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, 2008 |
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Budget Decorating
Homemade Wreaths If you'd like to learn how to make your own floral wreaths at
home then this is the article for you! I made this pretty spring wreath in
about 20 minutes, and although it may not be perfect, it's still quite beautiful
on our front door! And... I saved over $30 by making it myself! More...
I've used the same spring/summer wreath (with little pink and white flowers) on our front door for more years than I can count. It was really time for a change! I guess I've just been so busy over the last 10 years that I hadn't even thought about it until this week. So, while I was out running errands I stopped by my favorite craft supply store to see if they had any pretty wreaths I could pick up. I was hoping they'd have something special for Easter. But after about 5 minutes of browsing through the store (scanning every decorated floral wreath available for purchase), I quickly realized that I was on my own. The average price tag was $39.00, which was much more than I wanted to pay! Fortunately, I have had some experience with flower decorating and knew basically what to do next. I said to myself "it's okay, you can do this!" And as you can see from the picture above, I purchased some silk flowers and went home and made this beautiful wreath. My total cost was under $10.00! And ever since I put it up on our front door I've been wanting to share it with all of you - so you can save money and have a pretty wreath on your door too. Wreaths are pretty and fun, and an inexpensive way to decorate for the seasons and holidays, especially when you make them at home. Here's the items you'll need... Scissors or wire cutters Brown or green floral tape to match the stems (if you want to get real fancy) Hot glue Recycled twist tie for hanging wreath on the door (like you get from a bag of bread) Wreath Base
Silk Flowers
Bows and Extra Decorations, if Desired
Directions... Lay the wreath base on a table as you would like it to hang on your door (prettiest side on top or whatever), then add the twist tie to the back of the top so you can hang it on the door when you're finished. (Or, if you want to wait and see how the wreath turns out first, save this step for last - like I did.) Next, prepare your flowers. Remove store tags, cut flowers to a shorter length (about 4 - 6 inches), with wire cutters or an old pair of scissors, and then wrap stems with a small amount of floral tape if desired. You can even cut off the leaves and do the same thing with them, or use florist stems (the ones with a wire attached) to create a single flower or leaf out of everything that was attached to each stem. After you've got your flowers prepared, group them together by color or type. Start with one group of flowers and stick them in the wreath one at a time, in whatever pattern you want. Then, work on another group and another until they are all in the wreath. (If you have some flowers leftover you can also put them in a vase and use them somewhere else in the house.) If you'd like to add a ribbon bow or some kind of decoration, you can either place it in the wreath as you did with the flowers (attaching a leftover floral stem with some tape if needed), or just use a little hot glue. Now, take a step back and see how it looks. If you don't like the way you placed some of the flowers you can carefully pull them out and move them around until you're happy with it. Wreaths also make great gifts all throughout the year... especially for holidays. I hope this has given you the encouragement to give it a try, I know you can do it! Just be creative and send us a picture!
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Copyright © 2004 by Michelle Jones Want more money-saving tips? Get a FREE Subscription to our monthly newsletter!
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