How to Decorate and Preserve Acorns for Fall Decor. After a brief windstorm a few weeks ago we have a large limb fall in our yard.
I went out there to find A LOT of acorns on the ground. These were pretty large and mostly still in one piece.
Not only was I thinking about how was I going to move this large limb but I needed to get these acorns out of the yard so the new grass seed can grow.
I picked up a large box of acorns and decided I would use them for decorating around the house.
Even though acorns are prevalent in our yard yearly, I am sharing how to preserve them so you can keep them year to year and more importantly get the bugs out!
Time to learn the processing of preserving acorns for fall decor to use year after year. Be sure to check out our Christmas Acorn Project too.
Decorating and Preserving Acorns for Fall Decor
I saw a small bag of acorns at our craft store for $4. It contained about 20 acorns. With this simple process of preserving your acorns, you can have hundreds for about $5.
This post does contain affiliate links that we earn a few cents if you purchase from them.
Do I need to dry my acorns before I can decorate with them?
In order to preserve them for years to come, I would recommend drying your acorns.
For example, you might see some acorns with small holes. This is a sign of insects, but drying the acorns will kill them so don’t worry! If you don’t dry your acrons then bugs might get in your fall decor.
You can find tons of great fall floral decor 
to go with these acorns.
How To Dry and Preserve Acorns
We have tons of trees in our yard, so come early fall we have a ton of acorns laying around the yard.
If you don’t have your own trees you could probably go to a city park or a neighbors house and they would gladly allow you to clean up their yard of Fallen acorns.
1. Gather and Sort
Gather up as many acorns as you can find. Be sure to go through your box of acorns and dispose of any that already have holes or are broken.
No one wants bugs!
2. Clean
Wash the dirt off the acorns, this was easy for me since it had rained the day before.
Throw away any that don’t look nice after a good cleaning,
3. Bake the Acorns
Place them on a cookie sheet, lined with tin foil and bake at 200 degrees F for 2 hours.
TIP: I set the timer every 30 minutes to shake the tray so they don’t burn onto the sheet.
4. Cool and Coat
Throw away any that don’t look nice or got burnt. You can stop here or you can preserve them even longer.
Allow them to cool completely and then spray with a clear coat spray. We used a satin variety so it has a little shine.
Allow to dry and turn over the acorns and reapply the spray. After applying the spray to both sides, allow acorns to dry completely and now you can use them in your fall decor.
DIY Fall Craft Projects that are easy but fun. Learn how to preserve acorns and use them in your fall decor too, Fall Dollar Store Crafts: DIY Glass Candle Holders Fall Decorating Ideas and Match Stick Holder Gift Idea Home Fall Decorating Ideas – Be Inspired by Nature this FallFall Craft Projects
Fall Dollar Store Crafts: DIY Glass Candle Holders
Fall Decorating Ideas and Match Stick Holder Gift Idea
Home Fall Decorating Ideas – Be Inspired by Nature this Fall
If any of the tops fall off, you can always hot glue them back on or use them in separate craft projects.
Learn how to Decorate With Acorns
I did not dry these acorns these but here is an easy way to display a few candles on a table for a great fall centerpiece.
Fill some wine glasses with a mini fake pumpkin and several acorns, turn over and add a candle.
If you are lucky to find some acorns still attached to the twigs, remove the leaves and place them in a vase for a fun arrangement. When my dried they fell off so you definitely want to hot glue them on.
Whatever you chose to do to create a warm fall atmosphere in your home check out these other Fall DIY like this Decorating and Preserving Acorns for Fall Decor or Easy DIY Fall centerpiece post.
Will you be preservin
g acorns this fall?
Other Fall Project you might like
Whatever you chose to do to create a warm fall atmosphere in your home check out these other Easy DIY Fall centerpiece post.
If you have a ton you can even save some and paint them for the winter holidays as well. Acorns are a gift from nature that is perfect for fall decor and crafting projects. Plus they are free!.
The greener the acorn the longer they need to bake
The wine glass idea is great. So simple and beautiful! I didn’t realize they needed to be baked so long! Thanks for the tips.