Make your own festive wreath
We’re on the countdown to Christmas.
The to-do lists are growing and time definitely feels as if it’s speeding up like Santa bombing down a mountain on his sleigh.
But if you fancy slowing down the blur of hours for an afternoon, try making your own wreath.
It’s not a Christmas cracker joke. The tick tock of the clock really does seem a little less relentless when you’re completely absorbed in a lovely creative project.
And an added bonus is making your own will also save you a pretty penny too.
A fancy fresh one from a florist will set you back at least £40, if not more. And artificial ones are just, well, artificial. I say boo to artificial!
I spent a contented afternoon wandering my garden with secateurs and a basket to clip sprigs of foliage.
Choosing the bushiest fir and yew branches was so enjoyable and a blast of fresh air lifted my Christmas spirits.
Not everything was free from the great outdoors, although it can be if you make your own wreath frame from twisted twigs.
But, to be honest, I couldn’t be bothered with that, so I popped to my local florist to pick up a few bits. I left with a pre-made wire frame (£2), florist’s wire (£2.50) and a couple of bunches of eucalyptus (£4) to jazz up my wreath a bit.
I knew it was in danger of looking a little ‘green’, so I picked up a bag of six oranges (£1) to use as a centrepiece.
So my total expenditure came in at under a tenner - quite the bargain. Old Scrooge would be delighted.
The wreath in progress
My happy afternoon piecing it all together was spent slicing and drying the oranges in the oven - making my kitchen smell amazing in the process. (It takes about three hours - so do allow time.)
The next step was to create little posies of fir, yew, eucalyptus and a slice of orange.
Using plenty of wire, I laced them around the frame, overlaying each posy to hide the wire of the last and an hour or so later I had a delightful wreath to brighten our front door.
If I’d have been more organised I would have found some beautiful velvet ribbon to hang it with, but my rustic garden twine did the job nicely.
Taking a step back to admire my handiwork I realised, aside from creating a pretty decoration, I was feeling pretty joyous too.
The enjoyment of foraging and making it had completely taken my mind off the looming to-do list. Even if it hadn’t turned out so well, it would still have felt like time well spent. Win-win!
The finished wreath
