How to Upcycle an Old Fence into a Festive Ladder

Bored of that same Christmas tree year after year?

I was, so when I saw House of Fraser’s tutorial on making your own festive ladder I thought I’d love to try it out for myself – especially since I felt more comfortable working with wood since my workshop with B&Q where I created the alphabet letter. Anyway, here’s how it went…

How to Make a Festive Ladder this Christmas

Handheld Saw – B&Q* |  Christmas Decoration – Christmas shop, M&S and other

What You Will Need:

Wooden fence or thick branches

Hammer & Nails

Handheld saw

Measuring tape

Pencil / Pen

Christmas decorations

Sand paper

Step 1: Prepare and Measure

Decide on how tall and wide you’d like your ladder to be. I went for a skinny Christmas ladder and decided I think it would look quite nice with steps that are a little tilted too so that it’s a bit more interesting. Start with the top step, this needs to be the smallest and then work your way to the bottom. I recommend not only measuring your pieces but laying all of the wood together to see what it would look and what kind of gap you’d like in between. It’ll also help you to decide on how many steps to have.

Step 2: Mark and Saw

Once measured, mark the areas you’d like to be sawed through and then cut using a handheld saw. Be sure to wear protective gear and saw away from yourself so as not to hurt yourself. Get some help from family and friends if need be. Be sure to sand the edges so that they’re smooth (it’s prettier and means you won’t get splinters.)

Step 3: Nail Down and Decorate

Now, arrange the steps on the ladder sticks. If you’ve measured these correctly it should be pretty straight forward but if not, don’t fret and make more 😉 it’s all part of the fun right? Nail down once you’ve happy with your arrangement. Now, take your Christmas decorations and go wild… if you’re a fan of Christmas tree decorating like me then this bit is the most fun 🙂

Here’s the video that I used as inspiration; it’s super easy!

The beauty about this ladder is that if I ever get bored I can simply paint it a bright colour and decorate it all over again. That way it’ll always seem as if it’s a new festive decoration when I’m actually just upcycling 😉

What do you think of this DIY festive ladder?

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