Picture Tree: Tutorial

I made and shared this over at My World Made By Hand last week and now I am sharing this with you!

What you’ll need:

Bake able Clay
Heavy Gauge Wire (I used 18)
Round Nose Pliers {like the kind you’d use to make jewelry}
Wire Cutters
Vase or Candle holder {I up cycled mine:)}
Colored Glass Stones
E-6000 Glue
Oven
Embellishments
Hot Glue Gun
Pictures of people you adore! Like my gorgeous siblings :)

Start by cutting your wires at various/random lengths. I cut mine 6 to 10 inches. You can use as many wires as you’d like, but try to keep it at an odd number, no less than 3. For some reason it just looks better :)

Bend the wire into an “L” shape 1 inch from the bottom. Set the wire aside to use later.

Take your bakeable clay and begin to mold it into a flat shape that matches the base of the vase or candle holder you’ll be using. Be sure that it is slightly smaller than the bottom, you want it to fit inside snugly

Once you have the right size and shape, use a small knife or pencil to poke a hole in the center.

Thread the short part of the bent wires through the hole. Be careful that you don't stretch the whole too much.

Snip off a 2 inch piece of wire and wrap it tightly around the base of the wires. Use extra clay wrapped around the hole and between the wires for added support.

Flip over the clay and make sure the wires are embedded into the clay. Use a little extra on top to ensure that they won’t move around. Make sure the bottom is still flat.

Following the directions for the clay, carefully bake the whole thing in the oven, allowing ample room for it to stand straight. Be sure you allow it to completely cool down before removing it from the pan/tray and continuing on. The wires will be very hot! Use caution when removing from the oven.

Place the clay and wires inside of your candle holder. Mine fit a little tighter than I anticipated, so I filled it half way with the colored glass stones, then set it on top.

Use the E-6000 glue, glue around the edges and glob lots on the top. Allow the glue to partially set and the place more colored glass stones on top. You don’t want the clay or wires to move, so don’t be afraid to use LOTS of glue!

Once the glue has a chance to set, use the pliers to curve the ends of the wire into a spiral. This is what will hold your pictures in place.

Now you get to decorate! No project is complete without a little burlap :)

Add a few fabulous pictures of some gorgeous people and away you go!

I'd love to see pictures if you make one! :)