How to Make a Braided Nursery Wall Hanging

This braided nursery wall hanging is super cute and is the perfect addition to any boring and empty wall! If you can wrap, braid and make a pom pom, this simple DIY project is for you! Such a sweet and simple way to decorate your nursery or make something handmade for that special mom-to-be!

BRAIDED NURSERY WALL HANGING | DIY DECOR

Full transparency, I’m not a mom (I have pets tho and that totally counts right?!) Even though I don’t have kids of my own, it doesn’t mean I don’t love making stuff for my friends and cousins who do! Wall hangings are so fun to create and there are a ton of ways to make them! This one is pretty easy, so even less experienced crafters will be able to follow along.

A good friend of mine is expecting and asked me to make something for her baby’s room. She gave me some basic criteria like colour and size but the rest was up to me! I took a pretty traditional approach, by incorporating braids and pom poms but I think it came out really great. You can hang it on a wall or a door and I think it’s super cute!

This wall hanging is also really easy to personalize. You can make this exact version OR leave some of the elements out to create your own. I love crafts that are customizable and this one can be adjusted in so many ways! Let’s get started!

Supplies you’ll need:

The full printable list of instructions is available at the end of this post, but here’s a list of affiliate links that will take you to products on amazon that are similar to the supplies I used.

Wrapping the Hoop:

I found this furry yarn at Michaels and bought it without knowing what I was going to do with it. I love the colour and texture it adds to the piece. Not to mention it’s SUPER soft!

Add a tiny drop of hot glue to the metal hoop. Hold the end of the furry yarn down to secure it. Start wrapping the yarn around the hoop, passing the bulk of the yarn through the hoop as you go. You can use any size hoop. I used an 8 inch hoop for this piece.

Wrap the entire hoop. When you reach the end, add another tiny drop of hot glue and secure the end in place.

Choose a complimentary shade of yarn for the braided part of the wall hanging.

Bundling and Tying the Yarn:

Measure out a 4 foot piece of yarn. Use this piece as your guide while you cut the rest. You will need 15 bundles with 4 pieces of 4 foot yarn per bundle.

Once you’ve cut all 15 bundles you can start tying them to the hoop. For this you will use a Larks Head Knot.

Lay the first bundle on top of the hoop on the bottom left side. Work from left to right.

Next, grab the top of the bundle and tuck it behind the hoop, and pull it down towards the two tails.

Take the two tails and tuck them into the loop.

Pull the loops to tighten the knot.

The first knot is complete! Repeat the same knot for the remaining 14 bundles, adding one next to the other as you move along the bottom of the hoop.

Trimming the Yarn:

The next step is trimming/shaping the bottom of your yarn bundles. This is where you can decided the length and the basic shape of the bottom. I trimmed mine into a point in the centre.

Making the Pom Poms:

I’m going to admit something here: I had not planned on braiding my yarn at the start of this project. It was a last minute decision. I mention this because I would have braided my yarn at this point instead of doing it after adding the pom poms. For the sake of photo continuity, we’re going to make the pom poms now, but you can decide when you want to glue them on!

I wanted a few of the poms to have two colours to add a little more contrast. I used two different shades of yarn and the second smallest pom pom maker in my set (linked above.)

If you’ve never made a double coloured pom pom or used a pom pom maker before, check out one of my older posts: How to Make a Simple Pom Pom Wall Hanging. It goes over everything you need to know step by step!

I originally made 4 smaller pom poms. Two with contrasting colours and two plain ones.

I decided against using the two plain ones and made two much larger ones. I tend to change my mind a lot when I’m making something new. Can anyone else relate?! Being flexible is so important but I waste a lot of time trying to make up my mind! I used the largest size pom pom maker for these new ones.

Like I mentioned above, it was this point when I glued them onto the hoop with hot glue. You can totally postpone this until your strips are braided but it works both ways. Decide how you want your poms to sit and in what order and glue those suckers down! I opted for adding the largest ones in the middle and the two smaller on either side.

Braiding the Yarn:

You should have 15 yarn bundles with 4 pieces of yarn per bundle. Grab the first 3 bundles to start the first braid. Use the knots at the tops as a guide.

Start braiding them together from the top down, alternating and overlapping each bundle until you get to the end.

Cut a 6 inch piece of of the same yarn.

Tie it around the bottom of the braid to secure it. Double knot it just to be sure. The ends of that piece should just blend into the existing pieces of yarn.

Repeat these steps with the remaining bundles so end up with 5 braids in graduating sizes. The ends will be a little uneven. Grab your scissors and give them a little trim.

I cut each one in a straight line to even them out. It’s ok if some of the ends are a little longer or shorter, I think it gives the piece a little more character.

Finishing Up:

Add a piece of string at the top of the hoop for hanging. Cut an 8 inch piece of string and tie each end to the top.

Your braided pom pom wall hanging is complete! I think the braids look so much cuter than just leaving the strings hanging but you can leave them if you like that better!

This project is pretty easy to pull together and there are so many ways to customize it and make it your own!

This piece is going to live in a nursery but it would totally work in an adult space too.

Tips for making a Braided Wall Hanging:

One of the most important tools for this project is a sharp pair of scissors. With all the yarn trimming and cutting around pom poms, you’ll make quick and easy work with sharper blades.
When tying your braids, be careful not to pull them too tight. Each braid should have the same thickness as the rest, so be mindful of how loose/tight you’re making them.
Hoop size changes everything! If you opt for a larger hoop you may have to adjust the amount of bundles, length of yarn and number of pom poms so you end up with an appropriately sized hanging. Use this one as a reference and add/act accordingly.

How to Make a Braided Nursery Wall Hanging

Such a sweet way to decorate your nursery or make something handmade for that special mom-to-be!

Scissors
Glue gun
Pom Pom Makers (small and large)

1 skein furry yarn ((any colour))
1 8 inch metal hoop
1 skein yarn ((coordinating colour for the braids))

Pom Poms

3 skeins yarn ((contrasting/coordinating colours))

Add a small drop of hot glue to the metal hoop. Hold the end of the furry yarn down to secure it. Start wrapping the yarn around the hoop, passing the bulk of the yarn through the hoop each round. When the hoop is completely covered, secure the end with another small drop of hot glue.
Measure out and cut a 4 foot piece of regular yarn. Use this piece as a guide while cutting the rest of the pieces. Measure and cut 15 yarn bundles with 4 pieces of 4 foot yarn per bundle.
Using a simple Lark's Head Knot, secure the first bundle to the base of the hoop. Work from left to right until all 15 are secured side by side along the bottom.
Trim the ends of the hanging yarn bundles. Trim straight across, on a diagonal or with a point in the middle. This is will determine how the bottom of the braids will fall.

Braiding the Yarn

Grab the first 3 bundles to start the first braid. Continue down the length of the yarn until you reach the end.
Cut a separate 6 inch piece of the same yarn to tie off and secure the bottom of the braid.
Repeat the last 2 steps with the remaining bundles to end up with 5 braids in graduating sizes.
The ends of the braids will be uneven. Grab a pair of sharp scissors and trim them, cutting straight across each one to even them out.

Making the Pom Poms

Using a small-medium pom pom maker, and two contrasting colours of yarn, make two pom poms.
Using a large pom pom maker, make two more with another, coordinating shade of yarn.
Glue the large pom poms in the centre of the bottom of the hoop. Next, glue each of the smaller ones on either side of the larger ones.
Cut an 8 inch piece of thread or macrame cord and tie each end to the top of the hoop for hanging.
Your braided pom pom wall hanging is complete!

This braided nursery wall hanging is super sweet and really easy to make! With a few basic techniques and some different shades of yarn, this adorable DIY decor project will brighten up any nursery or space that needs some sprucing up!