Make a coaster from your Christmas tree

Before your begin, make sure:

IMPORTANT: Only an adult should cut the tree trunk with the saw.

Make sure you’re working on a safe, steady surface.

Wear gloves when sanding to protect your hands.

1. Cut your coasters

Ask an adult to carefully saw the Christmas tree trunk into thin slices, around 1–2 cm thick. You can make as many as your trunk allows!

2. Sand your coasters

Once your trunk slices are ready, put on your gloves and use some sandpaper to sand the surfaces and edges of each coaster.

3. Wipe down your coasters

After sanding, there will be lots of dust on your coasters. Before you begin painting or sealing, use a damp cloth to wipe down the surfaces and edges of each coaster.

4. Paint your coasters

You can keep your coasters natural, decorate them, or do a bit of both. The choice is yours!

If you’re keeping them natural, simply brush a thin layer of PVA glue over the surface to bring out the wood grain and keep it protected.

If you’d like to decorate them, use paint or felt tips to create colourful designs or patterns on the surface of your coasters. You could paint some snowy scenes, or the animals that you think might use your Christmas tree as a habitat. After your paint has dried, go over it with a layer of PVA glue.

5. Add finished touches

On the underside of your coaster, why not write the year of your Christmas tree? It’s a lovely way to remember which tree your coaster came from! If you like, you can also stick felt pads on the underside of your coaster so it doesn’t scratch tables.