Mums—aka chrysanthemums—are the flowers of fall. Unfortunately, the display of reds, oranges, golds and deep purples won’t last all season. According to the Farmers’ Almanac, the blooms form and then wither within several weeks. Then you’re left with a pot of dried-up, wilted flowers and branches. Not the kind of floral arrangement you’d want on your front porch to greet guests, but don’t toss them out yet.
With a quick trip to the craft store, you can create an arrangement of spray-painted mums for the holidays!
Here’s how to care for chrysanthemums until the temps drop.
How to Turn Mums into Christmas Decor
The inspiration for these mums-turned-Christmas-decor comes from this Facebook post by Brittany Mitchell. The post has over 5,000 likes and over 135,000 shares.
Brittany nestled festive Christmas ornaments in the plants, but otherwise, all that dresses them up is a simple coat of spray paint. Once the mums have lost all of their blooms and it’s clear there are no more on the way, shake up a can of spray paint and cover them in your color of choice—we recommend gold or silver for the holidays. Do so in a well-ventilated area, preferably somewhere outside, and let dry. You’ll have beautiful, budget-friendly holiday decorations in no time!
For a welcoming home this Christmas season, try out these holiday decorating tips from the pros.
More DIY Christmas Craft Ideas
Your crafting potential knows no limits when it comes to DIY holiday decor. Don’t stop with spray-painted mums! You can use that same can of spray paint to color ornaments or frost pine cones, or you can start a project that’s completely different.
If sewing or working with fabrics is a hobby, try putting together your very own DIY Christmas tree skirt. Select the patterns and fabrics yourself to create a festive addition to your tree you’ll want to use year after year.
Sewing not your thing? Choose from this list of winter crafts. From bottle cap snowmen and pine cone trees to all kinds of wreaths, these projects are sure to keep you (and the kids) busy, and leave you with holiday decor made with love.
The post Spray-Painted Mums Make Gorgeous Christmas Decorations—Here’s How appeared first on Taste of Home.
Hannah Twietmeyer