DIY Wall Decor – Eucalyptus Branch
Soooo…this was one of those ideas I came up with that I thought was either going to be really cool or really crazy. I figured I had nothing to lose in trying and gave it a shot. Oddly enough, I think it fell somewhere in between with very mixed reviews from the family.
At the grocery store recently I noticed some beautiful seeded eucalyptus in the floral department. I picked up two bunches of it with the intent to make a wreath. But the big empty wall in my family room was really starting to get to me, and I was inspired to try something else.
I had a large branch stored in a closet (doesn’t everyone?) that I had found in a parking lot. Funny story, my daughter who is very shy was with me when I spotted that branch. We were attending a college open house and cars were piling into the parking lot. I mentioned to her that I’d like that branch to use as decor. So she marched her little self across the parking lot and dragged that branch back to the car for me. At only 5 feet tall, the branch might be taller than she is. She got some funny looks from the people pulling into the parking lot.
So I started entertaining the idea of somehow hanging the eucalyptus from the branch, to hang on the wall. I have no idea how long eucalyptus will last, but from what I understand it will dry and look a bit lighter. I’m not worried about it because this is to be a temporary (and budget friendly) fix for my big blank wall. I plan to do a gallery wall here, I’m in the process of collected pieces for that now.
To begin, I laid the branch across my table and determined where the center is. I started laying out the eucalyptus to get an idea of placement. In some spots the eucalyptus was bent, so I cut off those pieces and tried to work with the straighter stems. I didn’t have any floral wire, so instead I used fishing line* to attach the eucalyptus to the branch. This worked out even better than floral wire since the fishing line is clear.
I will sometimes use fishing line to hang wreaths on my front door (or in the house) because wreath hooks do not fit over my door. I also used the fishing line to tie the stems of the eucalyptus to each other as well.
This only took about an hour to make. I love how it temporarily fills this big wall space and only cost a few dollars.
To hang it on the wall I used my favorite wall hooks* . I only needed two of them, and they only leave very small holes, so I’m not too worried about having to deal with that when I eventually take down the eucalyptus branch.
I had just enough of the eucalyptus left to make a small wreath as well. I’ll be sharing that soon. In the meantime, I’m enjoying this eucalyptus branch, it feels very spring-like and only cost a few dollars to make! Because honestly, if you have a crazy idea why not take a chance and go for it?
“I can accept failure, everyone fails at something. But I can’t accept not trying.”
– Michael Jordan
*This post may contain affiliate links, you can read my full disclosure here.
Looks really cool.
Thanks Marilynn!
I bet this smells amazing! So cute!
xoxo,
Alfreda | Johnsons House of Love
https://johnsonshouseoflove.com
Thanks Alfreda, it does!
This is so lovely and simple! It looks so perfect above you couch!
eucalyptus is one of those plants that always looks great anywhere!
Maria
Thanks Maria!
This is so original and truly nice! I like the way it fills up the space and the branch came in handy after all! Thanks for the inspiring sharing!
Thanks Cindy, I’m happy with how it turned out!
This is so pretty, Roxanne! I love finding ways to use nature in my decorating, and this is just lovely!
Thanks so much Emily!
There is something very appealing about the greenery trailing down the wall. I really like it.
Beautiful and I love that this would definitely chase away any winter blues.
What a pretty idea!
I just love eucalyptus and this is just gorgeous!!
I don’t have a branch in the closet, but I do have one leaning in the corner next to the fireplace, hahaha!! My son found it when he was a teen and brought it home because my husband collects canes and he thought it looked like a cool walking stick. I bet that eucalyptus smell wonderful!! I love how simple it looks…I am trying to simplify my decor this spring! Thank you for joining us for our very first Create and Celebrate!!
So pretty!
Thanks so much for sharing at AMAZE ME MONDAY!
Blessings,
Cindy
What a simple yet elegant idea! Thanks for sharing!
Amazing decor, it looks absolutely stunning! Love all the accents you added into the space!
I love it! Do you still have it up?
Wanting to make something similar for a nursery, but not wanting to have to redo it every few months. Thoughts?
Hi Rachel, after a few months it started looking too dried out so I took it down. I would recommend making it with good quality faux eucalyptus!
I love this.
I have a huge expanse of wall over the family room sofa, and It’s been driving me nuts for years. I’ve tried several things, including overly large pieces of art (meh), and the typical ‘gallery wall’ (not my thing). The gallery look is Way Too busy for my tastes. The other idea swirling around in my brain is to make a three paneled art piece of my own artwork or photography. And now this! great idea. This will fill the space and make me happy until I figure something else out (or not).
I can see this being made with all sorts of silks. Wouldn’t hanging peonies be gorgeous?
Thanks for the inspiration. 🙂
Thanks, Carole! I’m so glad you found some inspiration here! Hanging peonies would be amazing!
This is beautiful! I have a branch (see I have one in my closet too!) that needs something like this for over my bed. Thanks! I’ll be sure to use your link 😉