House of Ivy: DIY Flocked Christmas Tree

Every year right after Thanksgiving, we march down to the grocery store and buy a live Christmas tree. I've wanted a flocked tree for years and years, but for some reason I can't bring myself to spend $250 on one from our local nursery... Call me crazy, but that's a pretty penny for something that will live in my house for about one month.

However, I do just LOVE the way it looks... something about a white tree conjures up images of a classic vintage Christmas for me. Added bonus that brightly colored ornaments really pop off of the white background!

So, after a little bit of research, I decided to flock our store-bought tree myself. Mark was initially very hesitant (read: worried he would get stuck cleaning up a colossal mess of white fluff mixed with my tears of frustration) but I forged ahead on my own. I ordered some Sno Bond, and everything else I had in my house already. Read on for my how-to!

HOW TO FLOCK YOUR CHRISTMAS TREE

Supplies:

Sno Bond (I ordered 2 lbs for a 6'6" tree and used about 1/2 the bag... This will depend entirely on how heavy handed you are)
Fine Mesh Strainer (I used the medium strainer from this set)
Spray bottle (great to have on hand for misting orchids or naughty cats on your kitchen counter)
Towels or newspaper

Instructions:

Pre-String your lights onto your tree. Ours are rated for outdoor use, so they are safe to get wet. If you put lights on later, you'll be sorry - and covered in white fluff!
Move any furniture close to the tree out of the way and cover the area beneath your tree in towels or newspaper. This flocking method is pretty clean and tidy, but you will have a light dusting of the Sno Bond on the floor when you are finished.
Pour some Sno Bond into a large mixing bowl, fill your spray bottle with water, and grab your strainer.

Start at the top of your tree and work your way down - this creates a snow-fall effect that is much more natural than a sprayed-on flock you will find at most nurseries.
spray a small section of your tree with water (a few branches at a time) and then dust on the Sno Bond powder with your strainer.

(I learned the hard way that I needed to have a bowl down under the tree - can you see my snow residue on the carpet? Oops!)

The powder will adhere to anything wet, forming a paste, so it is important to cover your rugs, hardwoods, etc. I learned this the hard way and was scraping a white paste off of my wood floors (yuck).
Continue to work your way down the tree in small sections until you have reached your desired level of snow. I went back over a few areas that had not received as heavy a snow fall as others.

Let your tree dry overnight before adding any ornaments, etc. Throw away your newspaper/floor cover the next day, and step back to admire your handiwork.

This whole project took me less than one hour, and was way less painful on the pocketbook than buying a flocked tree. I think you could even do this on an artificial tree, but I would practice first to make sure you love the look!

Have any of you ever flocked your own tree? Have any pointers I should add to the list? I'd love to know!
And now, some more photos of the complete tree in its full frosty glory!