Carolyn J. Braden • 3 Minute Read
How to Make an All-Season Driftwood Tree
Keeping out a tree year-round and decorating it according to season or holiday is becoming more and more trendy in homes all over the world. If you can decorate one tree and keep it up in your home instead of lugging out a real or faux Christmas tree, why not? It saves space, time and money! With this idea in mind, I created an all-season driftwood tree for my home as driftwood is among my favorite art media. Here’s how I did it AND here are ways to use your tree (think weddings and beyond!).
My completed driftwood tree
My Love of Driftwood
I love driftwood. The concept of it being a dead tree branch that gets tossed and turned in water for days, months or years and then coming out of the water smoother and beautiful is something I relate to my own life.
My life has had its ups and downs, just like yours. While the rough waters of life are not fun, they can help us gain more insights into our personal strength and help us gain wisdom. I’ve fallen in love with driftwood after finding many smooth and beautiful pieces of it while living on Sanibel Island, Florida.
My current tree decor
Driftwood Symbolism
The hurricanes in the past three years that have hit in the Sanibel area (including the devastating Hurricane Ian) have not been fun, but like the driftwood, I’ve come out of the rough times feeling “smoother”. Perhaps that’s why I am drawn to the driftwood, also known as nature’s storyteller, right now. The driftwood reminds me that the roughness of the hard-outer shell of the tree, the bark, can be sanded away over time to reveal beauty underneath.
Adding a faux air plant
Driftwood Beauty + Personal Meaning
Like many people of the world, I’ve not always felt comfortable in my skin, but after shedding my “bark” or the “roughness” of my outer shell, I feel my gentle, smooth side starting to surface and I love it. I’m not perfect (no one is), but I do feel better than I’ve felt since I was a child, becoming more and more myself every day.
I also added these crystal ornaments
Creating helped me get through some of the worst times in my life, and through this driftwood tree project, I continue to heal, using driftwood as a symbol that I will look to if I ever feel roughness creeping back in. It’s no secret that trees have meaning in my life as I have one tattooed on my back (I designed it) in honor of my maternal grandmother, my Nani.
The mulberry tree was her favorite and it lives on forever on my back and her memory lives on in my heart, like the heart shaped leaves on the tree. It has a scar running through it from a minor back surgery I had, yet my amazing doctor (also a plastic surgeon) made sure it was still in-tact after surgery and it’s still beautiful. Scars merely enhance our beauty and tell our stories.
Me, making the tree
Where I Found My Driftwood Piece
I found my particular driftwood branch on a walk on our local beautiful natural beaches with a friend I’ve known since high school. We took several long beach walks, talking while looking for the perfect piece of driftwood. I credit him and his sore feet sacrifice (the shells were all over the beaches and I forgot to tell him to wear shoes) for this perfect branch and am also thankful for his visit and the time we got to spend together.
My Easter tree ornaments
Tree Variations for Weddings + Beyond
I created these wooden egg ornaments to hang on the tree as I made the tree around Easter in 2025. You can use any tree branch for this really, if you choose one that is balanced enough for “planting” in your pot.
See my resin flower wood egg ornament tutorial in my 1-minute video below or via my YouTube channel @carolynjbraden:
You can create one for your wedding and call it a WISH TREE and have guests hang their best wishes for you on paper like I did for my mother-in-law’s retirement party and for my co-workers wedding (see the tree here in this article). You can decorate it seasonally, for holidays (using different ornaments like these) or only bring it out for Easter.
Now for the project. Here’s what you need (and I made it in less than 30 minutes!):
Tree branch or driftwood branch
Floral foam ( I used this pack from Amazon and they were small but perfect for my particular pot, and I used a bit extra that I had on hand to fill in the gaps)
Planter pot (I got my 6-inch “bubble pot” here on Walmart” and I have it in pink too…I used it for my money origami plant which you can see here)
Optional:
Soap and water for cleaning if needed
Jigsaw or a hand saw if needed
Sanding block if needed
Ornaments (make mine or get my tiny crystal ornaments from Amazon)
I also added a faux air plant and shells I found hidden on Sanibel in the pot base
Making the tree after trimming the driftwood
How-To:
Clean the driftwood if needed and let it dry. Here’s an article via WikiHow that can help you.
I cut foam to fill the gaps
Cut or sand the driftwood as needed. I had my husband use a jigsaw to cut one part of the branch off so it would be balanced in my pot. I sanded that edge with a sanding block but left everything else natural as the sand and water had perfected my driftwood’s surface.
Adding the driftwood to the planter
Place the floral foam in the planter pot. Slide the branch into the foam until it’s all the way in. I added some more floral foam in the gaps so it would not wiggle and it would be balanced. You could also add rocks around the base.
Add the moss over the foam to cover it, tucking it into the pot.
Adding the Spanish Moss
Decorate as you wish! Read my full article above to see how to use it for a WISH TREE for weddings, showers, retirement parties and beyond.
If you loved this article, then we know you’ll love this one too: How to Make Pearly Seashell Beachy Trees
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.