Trimming the Tree with Tradition… & D.I.Y. Pink Flock!

We have a couple of pre Christmas holiday traditions for the girls. Every year both Elle and Maggie get a silver ornament for their Christmas ornament collection and we have a tree flocked to hang the ornaments on and light up their room. In my efforts to go Graciously Green, I wanted to find a way to flock my own tree with products that are water soluble and we can easily recycle…  For the record the irony of trying to find a “Green” way of flocking a tree that’s been cut down is not lost on me.  It is the same as ordering a diet coke with a Quarter-pounder with cheese and a large fry.  Baby steps…

The recipe that I found that works the best for home flocking and can be used on artificial trees too…

First Ivory Soap Flakes.  Ivory Soap stopped making the flakes in 1979 so you can make them easily by grating the soap yourself…

Next Mix:

2 Cups Soap Flakes

2/3 cup Starch

1/4 Elmer’s Glue

1/4 cup warm (warm water is key)

with a mixer on high (adding more warm water) until the soap makes a light frosting.

Add coloring and with a paint brush drop dollops of foam on the branches — dollops look more like fallen snow that brushing the foam on.   We repeated this mixture and process three times for the snow-fallen effect.

Once the foam had dried (4 days in the garage) we brought it in and decorated it with lights, tulle and Christmas Bells.  After awhile the room became quiet and I found myself decorating alone and short on tulle.  Just then Elle and Maggie emerged from the bathroom with Maggie dressed like this.

After the tree was trimmed in pink and silver bells…

we gave Elle and Maggie this year’s bell to unwrap.

The girls were tickled pink over their tree …

and I’m tickled Green that I will be able to recycle it!