Make a pompom garland

THIS weekend’s project is a win-win situation. Use up all your spare wool left over from abandoned winter craft projects and brighten up your walls at the same time. Pompoms are simple to make and once in a rhythm, the process is quite therapeutic. Another bonus is a pompom can be made relatively anywhere – on the bus to work, a cozy nook at home or waiting for your coffee at the cafe.

We’re not using fancy contraptions or fiddly bits of cardboard – just fingers. To start off, hold your hand in front of you with your palm facing towards you. Your fingers should be together with the thumb out of the way. First step is to choose your wool. Start by loosely wrapping the yarn around your fingers. The more wraps you make, the thicker your pompom will be.

When you’re happy with the thickness thread a piece of yarn, about 20cm long, between your middle finger and ring finger and tie a tight knot in the middle of your bundle.

Take a pair of scissors and cut through the loops on either side of the pompom. For a neat look you can trim the straggly pieces or leave it crazy and quirky like I have.

Decide how long you would like your garland to be and cut your twine accordingly. The pompoms can then be tied on using a simple double-knot. Spacing can be adjusted by simply sliding the pompoms along the twine.

Hang your garland and enjoy.