D.I.Y Day| Christmas Stag Head


So I'd seen a lot of posts for this D.I.Y, but I wanted something cheap that was easy to make and up-cycled things I already had. I wanted mine to be a little tacky, to fit it with my kitsch Christmas tree but you can make yours however you want to. Changing up the paper, adding a different coloured pom pom to make it your own. You don't even need a temple, just seeing how it fits together you can easily make your own. Have a look at this post, as this is where I got the idea to free hand my temple. If you really can't draw one out, than fear not there's a temple here. 

You Will Need:

Cardboard - I used two Beer boxes
Newspaper- To make your temple on
Wallpaper- I used samples that I picked up from my local D.I.Y store
Glue - I picked mine ( UHU ) up from Poundland in the tools section. 
Scissors - Use a strong pair, as you will need to cut card. If you have a craft knife use that as it will be far easier. 
Optional - Goggle eyes, sequins, yarn and a pom pom maker also picked up at pound stores. You could try a dollar store or craft shop. I mounted mine on an old wreath which was from a pound shop. 




Firstly I looked at the pieces I would need- 

A head with antlers
Two side pieces - To slot it all together 
A piece at the front, to hold the side pieces together
A nose piece -to tie my pom pom on with
A back piece- to go behind the head piece to hold the sides together


Take your newspaper and fold it in half, this way you only have to draw one half of your temple. Draw out your temples, making sure they go out from the folded edge. So when you open it out, you have a full piece that matches on both sides. Take your cardboard and trace around your temple onto the cardboard. Don't worry about lines as this will be covered up later. If you have folds in your cardboard, cut out a scrap of cardboard from any left over to tape across the fold. This way it strengths it, and it will stop the cardboard folding everywhere once it's put together. 


Start to cut your temples out, if your using a knife this is pretty easy. If your using scissors than score the outline first or near it, this makes it much easier to cut out and your hands will thank you. Than before adding the paper, cut the slots. Start off with thin stripes, and than you can work out if they need to be bigger or deeper. Slot everything together to make sure it fits, than once your happy it's time to add the paper.


Take the pieces apart and mark a little x on the inside pieces vs the outside, I did this because I used two lots of wallpaper samples. On the inside I used a plain design, and used a glitter one for the outside. Start by covering a side, I choose to cover the inside pieces first and than the outer parts after. Draw a line of glue a few inches from the outer edge, and a couple of blobs in the centre. - Don't apply glue to near the edge or it will go all over your paper, and we don't want that. Stick your paper down, making sure it's flat and has no bumps or creases. Leave your pieces to dry before starting to cover the other side. Than cut around closer to neaten the edges making it all appear as one. Note: if you can see little bits of the cardboard, than don't worry. You can always paint these, but honestly you hardly notice them. I didn't cut temples out of the wallpaper, as there are two sides and the design needs to be on the right one. Laying your cardboard on the paper, will give you the best idea of how much your using, just cut closely as you can once it's stuck down.  



Lastly place all your pieces together, you can glue them a little if you like. But if you have cut the slots smaller it should wedge together nicely. Than you can glue on any thing you want eyes, sequins or glitter it's up to you. For the nose, I took some red yarn and made this one with my pom pom maker. As my boys wanted it to be Rudolph.  If you don't have a marker, you can make one out of cardboard (there's a how to here).  Than just leave to long ends, so that you can tie it on. Lastly with some yarn, and a plastic yarn needle I threaded it onto a wreath. You could easily make a cardboard base if you liked, and cover that with paper too. 

So I hope this has helped, if you need any help than tweet me at @Law1sfab and I'd be happy to assist you and also see how you have decorated yours. It's really easy and can is great for anyone on a budget this Christmas. You can make them for yourself, they would be great for a kids room and you can adapt the method if you prefer to make a different animal. You could even use this idea for everyday decor, I'm thinking about making a unicorn one in the new year. 



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