We love a classic fireplace decorated with tinsel and baubles, but why not infuse some extra sweetness into your festive decor? Think: a homemade Christmas candy garland right in your living room, just waiting to conjure lollipop dreams and gumdrop wishes. In this DIY guide, we'll show you how to create a fireplace garland that will capture the holiday spirit while adding sugary nostalgia to your home decor—with retro vibes to boot!
Our cute and easy Candy Land-inspired garland is made using vibrant felt, hot glue, basic sewing skills and a simple greenery garland into which you can tuck your candy creations. We've even provided printable patterns to get you started. If you're feeling extra creative, make a second candy garland to spruce up your Christmas tree for a fully themed living room. You could even display completed felt candy pieces among gingerbread houses to create a winter village or add them to a table runner for a colorful holiday centerpiece.
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Ready to sweeten the season? Let's transform your Christmas decorations into a sugary spectacle that'll have everyone craving a second helping of holiday cheer. Santa himself will be envious of this year's holiday decor!
Video: A Candy Land-Inspired Garland to Sweeten Your Space
Things You'll Need
Felt sheets in various colors (6 sheets for each piece of candy)
Sharp scissors (or rotary cutter and mat)
Hot glue gun
Needle and thread
Bamboo skewers
Simple greenery garland to hold candy pieces
1. Create rolled felt hard candy
Cut 1-in. by 12-in. strips from felt. Each piece of rolled candy will need 18 1-in. strips.
While we opted for an ombre appearance with our candies, don't hesitate to get creative with color choices—pastels or a red and white peppermint theme would be especially pretty. To achieve an ombre effect, cut 6 strips in a darker hue, 6 in a lighter shade and the final 6 in white.
Sew three strips of each color together using a zigzag stitch.
You'll end up with 2 36-in. strips of the darker hue, 2 of the lighter shade and 2 of the white.
Layer strips together and roll, occasionally using a hot glue gun to secure strips in place.
Trim ends.
2. Form multicolor ribbon felt candy
Just like you did for the rolled candy, layer 6 sewn strips together. This time, though, sandwich white strips between colored strips.
Push needle and thread through all layers of felt 1 1/2 in. away from the end and then continue stitching every 3 in.
When you reach the ends of the strips, pull the thread to create a "ribbon." Adjust the felt so it's even and use a hot glue gun to secure the felt pieces in place.
Use a hot glue gun to attach a bamboo skewer to the back of each felt candy if you plan on tucking the candy into greenery.
Alternatively, leave it plain if you plan on hanging the candies from the garland.
3. Make felt gingerbread man game pieces
Use our downloadable pattern to cut out two felt game pieces of each color. Place both pieces together and topstitch around the edge. Use a hot glue gun to attach a bamboo skewer to the back of each game piece, which allows for tucking the game pieces into green garland.
For an extra touch, add a rainbow pompom garland. You can use a store-bought version or make your own simple ball garland with bright felt balls and string.
Arrange the completed pieces into simple greenery garland to complete your Candy Land-inspired display. As holiday lights twinkle, snowflakes fall and the aroma of seasonal treats fills the air, you have the perfect decor to match.
Whether you're going all out with the sugary theme by incorporating candy canes, themed Christmas ornaments, peppermint candy garlands, sparkly signs and dessert-inspired tree toppers into your seasonal decor or using our DIY Candy Land-inspired garland as a standalone piece, we wish you a merry and bright holiday season.