It’s the first Sunday in Advent, and while I’m definitely not ready to put our tree up (ours doesn’t go up until mid December at the absolute earliest), I do think a festive wreath is a lovely addition to the front door anytime during Advent. My neighbour always has a seasonal wreath up – Christmas, Spring, Easter, Summer, Autumn – and I love her tradition.
Having pinned a number of papercut wreaths to my ‘for Christmas’ pinterest board recently, I decided that I’d make the most of my fantastic Cricut Mini, to create one myself. I chose a simple branch design that reminds me of eucalyptus (Fern 2 from the Serenade cartridge) and cut out a number of them using white, silver and copper card. I wrapped grey felt around a simple polystyrene wreath base, and then pinned the branches on with basic sewing pins, making sure to overlap the leaves to hide the ends.
The loop for hanging is made from copper slug tape (it’s supposed to repel slugs in the garden!) – this stuff is brilliant, and I’m definitely going to be using it for more craft projects.
The papercut leaves curled up slightly when I peeled them off the Cricut mat, and I love the depth this adds to the finished wreath. If I didn’t have my Cricut machine, I’d choose a simpler shape such as holly leaves to cut by hand. I think these would look just as effective layered up like this, especially if you gently fold each leaf down the middle so that they have a 3D effect.
Festive wreaths will be the focus here this week, so visit again in a couple of days for a round-up of my favourite DIY wreaths from across the web, including ideas for adults and for kids to try at home. And because you can’t beat a traditional foliage wreath, I’ll include some tips for making your own at the end of the week. I’m already counting down the days to this year’s wreath-making workshop with my friend Sarah from Poppy & Peonies. Happy Advent all!
Slug tape?! That’s absolute genius.
I know – who’d have thought you’d find beautiful copper tape in the garden centre?!