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How to Make Decorative Twig Balls

Decorative twig ball in an urn against a frosted mirror

I love to incorporate natural elements into my decor, like flowers, shells, feathers, acorns, moss and pinecones. It’s even more fun (and cheap!) to craft with objects from nature. Today, I’ll show you how to make decorative twig balls.

Note: This post contains affiliate links. If you click on one of my links and make a purchase, I will receive a small commission but it won’t cost you a penny more.

It’s time again for our monthly Creative Craft Blog Hop, hosted by my friends Chloe from Celebrate and Decorate and Andrea from Design Morsels. I can’t wait to see what everyone has created this month! If you’re stopping by after a visit with Carol from Bluesky at Home, welcome! Be sure to check out all of the amazing crafts…I’ve provided links to the participating bloggers at the end of this post.

Inspiration For My Decorative Twig Balls

The last time I was able to browse at a home decor retail shop, I spotted some twig balls. They caught my attention because they were unlike any I’d seen before. I have some grapevine twig balls in my stash that are pretty common and readily available. But these were made out of twigs like the ones in my yard. I loved how they looked, but not the price tag. I knew I could make some myself.

supplies needed to make decorative twig balls

Here’s What You’ll Need:

  • Twigs collected from your yard – choose several different sizes 
  • Balloons
  • Masking or painter’s tape
  • Hot glue gun and glue sticks
breaking twigs in half

Step 1.

Break most of the twigs into about 2 inch pieces.

tape on top of a balloon

Step 2.

Blow up a balloon to your desired size and place a piece of tape on top. Mine was about 4 inches. The twig ball will end up being slightly larger than the balloon.

attaching a twig to tape on a balloon

Step 3.

Attach your first twig to the balloon with the tape.

applying hot glue to a twig
gluing twigs together

Step 4.

Apply hot glue directly to the twig taped onto the balloon, and attach another twig.

creating a decorative twig ball

Step 5.

Continue gluing twigs to each other around the balloon. Be careful not to touch the balloon with hot glue!

attaching twigs to a balloon to create a decorative twig ball
completed twig ball

Step 6.

Keep going until it takes on an orb shape. Then fill in “bare” areas with shorter twigs, as needed.

popping the balloon inside a decorative twig ball

Step 7.

Pop the balloon with a pin and remove the balloon and tape from inside the twig ball.

removing hot glue strings from a twig ball

Step 8.

Remove as many strings of hot glue as you can.

decorative twig ball

Done! The twig ball above is the first one I made. I think it came out a little bit better. At one point, though, I thought this may be a craft fail. Be patient and keep going!

decorative twig ball in an iron urn against a frosted mirror

I styled my twig ball in an iron urn against my DIY Frosted Mirror. I think they’d also look great in a wooden bowl or basket with pinecones. I’d love to find some tiny twinkle lights to put inside!

Thanks for stopping by today! Next on the hop is Rachelle from My Hubbard Home. Enjoy!

Rebecca

Celebrate and Decorate

Design Morsels

My Thrift Store Addiction

Debbees Buzz

My Family Thyme

White Arrows Home

Home Is Where The Boat Is

Chas’ Crazy Creations

B4andAfters

The Painted Apron

Purple Hues And Me

Bluesky At Home

Zucchini Sisters (you are here)

My Hubbard Home

Birdz Of A Feather

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39 Comments

  1. Fantasic idea for fall decor. It is natural and inexpensive. I adore that frosted mirror too!
    Have a great day,
    Kippi

    1. Thanks so much Carol! At first I was afraid they may be a craft fail lol. But I kept with it and they turned out pretty cool!

  2. What a creative idea, Rebecca! I love natural decor–pinned and tweeted! Blessings, Cecilia @My Thrift Store Addiction

  3. Rebecca, this is so creative! This is so perfect for decorating for fall. I can see making two or three of these for fall displays! Thanks so much for sharing!

  4. Rebecca, how unique and clever this project is! I’ve never seen anything remotely like it. Love it! I’m definitely going to give this a try. I love that I don’t need to go to the store for any supplies either. How great several of these would look in vignettes or in a fall centerpiece mixed with pumpkins etc. Pinned!

    1. Thanks Debbee! It was definitely a plus that I didn’t need to run to the store for any supplies…just out to my yard! I agree that it would look great in a fall centerpiece with pumpkins. Thanks for pinning. Let me know if you make one!

  5. Love the natural look to your twig ball Rebecca. I have plenty of twigs from the fruit trees so I can try my hand at this!

  6. Oh, I’d love a whole bowl of these. Or one big one on top of an urn or candlestick! I just KNOW I would be the one to break the balloon with the heat gun, though! With the winds from several recent thunderstorms, I know I have lots of twigs to choose from!

    1. Yes, Kathy, there are plenty of twigs out there! You should definitely try making one! If you pop the balloon, no worries…just start over with another one.

  7. Wow Rebecca, so cool!! I could make a million of these with all the twigs in my yard 😂 ! Great tutorial too…here’s a glue gun tip, if you get out your hairdryer and turn it on high heat the glue strings magically disappear! I love the way you styled it on the urn, looks fantastic!

    1. Thanks so much for that tip, Jenna! I didn’t know that! I hate those glue strings. There is definitely no shortage of twigs for crafting, and you can’t beat the price 😉

  8. I love the texture it adds. That’s a great idea. I like decorating with balls too, but I hate how they roll around. This one stays in place I bet. I love your frosted mirror too! Going to check that out next. thanks for being in the hop.

  9. Wow, Rebecca! This is quite impressive, creative and looks unique, too! While I was reading your post, it was if I was right there as you were gluing on the sticks and I kept thinking the balloon would pop! Whew! I’m glad it didn’t! I love that you put your twig ball on a decorative urn against a frosted mirror. Now it looks front and centered in your decor!

  10. I love the look of your twig ball Rebecca! It adds that organic touch and would look great with other natural elements in a dough bowl. Happy to be crafting with you today. ♥

    1. Thanks Mary! I’ve been on the lookout for a dough bowl but I can’t seem to find one at a reasonable price. I passed one up at an antique shop 2 years ago and I still regret it!

  11. I can’t wait to give this a try Rebecca! These would look awesome outdoors too, on a much larger scale. And I think the twinkle lights would look amazing in these too!

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