Carolyn J. Braden • 4 Minute Read
How to Make a Balloon Wreath: The Cutest DIY Holiday Decor for Joyful Photos & Festive Vibes
Create a show-stopping balloon wreath that instantly elevates your holiday decor and makes every photo op extra magical! In this easy DIY tutorial, I’ll walk you through the simple steps, must-have supplies, and pro tips for building a full, colorful, Instagram-worthy wreath that guests will obsess over. Perfect for holiday parties, family pictures, pet photos and joyful festive decorating!
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Johnny Cash and I admiring my balloon wreaths
The Creative Inspiration
Every holiday and birthday in our family, I try to come up with a new balloon “animal” or balloon sculpture to try. This year, I was feeling wreaths, bows and holly bush colors, so I decided to come up with an easy green and pink balloon wreath.
I figured it out in one experiment, which told me this was THE BALLOON TUTORIAL for Christmas 2025. It is very simple to make, it SUPER CUTE and brings me joy when I look at it. Anything that brings me joy is worth making and putting out into the world.
Johnny Cash features my balloon creation
I’ve created many balloon tutorials. This balloon dog is an easy one to try. See me make it in my 1-minute video tutorial below or via my YouTube channel @carolynjbraden:
Holiday Party Décor + Photo Opportunity
After I made my experimental balloon wreath, my pups gave me inspiration to market it not only as simple DIY holiday party décor, but also for a cute photo opportunity. My dogs Minnie Pearl and Johnny Cash love working with me, and when I asked them to put the wreath on and take a photo, it only took the promise of one dog cookie and less than a minute for them to nail the picture.
My Pink Lily matches my cute holiday decor!
Cute Clothes for Photo Ops
Get my cute sweater and matching skirt from Pink Lily. Pink Lily has the CUTEST clothes and accessories, perfect for all photos! View all my favorite Pink Lily finds in the carousel below.
Minnie Pearl models my balloon wreath
Working with Pets or Kids for Photos
Let me tell you this secret about working with your pets or kids to get great photos: it doesn’t always happen as fast as you’d like. I have worked with both my dogs for years to train them how to sit still for a photo. Even with all the training, they sometimes are just not in the mood. Kind of like humans! When I was in my photography classes in high school and college, I learned how quickly people get tired of posing.
If you are doing a photo with this balloon wreath, create a calm environment first and foremost. Pets and kids like calm. Then, show them where to sit and talk to them a bit about what you are about to do. I talk to my dogs like they are people and I know they understand many words. If I say the word “picture” and “cookie” together in a sentence, they now know what I want because we have done this so many times.
My toddlers AKA my dogs, Minnie Pearl and Johnny Cash
Dogs Are Basically Toddlers
Dogs are like toddlers and have about the same level of vocabulary as toddlers. So, treat them accordingly. After I talked to them, I placed the wreath over their head, talked to them about what I was doing again and said their name a few times, and snapped a photo quickly. Don’t forcefully make pets do something like take a perfect photo if they aren’t having it.
Work with them and after some time, they’ll meet you in the middle, which works for both parties. I only know this after years of teaching, being a nanny for a young child and from babysitting for numerous kiddos as all age levels. I also know this because of studies like this one I watched on YouTube about the smartest dog in the world. It’s a fascinating study!
How Long Do the Balloon Creations Last?
Mine get tiny after week 1. If making these for holiday parties, you can make them a day or two in advance. When I wake up and see my balloon creations, even when they are shrinking, it just makes me smile. Those little happy moments, especially when you first wake up, can make your whole day better. Gift one to someone to make their day better too!
Want to make this last longer? Try it with skinny pool noodles or craft foam tubes and zip ties for a simple outdoor holiday wreath.
My balloon wreath tutorial
How to Make a Balloon Wreath and Bow
Now for the tutorial. Here’s what you need. Links go out to Walmart, Amazon, Temu or Target, where I usually source my craft supplies based on pricing.
Balloon animal kit (I used this one from Amazon, by Dan&Darci, which came with instructions, balloons and the pump and it’s a really well thought out “workshop”)
Optional: a 4th balloon or ribbon or tulle ribbon for attaching the bow balloon to the wreath
Notes: I tested other balloons (some metallic ones I tried were pretty terrible and I sent them back) too but the ones in my kit were really, really good. Funny thing is that not all balloons are created equal. The ones in my kit were very durable, stretchy and easy to work with. The booklet was pretty good that came with the kit and takes you through many tutorials with codes to watch videos. Also note that practice makes perfect! The first one you create may not be exactly the way you want it, but keep trying!
There are many other kits online and in stores and here’s some to try if you want:
Learn & Climb Balloon Sculpting Kit for Beginners, Amazon, $17
Deluxe Balloon Animal Kit with Web App, Amazon, $20
How to Make Balloon Animals Kit, Walmart, $15
Way to Celebrate! Twist and Shape Party Balloon Kit, Walmart, $4
100 piece Vibrant Balloons Kit, $5, Temu (If you are a new Temu app user, use code afe55197 or my link here for 30% off)
Just need the balloons? Target has them here.
Check out my 1-minute video tutorial for this project on my TikTok now or coming soon here and to my YouTube channel @carolynjbraden!
Blow up the first two balloons
How-To:
Select three balloons in the colors of your choice. I selected a darker green, a lighter green (for the wreath) and a pink balloon for the bow. Blow up the balloons by placing them on the pump. I held onto the balloon at the pump tip and pumped air into the balloon. If you don’t hold it on the end, it may fly off when you start pumping. Pump up your balloon all the way, then let out a tiny bit of air to make sure it stays flexible. Knot the balloon.
Twisting the ends together
Twist the ends of the two green balloons together a few times to lock them together. (Get my pipe cleaner crown tutorial, as seen in the above photo, here on my website)
Twist together the two balloons
Twist the two balloons together, then pinch and twist together the other ends to lock the twist in place.
Forming the wreath
Circle the balloon twist and twist the ends together to form the wreath. I had one pair land me with one green balloon being too long. In this case, tuck the longer end between the balloons. They are pretty durable.
Making the balloon bow is like making a pretzel
For the bow: Inflate and tie a third balloon in your choice of color. Hold the balloon with the ends in your hands. Curve one end up and down towards the center of the balloon and repeat with the other end (it will look like a pretzel). Pinch it together and twist. Rearrange it as needed. The full balloon bow tutorial can be found here. I have a video tutorial in that article for it too.
Attaching the balloon bow with tulle ribbon or a uninflated balloon works well!
Place the bow where the balloon wreath ends meet, loop some tulle ribbon (or an uninflated balloon) around the bow and tie it onto the balloon wreath.
Make one or many and hang them in your home or gift them!
I hung mine in my foyer on my staircase with some twine for very simple holiday décor. As I said above, the balloon will deflate about 50% in the first week, so your wreath will gradually get smaller.
Take Action
I encourage you to try the project with your own creative twists and share your creations on your social accounts! If you tag me using @carolynsbloomingcreations or @carolynjbraden, I’ll see it! Or tell me about it in the comments below.
If you loved this article, then we know you’ll love this one too: How to Make a Balloon Hat: Antennae or Antlers
Carolyn J. Braden is the owner of Carolyn’s Blooming Creations is a regular contributor and editor for CBC. She has been featured in numerous media publications such as InStyle Magazine, on HGTV, on Bustle.com, and more. She is the author of the books Georgia McMasters in Amethyst Lake Cemetery, How To Be Yourself: 3 Ways To Help You Being You, and the illustrator for the children’s book Bridging Connections. She is a former classroom teacher that now dedicates her life to educating others on how to live their most healthy, creative and happy life. Learn more about her visiting our About Us page.