Ah, the first blooms of spring! It’s that time of year again when Old Man Winter steps aside to make way for an abundance of beautiful flowers. Our thoughts turn to backyard barbecues and fabulous days in the sun. Spring is a popular time for cleaning the house and updating our décor. Making a new wreath for the front door is a nice way to celebrate the warmer weather.
Pink & Fuchsia Floral Spring Wreath
Periwinkle Blue Floral Spring Wreath
Pink & Blue Floral Spring Wreath
Pink Berries Wreath
Orange & Yellow Floral Wreath
How To Make A Multi-Color Butterfly Spring Wreath:
Butterflies are a hot trend this year, and you can easily incorporate their brilliant colors in many ways around your home on tablecloths, napkins, pillows, and floral arrangements. This wreath was not only fun and easy to make, but it was also inexpensive. Similar ready made wreaths sell for $60, and even when there is a sale or discount coupon, it can still cost $24 to $30. The project described below cost approximately $12, and it’s just as pretty as the more expensive versions.
Supplies:
Grapevine Wreath, 18” diameter
Floral Butterfly Garland, 6’ long
Scissors
Brown Twine
Grapevine Wreath
Choosing a base is the first step in wreath making. There are multiple options, including wreaths made from foam, standard or wispy grapevines, metal wire, and straw.
Butterfly Floral Garland – (sample)
In terms of ornamentation, you can use flowers, berries, seashells, or leaves. A flower garland with attached butterflies makes this project quick and easy to assemble.
Detail of Tying Garland
This garland has large plastic chain links. Choose a starting point on the front and tie the garland to the grapevine, arranging the flowers and hiding the ties with leaves as you go. Repeat this process until the entire grapevine base is covered. Stand back to look at the wreath, and then make any adjustments by shifting the garland and adding ties.
Back of the Wreath
As you can see from the above photo, only the ties are visible from the back, while all the flowers have been placed on the front of the wreath. This makes the most of your garland by creating thick layers of flowers where they will be most appreciated.
Finished Butterfly Spring Wreath
A piece of twine or ribbon can be used to hang this wreath on the door. Compliments are sure to follow.
Tip: You could use a glue gun, in lieu of twine, but I would advise against it. Glue can be messy and stringy, which can create havoc with the vines. By using twine, there’s no mess, it is easily adjustable, and best of all, if you decide want to make something new, simply cut the ties, remove the garland and reuse the grapevine wreath. You could also reuse the garland for another project.
Even on a cloudy day, this finished wreath is a colorful way to welcome spring with pretty blooms and butterflies.
Welcome Spring & Happy Crafting!
One of my favorite holidays is Halloween. It brings back such happy memories of dressing up as a child, and the excitement has continued as an adult. Apparently many people agree, because Halloween has become the second biggest holiday of the year. Decorating your home is a fun activity for the whole family. Here are a few ideas for inspiration:
Greet your guests at the front door with a boldly decorated Halloween wreath. The humorous witch’s legs were the inspiration for the purple and black color scheme with accents of orange and white. The wire wreath frame was wrapped first with tissue paper to add bulk, and then fabric for color and texture. The witch’s legs came mounted on a dowel, which was secured to the frame. A metallic garland conceals the dowel and an owl was tied in the center using matching ribbon. The witch’s hat, ghosts, pumpkins, and spiders complete the design.
Setting a Spooky Table – Whether you are having a Halloween party, or want to spice up your breakfast table, an inexpensive solution is layering placemats. Laser cutting technology has produced beautifully detailed, lace-like products with both style and durability. A Spider Web placemat (from Wegmans) was layered with a Metallic Finish Pumpkin placemat (from AC Moore) to create this lively place setting. The blue tablecloth peeks out from underneath like a midnight sky and creates great contrast to the orange and black. As alternatives, you could use a yellow tablecloth (think full moon) or green tablecloth (think forest).
Halloween themed tablecloths can be difficult to find and pricey, especially for large dining room tables. There’s an easy alternative. Measure your table, and go to a fabric store, such as Jo Ann Crafts. It’s amazing to see some of the scary patterns that have been developed over the last several years. The semi-sheer fabric in the photo above is layered over a gold tablecloth I already had. If you prefer an opaque table cover, there are ghosts, skeletons and witches. Oh My! Some fabrics have entire haunted scenes emblazoned across the surface suitable for covering tables, or as wall hangings. There’s no need to hem the edges. It’s Halloween – a few ragged edges only adds to the haunted house vibe.
Glowing Illusion Pumpkin – We are all accustomed to seeing the typical orange pumpkin with an interior that is either candlelit or dark & shadowy. That color scheme has been turned inside out by painting the outside black and the inside fluorescent orange. When placed near any light source (lamp, ceiling light, or sunlight), the result is a scary glowing pumpkin without the need for electricity or batteries. I can’t tell you how many times well-meaning co-workers have warned me about the company’s strict no candle burning policy, until they see for themselves that it’s completely empty. It’s easy to fool the eye with this illusion.
Craft Pumpkins – If you have ever decorated your yard with live pumpkins, you probably lost a few, if not all, to squirrels, slugs or other hungry critters. Craft pumpkins look like the real thing, but are made of foam or resin, which is not on the menu for wildlife. These pumpkins are ready to display as is, or they can be carved or painted with exterior paint. Craft pumpkins are for indoor and outdoor use, inexpensive, will last years, and are nice for Thanksgiving too.
Bats – A cluster of bats hanging over your table will surprise and delight party guests. The faux fur bodies are a simple tube shape with a slightly larger, rounded end and ears for the head. The owl in the center is from Pier 1, and the pumpkin garland is from AC Moore.
Make patterns for the body and wings as follows:
Using the body pattern, cut out two pieces of faux fur for the front and back of each bat.
Crafts Inspire Me 