I have mentioned in the past that our neighbourhood has gradually changed into one where people are hanging wreaths on their doors. Wanting to get in on this party, this past summer I began a project involving a Wysteria Vine base I made from garden cuttings, and a series of wreaths I would make throughout the year, using this base. So far I have made two, an Autumn and a Halloween wreath. (I’ll put links at the bottom of this post if you’re interested in seeing them.)
Here is my Christmas wreath. It was inspired by the spool of red, black and white ribbon I found. I re-used the black boa-feather base from our Halloween wreath (which I made by attaching a feather boa to a wreath form with pieces of craft wire, every few inches), and added some other bits of black and red notions I had, attaching them with crafting wire. I finished the wreath by stringing three plain matte red ornaments on black wool.
[Aside … ok Eddie, I’m getting to your part. I know, I know … Saturday is Caturday, so it is your day on the blog today. And you did help make this wreath. I just need to type all this before you get your turn … hold on a minute, Mr. Bossy-pants.]
A note about the red ribbon with silver detail … At the office in which I used to work, we frequently received beautiful gift baskets from suppliers, filled with wonderful gourmet goodies. And while I did enjoy a chocolate or a buttery shortbread, for me, the trimmings and wrappings and the baskets themselves were the parts of the gifts that I coveted. And I seemed to be the only one who wanted these bits, because at the end of the day, I would rescue lovely ribbons and bows from the trash, with glee. This red and silver ribbon was gleaned from there!
Also, there are some items in the photos that I didn’t end up using on this wreath. That’s the thing with photographing your supplies before you start, when you’re just winging a project … you might not end up using everything you have! But this is also the fun of doing this kind of thing … you really don’t know what you’ll end up with. It’s fun just to add and subtract to your heart’s content, as you create your masterpiece!
As I made mine, I had to keep in mind that this was going to hang on the outside of our front door and will therefore be exposed to the elements, which will be quite severe with our Canadian winters! I liked the way the feathers held up through the severe fall rain storms we experienced in the fall, so I expect that they’ll be fine with some snow. Also, it’s worth noting that this will be hanging outside, in the middle of a busy city, so, while I have absolutely no reason to expect it to be nicked, I did not include any particularly special decorations that I would really regret losing.
And while I chose to go with a goth-ish black and red colour scheme here, this same type of wreath can be made using any colour of feather boa you want. White feather would be lovely too! To make one, use a wreath base of some sort (it doesn’t matter because the feathers will completely cover it). Cut your feather boa to the length required and attach it to your base every few inches using sections of craft wire. Separately, create a decoration using whatever ribbons and notions you want. I used a bit of black net that I found lying around, three types of ribbon, and three Christmas balls strung with wool. Attach your pieces together with craft wire, and then attach it to your wreath. Add a ribbon for hanging if you want, or make a loop with craft wire to hang it.
Ok … now it’s Eddie’s turn. He was very helpful, pulling at and playing with the ribbon, that’s for sure! Thanks for your help, dude.
I hope you have a great week-end.
xo loulou
