Twig Houses: Easy DIY with twigs, glue, and paint to make these decorative twig houses.
This month for #12monthsofDIY our material is wood! There’s probably a million great DIY’s you could do with wood, but I wanted to give these sweet little twig houses a try, and love, love, love how they turned out. I first saw some on "The Block" an Australian decorating show that I might be slightly addicted to…anyway they’re been on there a few times and I always thought they were really cute. So I went looking for them and found these, gorgeous, and not available here. What’s a DIYer to do…have a go at them. The originals are probably made with nails, but we’re keeping it simple with gold old hot glue. Here’s how I made them.
Materials:
- twigs
- hot glue
- paint
How To Make A Twig House:
First job is to find some twigs. I used dogwood because there is lots growing in the forrest behind our house, and the branches looked pretty straight.
Cut your twigs into long pieces removing most of any twigs at the side. I did choose to leave a few, and I think they look really good with just a couple pieces like that.
Now, decide on how big you want to make your first twig house and cut out two matching side pieces, two roof pieces and a shorter piece for the bottom base. Make sure the side pieces are cut on angle to create the roof slope, and then trim your roof pieces so they match up. You don’t need to get your protractor or anything here. A little wonky-ness adds character. Now use some hot glue to attach all your pieces together.
Then, make a copy of this house front for the back.
Next, decide on the length of the sides, and glue them in place on one side, and then to the side. Now it’s starting to look like a house.
Lastly, find a piece for the top roof piece, and then two more short ones for the sides at the top. Glue them in place and your little house structure is done.
To finish these sweet little houses off, I painted them with mineral paint. It was my first time working with this paint and it was really nice to work with; great coverage, pretty colours, no bad smell, and easy clean up. I gave my little houses two coats.
You can make these in all different sizes, I did three, all slightly bigger than the next. They’d be perfect for some nesting dolls to live in.
Variations:
You can see here how I left a few little twigs sticking out on some of the pieces, adds a little more character.
I love how the details of the wood show through, but how the paint colours make them look a little more modern.
Remember they don’t have to be perfect, a little crocket works.
I like the white and then just one pretty pinkish one. These would be great done in bright spring colours too…think yellow, turquoise, the possibilities are endless.
With pretty DIY twig houses, life really is a party.
You might also like our DIY Mason Jar Oil Lamps here.
Also check out our DIY Pampas Grass Wreath here.
You might also like our Black Paint Dipped Brass Candlesticks here.
Laurie @ Vin'yet Etc. says
So adorable! The potential for these, table decor, fairy gardens, hang them from a tree with twinkle lights... endless!
dnr says
I'd love to see some pics of the them!
Dannyelle
dnr says
Great idea to maybe use them in fairy gardens, can't wait for gardening weather!
Dannyelle
Christina @ The DIY Mommy says
These are so sweet, Danyelle! What an adorable idea and so cute for Spring decor. I could also see them modified a bit to use in a little fairy garden! Thanks for sharing & I'm glad your site is back up. 🙂
dnr says
Sonja, they're really easy. Good luck.
Dannyelle
Sonja @SustainMyCraftHabit says
These are super cute! I will definitely give these sweet little twig houses a try.
dnr says
Thanks Jacki, willow is a great suggestion.
Dannyelle
dnr says
Absolutely, nothing more fun than a walk in the woods with the kids.
Jacki says
I love the red - that's one of my favorite twigs of all. Any kind of willow too.
Joann says
These are really sweet and what a fun project. I could get the kids gathering twigs... 🙂
Jo
dnr says
Thanks Ariel, yeah I should do an au-naturel one too!
Ariel says
These are adorable! I almost prefer them au-naturel! You should add a red natural one to the little village 😉
Thea says
What a fun DIY project! My mind is racing with possibilities! They can be made for the outdoor porch, deck or patio. Fun to add to any room of the house to add to the decor. I also love how you stressed that wonkiness was OK. Totally my idea of a project... not looking for perfection.
dnr says
Thanks so much, feeling so relieved to have the post up!
Brooke Berry says
These twig houses are so cute. Well worth the wait!