Easy to Make Spectacular Wreaths for Fall 2010

Fall wreaths this year are no longer confined to jewel colored leaves that have fallen from the trees topped with a brightly colored ribbon. In 2010, wreaths are made using materials you normally would never think of using in a wreath to hang on your front door or in the foyer or hallway of your home. Some tips for these projects: always use plenty of newspapers when making the wreath, and follow standard glue gun safety procedures. Always use branches and twigs that are still green so they bend easily and do not break. Allow yourself at least one hour to assemble each wreath.

Copper and Gourd Wreath

-- 18" wire wreath frame
-- spray paint, copper
-- hot glue gun
-- handful of 12" long semi-green twigs (any bush or tree readily available)
-- miniature gourds of various colors, 3" - 4" in size
-- 1 ¼ yards of turquoise ribbon, 1" wide
-- copper colored craft wire

Take the bundle of twigs and lay them out on newspapers outside. Follow the instructions on the can of spray paint, and evenly spray the twigs. Let them dry, then turn over the twigs and spray paint the other side, making sure the twigs are evenly coated in copper. Follow up with a second coat of paint if necessary.

When the paint on the twigs is fully dry, lay them on the table next to the wire frame. Use small bundles of twigs, four or five in a bundle, and wire them together using the copper wire. Leave the wire long enough to be attached to the wreath frame. Hide the remaining ends of the wire by weaving them along the backs of the twig bundles. Allow the ends of the twigs to stick out a little from the frame but not too much. Place the gourds at regular intervals along the twig laced frame and hot glue them into place. Do not paint the gourds; instead, leave the colors natural.

Take the ribbon and make a bow with it. Slide a piece of wire through the center loop of the bow and secure the bow to the lower left or right side of your wreath. Your copper and gourd wreath is ready for hanging.

Pine Cone and Seed Pod Wreath

-- 10 pine cones cut in sections
-- 16" flat base wood wreath, 1/4" thick
-- 5 seed pods
-- hot glue gun
-- burgundy or magenta spray paint
-- metallic purple spray paint
-- 1 ¼ yards yellow ribbon
-- artificial blue berries

Cut the pine cones in sections using a small hand saw. Each section should form round slices, approximately 3/4" thick. Lay them out on newspapers outside and spray paint them with the metallic purple paint. Once dry, turn over the pine cones and spray paint the other side. Give the cones a second coat of paint if necessary. Paint the seed pods in the same way, but use the burgundy or magenta spray paint to color them with. On another section of newspaper outside, spray paint your wood base with the same paint color used for the seed pods. Once the pine cones, seed pods, and wreath frame are dry, they are ready to be glued together.

Lay the wood wreath base on the table in front of you. Arrange the pine cones along the frame, with the seed pods placed at regular intervals. Place the blue berries in small bunches near the seed pods on either side. Hot glue all of your pieces to the frame.

Take the yellow ribbon and form a bow with it. Hot glue the bow to the top of your wreath so that the streamer ends hang down towards the center of the wreath. Your Pine Cone and Seed Pod wreath is ready to be hung up.

Ruffles, Berries, and Bells Wreath

-- 16" wire frame
-- 12" long twigs with any colored berries on them
-- 8 brass colored bells, 1" - 1 1/2" in size, from a craft store.
-- Radicchio leaves
-- Kale leaves
-- green craft wire
-- hot glue gun

Gather small bundles of 4 to 5 twigs together and wire them together. Leave enough wire at the ends so they can be secured to the wire frame. Stick the radicchio and kale leaves in between the wire frame and the twigs and glue securely in place. Place one leaf of each kind together to form a color contrast.

Wire each brass bell at regular intervals around the frame and place them so they do not get hidden by the twigs or leaves. The wreath is ready for hanging.

Scents and Birds Wreath

-- 16" grapevine wreath base
-- 3 artificial craft birds in blue, red, purple, small (2 1/2" - 3" in size) with wires at the base
-- cinnamon sticks, 4" long
-- dried apple slices
-- dried orange slices
-- dried lemon slices
-- dried lime slices
-- rosemary twigs, 4" long
-- dried corn husk strips, 1" wide, 8" long
-- glue gun
-- green craft wire

This is one wreath that is sure to make a pleasant fall scent in your home. One week prior to making the wreath, cut the apple, orange, lemon, and lime into slices and let them dry out on paper towels. Turn over the fruit slices each day so they dry evenly. Once the slices are dry, they are ready to be glued to the wreath base. Lay out the wreath base on your newspaper covered table. Arrange the fruit slices around the perimeter of the wreath, leaving a 3" space in between the slices for the cinnamon sticks and the rosemary twigs. You can have the slices overlapping each other to fill in any gaps in the wreath base. Lay two or three cinnamon sticks plus one rosemary twig in a small bundle and wrap a small section of green wire around each bundle, leaving the ends long enough to be secured to the wreath base. Place these bundles in between each group of fruit slices. Using the hot glue gun, glue the slices to the frame.

Take one dried corn husk strip and join both ends together so a small loop is left in the middle of the husk. Hot glue the ends together. Repeat the same procedure with four more husks. Place the looped husk strips on the table in front of you and form a half bow with them. To do this, have one loop placed vertically, with a second one on the left horizontally so the glued ends overlap. Lay the third husk loop opposite the one on the left; the last two should be placed in between the other husk loops. Once the loops are in place you will have a 180 degree half bow. With all of the glued ends touching each other, each loop can now be hot glued to each other, making sure the loops do not lose that half-bow formation. Once the glue is dried, hot glue your corn husk strip half bow inside the wreath at the bottom so that the loops face the inside top of the wreath. To make it extra secure you can also wire down the bottom of the half bow to the wreath frame.

Now take your artificial birds and place them in front of the corn husk bow formation. Wire each bird to the wreath so they appear to be standing in front of the bow. Your "Scents and Birds" wreath is now finished and ready to be hung up.