Decorating with Tumbleweeds

I live in the southwest.......and tumbleweeds are a common sight in this part of the country.      We see them blowing down the road,   caught up in barbed wire fences,    and trapped in corners.
   

I decided to "capture" a few tumbleweeds and give them a makeover.        I am calling my creations "tumbleweed trees"....lol!     With H's help,  I was able to make a tree for each side of the fireplace that's on our front porch. 

If you've never heard the song Tumbling Tumbleweeds,   just google it and you can pick your favorite country western singer and let them sing it for you.     Gene Autry,   Roy Rogers,   Sons of the Pioneers,  John Denver....take your pick!

Tumbleweeds are green all summer long,   then when it gets cold they dry out and look like this.      The root system eventually breaks off and they blow down the road til they get caught in a fence or corner.

I needed a tree to put my tumbleweed on and I decided to use some of the ficas tree forms I had on hand.    I bought 10 of these trees at a yard sale for $5 each last year.      H pulled all the green leaf branches off and I saved them in a garbage bag in case I want to put them back on.    I forgot to take a photo of the bare tree,  but use your imagination.

Before............................................................After

On the left is a tumbleweed caught on a barbed wire fence........on the right is my tumbleweed tree.

The stem of the tumbleweed is wired to the tree trunk to keep it from blowing off.     

Another way to decorate with tumbleweeds is to stack them and make a Southwest Christmas tree.....

Add some lights and Christmas ornaments......

How about a Tumbleweed chandelier. 
 I saw a 36" wide one on Etsy for $500.     One mans trash is another mans treasure!

They can easily be spray painted to match your decor.

You can see in the background that I have started decorating the fireplace mantel on the porch.    I hope to be back soon with a post sharing our porch decorated for fall!