Make a Holiday Wreath for a Festive Centerpiece
A simple evergreen wreath is easy to make, smells wonderful and adds festive cheer to your home. Use this tutorial and create one to use as a centerpiece for your holiday table. These instructions are adapted from those found in The Christmas Craft Book and Crafts Through the Year.
Materials:
Evergreen cuttings from 6-8 boughs (this wreath was made using Balsam and Fraser fir cuttings)
16 gauge wire (found at your local hardware store)
24 gauge wire, or floral wire (also available at hardware stores)
4 candles (we used red candles: 12″ x 4 ½” x ½”)
Wire cutter
First, make a wire frame. You’ll want a bit more than twice the circumference of the size of wreath you’d like to make. Take a length of 16 gauge wire, bend it twice around in a circle and twist the ends firmly together to fasten. The frame for this wreath is about 12″ in diameter.
Choose your greenery. Cut two or three sprigs of greenery, about 7″ in length. Holding them together as a bundle, place them on the frame and wrap the ends tightly onto the frame using the 24 gauge wire.
The thicker you make your bundles of greenery, the fuller the wreath will be. You can always fill the wreath out with extra cuttings later, if need be.
Take another bundle of greenery and tie it onto the frame so that it covers the wire of the previous bundle. You want the greens to look full without any big gaps.
Keep going around the frame, placing one bundle over the next and tying it down with wire.
It’s exciting to see the wreath taking shape!
When you have covered the entire frame, it’s time to add the decorative candles.
Wrap a length of 24 gauge wire tightly around the base of a candle seven or eight times. Leave a 2″ wire tail at both ends.
Twist the ends together and point them downward. Place the candle on the wreath, positioned above the wire frame, and use these ends to secure the candle onto the frame. Try to position the candles so that the wire holding them is hidden behind sprigs of greenery. If it ends up showing through, you can tuck a few more sprigs in around it.
Repeat the process for the other three candles, and your wreath is complete! Fill in any gaps with extra sprigs and even out spots that aren’t as full. Your holiday table will benefit from the natural beauty of fresh evergreens. For more wreath ideas, see The Christmas Craft Book or Crafts Through the Year.
Note: We don’t recommend lighting the candles, they are for decorative purposes only.