Have a go at.. Making your own wreath!

Transcription

1 Have a go at.. Making your own wreath! I make wreaths for all occasions, not just for Christmas! Anniversaries, birthdays and all the seasons warrant a wreath on my front door! But Spring and Easter is a particularly good time of year to go foraging for greenery! The lush lime greens that are emerging in the garden are just too good to resist! Now, I am not a florist, I am a crafter! So I have no doubt that some of my techniques will not fit in correctly with those that are, however, I feel that everyone should have a go and produce a fabulous one off creation. Each one will be different, simply because you will all use different materials, some of you will cut your foliage with short stems and some with long stems which will determine how each one will turn out! It doesn t matter how much or how little you have in your garden, just using ivy from the hedgerow will produce a spectacular display. I have created a photographic step by step guide below. My only advice is when you think it is finished you should continue stuffing for at least another 15 minutes!! (that is a technical term, of course!) YOU WILL NEED: Wet oasis wreath these can be found at garden centres, florists or online if you are going to hang your wreath you will need to wire it, but should you want to have your wreath on a table purchase one with a plastic backing Bin bags (to cover your work area) Thin green garden wire Floristry wire (again found online, or in garden centres. Do not worry if you can t find any, you can always cut the garden wire to smaller lengths and use in the same way) Secateurs Foliage (go with what you can find, I like a variety of greens and variegated leaves, but just using ivy can be really effective) Ribbons and accessories (I have used just ribbons and small wooden cut out rabbits as this wreath was only a small one but you can decorate with plastic eggs and a larger ribbons should you feel the need)

2 Collect all your materials together, cover your work area with plastic bin bags. Place your wreath with the join at the bottom. (fig 3) Cut a good metre length of wire (you won t need all of this but there is nothing worse than not cutting enough!) (fig 4 & 5) Cut your wire on the opposite side of the join through the oasis and wrap around the whole oasis at least three times and then twist the remaining length together round the back of your oasis (fig 6) and then make a loop to hang your wreath on, twist around the base of your loop until you feel it is secure enough not to snap. Cut off remaining wire. (fig 7) Fill a sink with water (or bath if you are doing several!) and place your wreath oasis side down and allow the water to gently soak into the foam, I like to leave my oasis until it is well soaked through until all the bubbles have disappeared. (fig 8) Place your oasis onto the plastic bag (I always have an old towel nearby to soak up any spillages it does tend to drip!) ((fig 9) 7 8 9

3 Start with good strong foliage strip off the ends to give you a good prong to poke into the oasis (fig 10 & 11). You have to consider that this is done in three parts, top, edge and inside. I tend to start mine on the top area, but many start on the outside edge, up to you! Look at your oasis as if it is a clock face, starting at 12 o clock work in 10 minute intervals around it then go back and work around in the gaps, (fig 12) I do this for the top and sides, this will give a more uniformed looked, although it will not necessarily look this formulaic when it is finished! If you wish to use lengths of ivy around the outside of your wreath, cut short lengths of wire and create a hairpin with it (fig 13 & 14) poke the end of the ivy stem into the oasis so it will continue to get a drink and wrap the length around the outside of the wreath and pin the end into the oasis to secure. Once you have a good covering on your upper flat circle, now start the same principal around the outside, sticking to the 10 minute interval slots and then the same on the inside. (Fig 15 18) When your wreath starts looking quite full, lift it up and look at it from all angles, so if your wreath looks like (fig 19 & 20) keep on adding your foliage and filling the oasis!

4 Less isn t necessarily more when creating a wreath! I like to add as much variegated leaf as possible and seasonal flowers can be added towards the end of your making. Do take care as you add more and more foliage, the wet oasis foam is really quite strong but it can break if too much force is used. (Fig 21 22) When you feel that there are no gaps left and you are happy with the results, clear the area around where you are working. Step back and consider how you are going to embellish your wreath! I love a ribbon accessory, whether it is one large bow or several small ones it is up to you! Always work in odd numbers, 1 large bow, 3 or 5 small ones. I am always being asked to create these bows, but it is really easy to tie them, here is a step by step guide on how to tie a free hand bow. Before you tighten your bow insert a wire through the back and twist to make the prong to insert into the oasis.

5 I love using all sorts of extra objects to decorate my wreaths fruit at Christmas, roses for anniversaries and birthdays and for this Easter I have used these wooden cut out bunnies! I have wired them and added a yellow bow! And here is the finished wreath! Each one you create will be different. This wreath should last a good few weeks and will stay wet for a while, but you can water it every so often just to keep the moisture in. Have fun! Clare Spender 2015