This pencil yarn wreath is a fun addition to your back to school decor. With a few supplies from the dollar store, you may even want to make a few for your kids teachers to hang in their classroom.

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Sometimes, all it takes is seeing a group of colors together to inspire some creativity. That’s how I came up with this super simple pencil yarn wreath. I was at the Dollar Tree and they had a big selection of yarn. Some of the colors reminded me of a basic yellow pencil. So I grabbed a foam wreath form (another Dollar Tree find) and some yarn and headed home.
Altogether, I spent about 30 minutes wrapping the yarn and another few minutes cutting out the “No. 2”. It’s a quick project that doesn’t require any special skills or tools. Depending on your child’s age and comfort level with a glue gun, they could make one for their teacher(s).
What kind of glue gun should I use?
There are two basic kinds of glue guns: low temp and high temp. Here’s how to know which one to use for your project:
- Low Temp: Low temp glue guns are better for delicate materials, such as foam.
- High Temp: High temp glue guns are better for heavier materials, such as a metal and wood.
For this project, you’ll want to go with a low temp glue gun because of the delicate nature of the foam, which can melt under high temps. Plus, you are working with yarn and if you touch the glue from a low temp glue gun, it will hurt, but not as much as a higher temp gun.
Supplies Needed to Make a Pencil Yarn Wreath

- Foam wreath form
- Low temp glue gun
- Low temp glue sticks
- Yarn, in the following colors: pink, light gray, light brown/tan, yellow and black
- White card stock and black marker OR black foam stickers
How to Make a Pencil Yarn Wreath
First, start by plugging in your glue gun. Once it’s heated up, grab your pink yarn. Put a dab of glue on the wreath form and place the end of the yarn into the glue. Start wrapping the yarn around the wreath form, placing dots of glue every 5-6 wraps to keep the yarn secure.

The size of each section will vary a little depending on the size of your wreath form, as well as personal preference. One suggestion would be to use a pencil and make small marks on one side of the form so you can see about how big each section is. Make adjustments until it looks the way you want, then use a black marker to make each section more visible.
Repeat these steps for each color, going in this order:
- pink (eraser)
- light gray (metal)
- yellow (pencil)
- light brown/tan (wood)
- black (lead)
*PRO TIP* Scoot your yarn close together to avoid seeing the wreath form. A good way to remember this is to push the yarn together every 5-6 wraps, before gluing the yarn down.
Once the yarn is completely wrapped around, it’s time to add the “No. 2”. There are two ways you can do this.

- Stickers: Use black foam stickers. Make sure they are foam because the flexibility will allow the “No. 2” to wrap around the curve of the wreath. You may need to use your glue gun to secure the stickers if they pop up.
- Card stock: Cut the card stock out using scissors or a cutting machine (such as a Silhouette). Then glue it on with the hot glue gun.
- White card stock and black marker
- Black card stock
And now your new wreath is ready to put up!

This post wouldn’t be complete without sharing a bunch of fun back to school crafts and projects from my crafty friends! Check below the image for links directly to each project shown.

Laura from Me and My INKlings has created a set of hand drawn and water colored Back-to-School Lunchbox Notes that are available to download for FREE!
Create the cutest DIY Pencil Case made with felt and embellished with a strawberry. Smitha from Smiling Colors has the full tutorial on her blog.
Shani from Sunshine and Munchkins is sharing the CUTEST Back-to-School Pencil Wreath created from yarn. Fun for the classroom door!
Download and print a set of Lunchbox Notes to inspire the kiddos during back-to-school time. Head over to Laura’s blog Laura’s Crafty Life to get the Free Printable.
Justine from Little Dove has created the cutest DIY Apple Garland from book paper. What a cute way to decorate the classroom for back-to-school.
Make a fun Friendship Bracelet Style Bookmark for your bestie with this step-by-step tutorial from Erica of 5 Little Monsters.
Kelsey of Poofy Cheeks is sharing a fun DIY Pencil Sign with the FREE SVG Cut File. The perfect back-to-school teacher gift.
Make sure to keep all the kids school supplies organized with Personalized Notebooks. Get the editable sublimation files from Katie over on the Crafty Blog Stalker.
Chelly from We Can Make That is sharing the cutest SVG Cut File to create a Home Sweet Classroom Clipboard for that special teacher.
Create a fabulous back-to-school gift for your new teachers with Lindsay’s Resin Pencil Keychain tutorial over on her blog Artsy Fartsy Mama. Makes the perfect backpack charm too!
Beth from Creatively Beth is channeling her inner Dad Jokes with a set of Punny Lunch Notes to keep the kiddos in stitches.
Hydration is super important, so do it in style with Personalized Water Bottles. Marissa of Rae Gunn Ramblings has the full tutorial on her blog.
Looking for more back to school inspiration? Check out these posts!
School Subjects – Back to School SVG
Back to School Printable Questionnaire
2 Comments
Your wreath is absolutely darling.
Thank you Blanca!