It’s only been autumn for a week now, but orange, yellow, and red decorations are everywhere. We’re all crazy about fall, and decorating for the season comes second only to finally enjoying pumpkin spice lattes. An autumn wreath is a seasonal favorite, and not only does it look good on any door, closet, or window, but you can use it through the months of October and November. If you cringe at the high prices of already-made wreaths, or if you have a crafty thumb, now is the time to try a DIY autumn wreath. Why? It’s cheap, creative, and you get to choose exactly how you want it to look. Plus, you get bragging rights each time someone comments on the beautiful wreath hanging on your door. Read on for the super easy and quick DIY Autumn wreath.
Before beginning, have a general idea of what you want your wreath to look like. Don’t start gluing and tying materials to your wreath until you’ve visualized the end product. Are there a lot of leaves, flowers, or garland? More pine cones, pumpkins, and squash? What colors do you want it to be? Remember this while shopping for materials, so you don’t waste money on supplies you won’t end up using.
Materials:
- Basic Grapevine Wreath (this comes cheap at a Dollar Store, or any craft store)
- Scissors (good strong ones)
- Hot Glue Gun
- Floral Wire (craft store)
- Choice of fake Autumn garland/leaves
- Fake Autumn flowers (optional)
- Small Pine cones (optional)
- Fake pumpkins, squash, and/or other gourds (optional)
- Gold (or other color) glitter (optional)
- Spray on adhesive (optional – if using glitter)
- Autumn fragrance spray (optional)
Step 1 (optional): The Hook
You may not actually need this component, depending on how you plan on hanging your wreath. I often just hang mine on a closet door knob or I use one of the many grapevine twigs of the wreath as the hook. If you do want a hook, however, double up your floral wire a few times, making sure it is about six inches long when finished. Attach the two ends of the wire on a twig on the back of your wreath by looping it around the twig a few times. The wire should look like an upside down U, ready to be hung.
Step 2: Establishing Your Base
Take your wreath, and using a hot glue gun, begin to form the base of your wreath. The base will be the leaves, or flowers, or garland you want to stand out the most. I used loose fake leaves, and some ‘twigs’ with leaves on it. Try to glue the your base materials on the sides of the wreath, and the side facing outwards. It’s up to you if you want the leaves/flowers evenly placed, or if you want more leaves/flowers in a certain spot Leave ample space and room for other decorative items.
Step 3: Adding Decorative Items
Once the glue has cooled, start to add the more substantial decorations. I mainly used small pine cones, but I also added a few fake gourds. This is where the floral wire will come in handy. You can still use the hot glue, but you may find that it is not strong enough to hold heavier objects. If you decide to use the wire, tightly wrap it (once) around your pine cone, and wrap it around the wreath. Then, just twist tie it on. I ended up not using the wire, finding that pressing and holding firmly on the decorative piece was enough. Once again, the placement is up to you. You can put the pine cones, gourds, or whatever materials you choose, evenly around the wreath, or maybe choose a place to act as a focal point and cluster the objects in a single area.
Step 4: Filling In Spaces
By now, your wreath should look just about done, albeit a bit empty. To fill in the spaces, use the hot glue to add leftover leaves, flowers, or garland. You can add as much or little as you like, but make sure that you don’t cover up your decorative items too much.
Step Five: Finishing Touches
Hooray! All that’s left is an extra spritz or sparkle to top off your masterpiece however you wish. If you want to go with a more glamorous look, spray on some adhesive and sprinkle your orange or gold glitter on the wreath. If you especially love the smell of cinnamon, spray some type of autumnal fragrance onto the wreath. I love this touch, as it is always a surprise to anyone passing by your wreath.
Once your wreath is all glittery and smelling good, look for a spot to hang it up. You can now begin to admire your own wreath in all of its Autumnal glory.
What does your autumn wreath look like? Tweet us @litdarling!
