guy I never thought I'd type a sentence like this), with enough slack so they are on the floor and leaning a bit. No tripping hazard, easy to vaccum around.
DeleteThanks Jo! Right now, they're just taped to the wall with one or two pieces of duct tape. They're super light weight. I have to bring them in to school after vacation and figure out how to display them but I think use tape there too. I'll let you know how displaying in the library goes!
ReplyDeleteGreat looking trees! I too made truffula trees for the library where I volunteer. Here's how I got mine to stand up: I turned a planter tray upside down (it is a foam/plastic type tray). I used "L" shaped brackets to attach PVC pipe to the trays. I had to use four brackets per pipe, then slid the foam trunks over the PVC. I made the tops out of paper mache but I like your much better plus a lot less work. I only put two trunks on the tray that is about 12"" across. I mixed up concrete patch that I had to cover up the brackets on the tray and also added weight to the bottom, then used acrylic paint to color it green. Hope this helps, it sounds expensive but I had most of these items on hand.
DeleteI am definitely making these! My husband is a plumber...so I think I can definitely get my hands on the plumbing insulation! I'm calling him and asking him to bring some home with him tonight!!! Thanks for sharing!!!
ReplyDeleteThese are amazing! I am definitely making these this weekend. You are brilliant!!
ReplyDeleteI'm going to make these with my third graders as a cooperative learning activity! Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteI love these! I made them with butcher paper for the stems, but the foam insulators were a great idea!!
ReplyDeletehttp://mrsshiningersblog.blogspot.com/2011/08/dr-seuss-theme.html
Thanks! I love how bendy the butcher paper stems look!
DeleteHi - I just saw your trees on Pinterest! Love them, and I was also thrilled to find a fellow librarian blogger. Just started and I have seen lots of teacher's blogs, but not so many elem. librarians. Started following you too.
ReplyDeleteYou wouldn't think elementary library teachers would be so hard to find! Can't wait to check out your blog :)
Deletei love these!! I am also thrilled to find blogs from elementary librarians. I do so love my job and can't wait to see more ideas from your blogs! Thanks!
DeleteLove this idea. I stayed late at work today and put up a lot of trees. Wish I had seen this blog first.
ReplyDeleteWhere did you get this background picture? Love love love.
I am IN LOVE with this idea! Thanks so much for the creativity! :)
ReplyDeleteMrs. Lodge,
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing your Truffula trees! I can't wait to make them with my shelf elves (student helpers)!
Thanks Cari! I love the idea of shelf elves. I just had a few 4th grade girls ask if they can help me with little projects. I'm sure they'd love the title shelf elves :)
DeleteI have to steal this idea!! They are gorgeous! I work in a small branch library. I will make room for this!! Awesome!!!
ReplyDeleteLove them & am doing this for our classroom! Thanks so much for sharing such a great idea!
ReplyDeleteHow did you stand them up?
ReplyDeleteRight now they are just taped to the wall with a piece of duct tape. I have to figure out how to set them up in the library when school vacation is over. I'll probably just tape them at school too. They're so light, just one or two (for the taller trees) pieces of tape is holding them up.
DeleteThanks for sharing them! Hope you don't mind if I share them with my readers tonight :)
ReplyDeletedon't mind at all :)
DeleteThanks for sharing these adorable trees! I will be borrowing this idea for my son's K class - they will love them!! Following your blog!
ReplyDeletethank you for sharing-i have been [painting dr seuss murals in my kids school library since the beginning of dec....on one entire wal is the lorax and horton...im going to make these trees and connect them to the railing that is encorprated into the lorax mural for next weeks celebration...thank you soooooo much
ReplyDeleteFun, Fun, Fun! Saw the 3D idea, am using for our door decorating "event". I used butcher paper - very hard to "fluff" but we have exterior doors so they are sturdy and hold up to wind and weather. Turned out GREAT. Lot's of oohs and aahs from my kinders. They are trying their best to make mini-truffala trees (aka pencil toppers. I took their photo with a Loraz 'stache and they stuck them on a flat truffala cut out with the word "Unless" on it. Thanks for the Pin-spiration!
ReplyDeleteI just made these for my classroom and they were easy, and turned out amazing! Thanks!
ReplyDeleteThose are fantastic!! Thanks for the clear instructions! :)
ReplyDeleteLittle Miss Glamour Goes to Kindergarten
These are amazing! I can't wait to try this with my third graders this week!
ReplyDeleteThis might be a dumb question - but how did you get the ends to be pointy? Did you cut the tissue paper before you started pulling it apart?
Thanks for the great idea - and pictures to help us figure out how to do it ourselves!
Not a dumb question! After I folded the tissue paper and secured it with the wire, I cut the ends on an angle for bigger points or into a point for smaller points. I can take a picture if that doesn't make sense :)
DeleteCutest trees I have ever seen! I LOVE these....and I am going to make these!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for sharing your cutest creations...I pinned them on my PInterest Board! <3
I love this idea. Thank you for your creativity and your sharing. I know my 4th and 5th graders in our environmental club are going to love making these in our gathering this weekend. We'll 'plant' our trees in our main hallway where the whole school can enjoy them, and this is where our Panther Earth Pals will share the Lorax with our primary grades. I can't wait to get to the store to get the supplies. Thank you a zillion times. Pinned on my Pinterest, also.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing this great idea! They came out great and I can't wait to bring them to the library on Monday. It will really add to the Seuss theme!
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for all of your comments! I'm so glad other people like them as much as I do!
ReplyDeleteLOVE the idea, I making them today and plan on taking them to my 1st grade class tomorrow. The kids are going to be so surprised!
ReplyDeleteToo awesome! Do you have a pinterest board? I would love to pin this!
ReplyDeleteDeb
So adorable!
ReplyDeleteI was asked to decorate my door for Dr. Suess bday and this is exactly what I wanted to do! Thanks for sharing your information! I have the foam insulators for a wreath I have not made yet but I don't have yellow duct tape. I am going to hot glue yellow ribbon-just don't want to buy anything to make them! I am going to cover my door with blue paper, make a tiny hill and put a lorax on it and them put the trees around him. Thanks again!
ReplyDeleteAwesome!~ I'll use pool noodles. Great for Drama Club Trees.
ReplyDeleteThese are SOOO cute!!! I'm your newest follower!!
ReplyDeleteThese are ADORABLE!!! I immediately headed to my local Home Depot, gathered supplies, and I currently have 1 Truffula tree adorning my bulletin board. Thank you! I can't wait to see my student's reaction tomorrow! :)
ReplyDeletelove them
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for sharing! I made some this weekend for my daughters' second grade and preschool classes. For the Preschoolers I got a bucket, Easter grass and some bamboo sticks from the Dollar store and some spray foam insulation from Home Depot. I filled the bucket with the spray foam and stuck the bamboo in then slid the trees over the bamboo. That way they can just set them in a corner or move them to a safer area.
ReplyDeleteGreat idea to make the trees easy to move! I love hearing how other people make truffula trees!
DeleteI'm wanting to make truffula trees for my sons first birthday party next month. since Easter just passed the grass is on sale so i think i'll use that :) would you mind sending me pictures so i can get a visual on how you did it? my email is berna8791@gmail.com thanks!
DeleteHi Jessica!
ReplyDeleteWe stumbled across your fabulous truffula trees and loved the design so much that we featured it as part of our Dr. Seuss showcase at our blog, Bulletin Board Ideas! ...No, they're not technically a bulletin board, but they were too darn cute to leave out :)
You can find the full feature here:
http://bulletinboardideas.org/3447/the-best-of-dr-seuss-part-2/
We were sure to give idea/photo credit, as well as a link back to your blog, but we'd love for you to take a look at it. If there are any problems, we'll be sure to take down the feature immediately!
Thanks so much,
Kayla Johnson
Wow! Thanks Kayla! I can't wait to see other Dr. Seuss ideas on your site :)
DeleteOur art teacher sent me your link on Pinterest, and I made them for my library! So easy! Thanks for posting the directions...wonderful idea! To get them to stand, my husband put dowels in the pipes, then using extra wood he had in the garage, he cut them into bases, and drilled a hole the diameter of the dowel. They stand great, and my students and faculty love them!
ReplyDeletei tried to make one it looks like a cloud i messed up pretty bad
ReplyDeleteI am so making a ton of these for my daughters room.. We are doing a Dr Seuss theme and she is obssesed with the cat and the hat movie and the new Lorax comming out tomm. Thank you so much for sharing.. I'm super excited to surprise her with these!!!!
ReplyDeleteI soooooo wish I saw these earlier. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE them!!
ReplyDelete❤ Dragonflies in First ❤
I saw these trees on Pinterest and had to make them for my Preschool classroom for my Dr. Seuss theme. My kids loved them and they look so great in the class. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteFABULOUS!!! Thank you so much for sharing your creative genius!!
ReplyDeleteI TOTALLY stole your idea, but I made sure to give you credit when everyone at school was gushing over how adorable they were!! I also just gave you a shout out on my own blog so that you get credit for the awesomely easy tutorial to follow! Thanks for sharing and helping me make this Read Across America Day special for my class all week long!
ReplyDeletehttp://teaching-in-high-heels.blogspot.com/2012/03/happy-birthday-dr-seuss.html
Thanks Miss Ducko! Can't wait to check out your blog :)
DeleteHave not read all posts, but to make them stand. put on a flower pot add a little concrete and paint pot and concrete green
ReplyDeleteWe took our whole school to see the Lorax this week. I loved the movie and goggled for art ideas that night. Guess what I did yesterday. Yip I made Truffula trees and they're a hit! Thanks Mrs Lodge.
ReplyDeleteFabulous DIY idea!
ReplyDeleteI love this idea! I just read The Lorax to my kids and they loved it... I might just make some of these and bring them in as a surprise!
ReplyDeleteThanks! You should make some - the kids LOVE them :)
DeleteMaking trees per your instructions for my daughter's baby shower in July. THanks!
DeleteOh my word these are great! Dr. Seuss theme next year anyone?!
ReplyDeleteBlessings,
Jessica Stanford
Mrs. Stanford's Class Blog is Having a Giveaway!
My TpT Store
I am making these this weekend for my daughter's upcoming baby shower. All Dr. Seuss themed. Thanks,
ReplyDeleteJust made these to go over my daughter's reading area in her playroom. Thank you so much, they are adorable!
ReplyDeletebrilliant
ReplyDeletethese are amazing! if only i had these things, or am allowed to get them:(. i love to craft so i cant wait to get the opportunity to make them! quick question: did you come up with these yourself? thanks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteThese are ADORABLE. I'm absolutely making them for my second grade class. I'm going to post a link back to this page on my blog too because I included the picture of yours. :) Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteI made mine just as you did and I love them, but I was wondering how Im going to stand them in the classroom. I thought of putting them close to walls and using hot glue on the insulation and attaching them to the wall.
ReplyDeleteLooks like fun! I cannot wait to try this!
ReplyDeleteI made these for my daughter's baby shower and now they are in the nursery at her house. I used PVC pipe inside to make them stand up, and cut the pipe shorter than the foam to allow for some 'swaying". At thr bottom I cut six small pieces of pipe each and used cross tie PVC pieces to make stands. The can be moved around and will stand alone.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great idea to keep them upright! I will have to try that. Thanks!
DeleteThank you for sharing your ideas! These are adorable! I really appropriate the detailed instructions and photos so I knew just exactly what to do! I have made four if them and olan to make several more while resting this week. Spent the last nine weekdays getting my new kindergarten room ready! My entire room is Seuss and these will be a great edition!!
ReplyDeleteJust wanted to let you know that I love your trees! I made some for my classroom (gave you credit)...Thanks for this great idea. It's a hit at my school!
ReplyDeleteElena
Footsteps In First Grade
Hi Beverly,
ReplyDeleteThank you for such a thoughtful comment. I should probably add a "Permission to Pin" badge to my blog to help people feel okay about pinning my ideas. I have this blog to share ideas with other library teachers and I'm completely fine with people pinning from here. I can see what's been pinned from my blog and who is pinning and I don't feel like people are trying to steal my images or claim them as their own. They're pinning to remind themselves of something they liked or to share with others, which goes right back to the purpose of my blog! I think my opinion could be different if I were an artist or photographer marketing my artwork as a living but for my purposes, it's fine by me.
Thank you!
Hi, I just wanted to let you know that I love your trees!!!!!! You did an amazing job!!!!! I have one question how many sheets of paper did you use? I'm planning my son's 2nd birthday party and it's The Lorax theme :)
ReplyDeleteJulia
Hi Julia,
DeleteI found 10 to be a good number. I made one with 8 but it wasn't full enough and 12 can work too but 10 was just right. It also depends what kind of tissue paper you use - higher quality paper is stiffer but more difficult to fluff as you make them, cheaper paper is easier to work with but the trees get a little floppy over time.
Good luck!
These made me SMILE!
ReplyDeleteGlad to hear :)
DeleteVery Cute!
ReplyDeleteCharlotte
Charlotte's Clips and Kindergarten Kids
I just came across these looking for (more) ideas (that I don't really need!!) for my son's first birthday in a couple weeks. I have some Cat in the Hat decor from school but wanted more from other Dr. Seuss books - these would look great "growing" from behind our couch!
ReplyDeleteI just want to thank you so much for your design idea. I am doing a holiday workplace decoration contest and this is perfect for our dr. seuss theme!!
ReplyDeleteThese are FABULOUS! I'm doing Dr Seuss theme for my classroom this year and these are so easy and perfect! Thank you!
ReplyDeleteShanyn
Coffee, Kids and Compulsive Lists
Love your trees. Would you mind if i used your great idea for a baby shower?
ReplyDeleteThese are exactly what I was looking for! I run the Dr. Seuss Week at our school and the kids are going to flip over them! Thank you for sharing!
ReplyDeleteKristen H.
Long Island, NY
how did you go about making the ends looks like they do?
ReplyDeleteWhen you make the pom pom (see Martha Stewart's instructions!), you have to fold the tissue paper back and forth, like you're making a fan. Then, you can cut the ends to a point or curved like a flower petal before opening the pom pom up. Hope that helps!
DeleteThis is darling. How did you stand the trees up??
ReplyDeletethank you! Right now, I have them stuck to the walls around my library with command strips. Last year, I tried all kinds of tape and had trouble keeping them up but with command strips, I haven't had even one fall down since August! I think someone commented above with a way to stand the trees using PVC pipe if you want them to be stand-alone truffula trees!
DeleteJust saw this on Pinterest - http://rustsunshine.blogspot.com/2012/05/tissue-paper-flowers.html
DeleteThank you so much for this great cheap idea to make the truffula trees. I made them for my friends Dr. Seuss baby shower and they turned out so cute and were so easy to make. Thanks again for sharing!
ReplyDeleteAfter seeing this on pinterest I ran to Home Depot to get supplies...My son's Bday is March 2 (same as Dr Seuss) so I thought it was only fitting to celebrate My son's bday and honor Dr Seuss at the same time by doing a Dr. Seuss theme party...these trees will be the perfect touch to the decorations! TY!
ReplyDeleteAMAZING!!!! thank you, I bookmarked your site....I teach preschool, yet I feature
ReplyDelete'an author of the month' in class. The children love learning about different authors, seeing a pic of them and doing crafts relating to them...of course you know who is featured this month! thanks again
These are fantastic! Thanks for the great idea! I work for Head Start and am planning a Dr. Seuss themed brunch for families and these will be such a great decoration:)
ReplyDeleteI made them and I must say they came out pretty good! I used black and white duct tape and followed the video to make the papers puffs...it was a HIT!..I also used command strips to help them stand. Wish I could attach a photo for you to see..they were a hit!
ReplyDeleteMade these to add to a Dr. Seuss-themed bulletin board outside our school library. These came together very nicely. Boy, do they ever make a statement! My two Truffula Trees are the perfect finishing touch to make this board totally over-the-top! Thanks for the idea and the great tips.
ReplyDeleteLOVE THIS IDEA!!!! Thank you for sharing :)
ReplyDeleteI've been wanting to decorate my son and daughter's shared room in a theme that would suit both of them. This is a great idea! Can't go wrong with Dr. Seuss! Thank you for this great idea and tutorial!!!
ReplyDelete