How to make an artificial olive tree for less.
If you love the look of decorative trees in your home, but don't have a green thumb to keep real plants alive or the budget for an expensive fake store-bought version, this tutorial for a faux potted olive tree is for you!
I've wanted a tall plant for the basement for sometime — we do get a good amount of daylight down there, but not enough that I could keep something alive.Â
I have real fiddle leaf figs all over our house (see my tips for taking care of fiddles here) so I wanted something different. I started searching fake olive trees instead, but found they are pretty expensive. The best version (with good reviews) I found was $115.Â
As I was searching online, I came across tutorials for fake, do-it-yourself olive trees. Huh. I never even considered it, but it got my mind going. I combined tips for this faux olive tree project from here and another tutorial (no longer online).Â
This faux tree DIY was especially inexpensive because I got all of my supplies at half the cost. Look for sales and use coupons!Â
Step one: Figure out your tree trunk
I started with the "trunk" of the tree. I could have easily gone and cut a thick branch off of a tree. I was going to do that, but then I realized how cold and snowy it was outside. I really didn't want to go forage in the woods.Â
So instead I check out the "dried naturals" section at the craft store. They had actual (thin) wood trunks, which cracked me up that we can buy part of a tree at the store. But I wanted something that looked a little more natural and organic than just a straight branch.Â
I figured those white branches on the left would be perfect:Â
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The package came with three branches (for MORE olive trees obvs) and I used the biggest one.Â
I spray painted it brown…and was surprised when it looked real! You can use any brown paint — craft paint even.Â
I suggest using a matte paint finish for a more realistic look.
Step two: Attach your olive stems
I already had olive stems that I use throughout the year in our decor, so I didn't want to use those. Instead I grabbed bundles of olive branches instead:Â
