It’s no secret the raffia is one of my favourite materials to work with when it comes to DIY and crafts. These raffia baubles are simple to make and require no weaving skills!
Furthermore, if you have a real Christmas tree this year you’ll know that decorations need to be light. These raffia baubles won’t weigh down a real tree and will add a little bit of neutral and minimal decor to your year.
This project is simple and just requires your hands to get a little bit messy! It’s best to work on a non-stick surface such as a benchtop or use a plastic tablecloth that you don’t mind getting a little sticky.
You will need:
Raffia
Water balloons
Mod Podge or Craft glue
Small container
This project uses a technique like paper mache to create structure out of the raffia. Start by blowing up the water balloons (just with air) until they’re the size you’d like your baubles to be.
Then, mix some craft glue with water (about 50/50) in a small container. You can use a bunch of different glue options for this part, like Mod Podge, however go with whatever you have on hand!
Take a strand of raffia and dip it (or your fingers) into the glue mix. Begin to wrap the raffia around a balloon, adding more glue to the strand as required. I did this by dipping my fingers in and running them along the raffia.
As you wrap, aim to cover the starting end of the raffia so it doesn’t unravel. Slowly adjust your wrapping so that the ballon gets covered all around. I used about 3-4 pieces of raffia per balloon, but this may depend on how long your raffia is and how covered you’d like your baubles to be.
When you reach the end of a raffia strand, tuck it behind another piece to stop it unraveling. Make as many as you like, and then leave them to dry for a few hours or overnight.
Once dry, we’ll need to remove the balloon. Take a knife or pin and pop the balloon inside. It should come away from the edges easily, but don’t worry too much if the raffia crumbles, you can easily pop it out into place again. You may need tweezers to remove the ballon if you can’t reach in through the raffia.
Cut a few strands of loose raffia and loop a strand through a bauble, tying a knot in the ends so they can be hung.
Hang your new raffia baubles however you like!
Don’t forget to view the other 12 DIYs of Christmas on the blog, or follow me over on Instagram for all the updates and behind the scenes details.
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