This pinecone ornament craft is one of those rare activities that works well for a wide age range. Kids dip pom poms in glue and press them onto pinecones. That is genuinely the whole project. It is low-mess, low-cost, and produces something that actually looks good on the tree.
If you have been collecting pinecones without a clear plan, this is a good use for them. We used some pinecones we had painted silver a couple of years back. They were sitting in a bin, and this craft finally gave them a purpose. The kids were just as enthusiastic about making the ornaments as they had been about painting the cones in the first place.
What you need
The supply list for this craft is short. You need pinecones, pom poms, non-toxic glue, and a piece of string or ribbon for hanging. Scissors are helpful for cutting the string ahead of time. Paint and glitter are optional, but they do make the finished ornaments look more polished.
A note on pinecone size: medium-sized cones are the easiest to work with. Large cones take more time and more pom poms to fill in. Very small cones are tricky because there is not much surface area to press the pom poms onto. Standard craft store pinecones work well if you do not have any on hand from outside.
For the pom poms, you can keep things simple with red, white, and green, or let kids choose from a mix of colors. Both approaches look festive. Tacky glue holds better than regular school glue, but school glue will work if that is what you have. Just expect a slightly longer drying time.
How to make pinecone ornaments
Start by getting your supplies organized before you sit down with the kids. Pre-cut lengths of string or ribbon for the hanging loops. About eight inches per ornament is plenty. Adults should handle this step ahead of time so kids can focus on the gluing.
If you want to paint the pinecones first, plan for two separate craft sessions. The paint needs to dry completely before you add glue and pom poms. Wet paint will prevent the glue from sticking properly. A simple option is to brush just the tips of the pinecone scales with white paint to give a snowy look, rather than painting the whole cone.
Pour a small amount of glue into a shallow dish or onto a piece of cardboard. This makes it easy for kids to dip each pom pom individually and then press it onto a scale tip. The small, pointed sections of a pinecone are called scales. The goal is to glue one pom pom onto the lip of each scale. The ornament still looks full and festive even if only half the scales end up covered, so do not worry about perfection here.
Once the pom poms are on, glue a loop of string or ribbon to the base of the pinecone so it can hang on the tree. Depending on how heavy the pinecone is, you may want to use hot glue for this step. Hot glue should be handled by an adult only. After that, set the ornaments aside and let them dry fully before hanging.
This craft is a good fit for a relaxed morning at home. Kids can work mostly independently once the glue station is set up. It also pairs nicely with other holiday crafts if you want to make an afternoon of it.
A few variations worth trying
If you want to skip the tree entirely, these pinecones can stand upright as small tabletop decorations. They look like little pom pom Christmas trees on their own, especially when painted silver or white.
This craft also works outside of Christmas. Pinecones saved through the fall can be decorated for Thanksgiving or Halloween with seasonal colors. Brown, orange, and gold pom poms give a warm fall look. Black and orange work well for Halloween. It is a simple way to stretch one supply haul across a few different holidays.
More pinecone and ornament craft ideas
If you have extra pinecones and want to keep crafting, there are plenty of other directions you can go. Pinecone reindeer ornaments are a classic option that use googly eyes, small pom poms, and paper antlers. They come together quickly and kids find them very satisfying to make.
If you enjoyed this craft, we have a full collection of Christmas ornament crafts for kids with even more ideas. A few favorites from our collection include pom pom star ornaments, children’s clay Christmas ornaments, pipe cleaner bead ornaments, melted crayon ornaments, and paint drip ornaments. There is also a sweet reindeer ornament craft that preschoolers especially enjoy.
Pinecone ornaments are one of those crafts that look more involved than they are. The finished product is something kids are genuinely proud to hang on the tree, and that makes the whole thing worth doing.
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