Add the Cone Scales to Wire to Form the Miniature Tree Cones
Take a piece of paper covered or brown painted fine wire, and dab the top end with a tiny amount of glue. Use tweezers to place a shaped circle from the previous step at the top of the wire (see the wire on the left in the photo above). Roll the circle and the wire between your fingers to wrap the circle completely around the top of the wire.
Take a second paper circle and attach it to the wire opposite the first circle. Use your fingers to pinch it gently around the existing paper circle.
Continue to add circles around the wire in a spiral pattern. Apply glue to the wire with the tip of a pin or needle, then attach the circular cone scales to the dab of glue. Different tree species will have different patterns for their cones. Some, like spruce cones, will be flatter and closer to the wire, with less of an spiral pattern evident. Others, like the Douglas fir cones being made above will be quite curved and will spiral down the wire overlapping each other by less than 1/3. Look carefully at real cones to see which pattern you wish to copy.
Continue adding scales to the cone wire until the cone is the length you want it to be. Douglas Fir cones are usually 3 to four inches in length. Other cones may be larger or smaller.
When your cone is the right size, set it aside to dry and start a new cone. If you will be adding the cones to a miniature tree or a wreath, leave 1 - 2 inches of wire at the base of the cone. If you will be scattering the cones on the ground or setting them in a basket, cut the wire off at the base of the cone and paint any exposed wire brown to match the cone.
