Recycled Flannel Tree Skirt

Create a handmade holiday when you recycle old flannel shirts into a cozy tree skirt.

Create a homemade holiday and upcycle your flannel shirts into a one-of-a-kind tree skirt! It’s an easy sewing project and a great way to create a holiday tradition.  As you start trimming your tree think about incorporating other upcycled materials into the decor like sweaters, pinecones, and even toilet paper roll ornaments.  For this project, it’s easy to upcraft a few old flannel shirts into a heartwarming, recycled flannel tree skirt.

Supplies:

Sewing & embroidery machine
3 flannel shirts – mix and match patterns
Coordinating fabric
Pattern paper, wrapping paper or craft paper
Pom Pom Fringe trim
Fabric Scissors
Straight pins
Measuring tape
Straight edge and marking pen

As a Brother Sews Ambassador I get to create all kinds of sewing projects using the best sewing and embroidery machines on the market. This post was originally created for my work with Brother Sews. 

Getting started:

First, deconstruct the flannel shirts first by cutting off the arms.  Be sure to save your scraps for later to make other projects like a winter scarf, bucket hat, oven mitts, or a book cover!

Next, cut up the sides of the shirt so they remain attached at the shoulders. You will need to do this with all these shirts.  Now decide on which shirt will be the center and lay it flat. The existing buttons or snaps of the shirt will be used as the opening of the skirt and the neck hole is for the tree stem.

Once you have decided on your center shirt, cut the other two shirts at the shoulders to create 4 pieces and place each piece on opposite sides of the centerpiece.

At the shoulders, sew the flannels together. Then sew the flannels together at the sides.  You should now have a large square and on your  way to making a super cute recycled flannel tree skirt.

Creating the pattern:

To make a 42 inch tree skirt, create a pie shaped pattern that has (2) 21 inch radius lines from the center.  To ensure the arc is correct, tie one end of a string around a pencil and secure the other end at the center point of the pattern with tape; make sure the string length is 21 inches.  Keep the string taught as you draw the edge of the half circle. That was FUN, right?

Now, lay the pattern on the folded flannel square and cut.

Do the same on a coordinating piece of fabric for the backside of the tree skirt.

Cut a 2” circle from the top of the coordinating fabric to create a hole for the center. And cut thru one side of the coorinating fabric. Sew in the raw edges.

This is a great time to add embroidery to your tree skirt… select the center flannel piece that is opposite of the button opening and add your embroidery.

Next, lay the piece of trim around the outside edge on the right side of the flannel circle facing in and sew in place.

Lay the two right sides of the circles together an sew around the edge. Turn right side out.

Top stitch the circle opening and the button opening edges to secure the backing fabric in place.

And there you have it, an adorable recycled flannel tree skirt.  Using once loved flannels from the thrift store or closet to make this recycled flannel tree skirt is eco-friendly christmas decor at its finest!

Jane Clauss is a 2-time Emmy Award winning television host for the Creative Living Show. She is is inventive and creative when it comes to sustainability in fashion, home decor, and tablescaping.

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