Steps
1. Cut your chicken wire to size.
2. Close the back up by bending the wire around each other or re-enforcing with zip ties.
3. At the waist you want to cut out "darts" just like you would on a skirt.
4. Cut an upside down triangle. Larger opening at the waist, fading into a point at the up.
5. Then you will pinch those triangles closed, creating a fitted waist.
6. Again, either bend the wire or use zip ties.
7. Wrap the garland onto the chicken wire.
8. Create shape by flattening or flaring the little branches out.
9. Place the larger sprigs INTO the garland to create our fuller shape on the bottom.
10. Use ornaments, bows, ribbon, branches etc.
11. Create the bodice with a staple gun or flower pins OR build it on a separate blouse and just glue the branches to the top.
Tips
If you're worried about damaging the top of your dress form, build the bodice on a separate blouse that you can pair with the skirt. Otherwise, you will need to staple or hot glue directly onto the dress form.
Buy the fake garland that already has the lights in it to eliminate one full step.
Look for garland with wires in the branches, this way you can bend and wrap the branches to keep it in place. This also allows you to flatten the branches at the waist, and flare them out at the base to create your tree shape.
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