Let’s Create a Lighted Cherry Tree!

The other day, well evening, I was driving home from town. When I rounded the corner to our street, I saw the most beautiful lit tree in our neighbor’s yard! The branches looked like they had glowing yellow flowers. The trunk was gnarly and twisted. It stood about 8 ft tall, and the branches were full and spread out several feet. It was stunning!

When I got home, I quickly googled ‘Lit Tree’. It took me a bit of time, but I found one just like the one in our neighbor’s yard! I was thrilled! That is, until I saw the price – minimum of $1500! The one pictured below is 10 ft tall and offered on Wayfair. It is on sale for $3599.99! I’ve linked a similar one below from Amazon. It is 7ft tall and $399. But even $399 is more than I wanted to pay.

As much as I LOVED the look of this lit tree, I was not willing to pay that much. So, I decided to try to make my own. I knew I wouldn’t be able to make the trunk look the same but maybe I could find a way to create some kind of trunk?

Step 1 – Find a base tree

Step 2 – Make a base

The base that came with the tree was 8″ x 8″. Because I planned to create a larger trunk, I needed a larger base. I found a piece of plywood in the garage and using my skill saw, cut a 18″ x 18″ piece.

Once the base was cut, I sanded it with my orbital sander then applied two coats of primer on each side of the new base. After the primer was dry, I added two coats of satin black exterior spray paint. The metal base already had holes drilled in each corner. Using my drill, I pre-drilled holes in the wood base then attached the metal base to the wood using screws.

Step 3 – Make the tree taller

The lit tree that I bought was only 6′ tall but I wanted my tree to be taller. I had a metal rod in my stash that was taller than the one that came with the tree. It would add between 18″ and 2 ft to the height of the tree. The new pipe was the same diameter as the original one, so I cut a piece of plastic pipe that fit over the base and act as a connection between the base and new pipe. The new pipe slipped into the connector and the top of the tree slipped over the new pipe. This connection is nice and firm.

Step 4 – Create a trunk

The next step was to create a larger trunk. The pipe is less than an inch in diameter. I did a little research on You Tube and found a couple of videos of people making tree trunks using a cardboard tube and pool noodles. I found a sturdy cardboard tube at Habitat that was 6″ in diameter. Using my miter saw, I cut it to the height of the pipe, then using my oscillating tool, made a cut out that would allow the plug to fit through. I did a test fit to make sure the tube was the right height.

Step 5 – Make bark, vines & roots

Now for the fun part – creating bark, vines, and roots! For these pieces, I used the pool noodles that I had on the rim of my stock tank pool last year. They were too weathered to use again this year, but instead of throwing them away, I had kept them in the shed for a future project. The first step in creating bark, vines, and roots, was to use a sharp knife and make cuts in the noodles. For the vines, you cut thin strips all the way through the noodle. For the roots and bark, the cuts go about 1/2 way through the noodle.

The next step is to use a heat gun to melt the noodle. Holding the heat gun a few inches away, move it back & forth over the cuts. The noodle will start to melt, causing the cuts to open. **This is a little fumy, so be sure to wear a mask and work in a well-ventilated area. Once you have the look you want, allow the noodle to cool, then use spray paint in the color of your choice. I decided to spray mine with flat black. When the paint dried, it looked more like shiny than flat. After the noodles were painted, I decided to melt them a bit more to make them look more ‘bark-like’. When I did that, the teal showed through the cuts. I liked that look so I left them that way as opposed to adding more black paint.

Step 6 – Attach bark, vines, roots to trunk

To attach the bark to the cardboard tube and base, I sprayed Gorilla Glue Spray Adhesive to the inside of the pool noodle and also sprayed the cardboard tube and base. After spraying both surfaces, I pressed the noodle/root into place. I was using jumbo pool noodles that had been cut in 1/2.

To cover most of the cardboard tube, it took 4 pieces = 2 noodles. I filled in the spaces with pipe insulation (which is basically black pool noodles), along with some vines that I had made from pipe insulation. As I was working on the bark, I inserted the top part of the tree over the metal pipe & threaded the electrical cord down through the cardboard tube and out the hole that I had made in the bottom of the tube. I then continued the bark upward to cover the section where the top of the tree met the cardboard tube.

Step 7 – Add silk flowers to branches

To make the branches longer and to give them color, I added silk forsythia branches. The branches of the cherry tree are flexible and bend easily. To secure the forsythia branches, I simply wrapped the cherry tree branches around them. There was no need to secure them with wire, but that could be done if you feel the need.

Step 8 – Find location for the tree

When I decided to make this tree, I knew that I wanted to place it where I would be able to enjoy it, so I chose to put it on our upper deck. I can see it from the window above the kitchen sink and also from the sliding glass door. To prevent it from falling over in the wind, I secured it to the railing with a couple of bungee cords that I covered with some pipe insulation to prevent damage to the trunk. I also enclosed the electrical cord with pipe insulation.

Enjoy your creation!

Is our new tree as spectacular as our neighbors? No. Do I love it anyway? Yes! Although buying a tree similar to our neighbors would give me the look I love so much when I drive by their house, making our own tree was a lot more fun and WAY less expensive! Since I had the tools & pool noodles, the cost to make this tree was under $100.

Lighted Cherry tree: Before, during, after

For your convenience

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