Crafty, Crafty!

If anyone is having trouble deciding what to get their Moms and Grandmas for Mother's Day... I have just the thing! My future-mother-in-law is a Master Gardener and works at the county extension office. Last week she invited me to this workshop they were hosting- making Living Wreaths. It was really easy and they turned out beautiful! Plus I think each one only cost me about $20.




Okay, so here's what you'll need:

• Grape Vine Wreath (18-24") Michael's has these on sale for $4.99



• Coated chicken wire cut the length of your wreath + 2 inches Hardware store, Feed store, etc



• Florists wire (22 gauge/8 oz) about 30 inches Michael's $1.99



• 1 plastic bag the width of your wreath (either a grocery bag, or a trash bag if you have a larger wreath)



• 1 small bag of Spanish moss I got a huge bag at Michael's for $5.99, they had smaller ones for less



• Fern Pins Michael's $1.49



• About 2 cups of potting soil



• A variety of small plants (Suggestion: 1 foundation plant like a 3" Asparagus Fern, 2 trailing plants like Ivy or Potato Plant, 1-6 packs of small blooming flowers like Impatiens or other small greenery like Dichondra) I got enough to make two wreaths for $13.28 at Lowe's

Here's what to do:

• Cut the chicken wire the width of your wreath plus 2 inches. Turn back one inch on each end to form a pocket.

• Attach the wire pocket to the bottom of your wreath with your florists wire



• Line the wire pocket with a plastic bag



• Place your foundation plant in the center, your ivy or other trailing plant at each end, and then add in your other plants. Fill with potting soil as needed



• Roll the excess plastic bag in towards the wire pocket and tuck it in the edges.



• Use the fern pins to attach the Spanish Moss to the front of the basket (and back if desired)



• Water as needed. If you tend to over-water plants, you can poke a few holes in the bottom of your plastic bag to allow it to drain.



• Your plants will fill in and the Ivy will begin to grow around the wreath!



• *Beware* Birds love to steal the moss for their nests, so watch for falling fern pins and replace the moss as needed, until the trailing plants have grown enough to cover the plastic bag!

Here is what the end result will look like! (I made two- one with just greenery and white flowers, to hang on my red front door, and one with pink impatiens to give to my Mima for Mother's Day!)

Beautiful, organic, decorative, handmade, and thoughtful! What more could Mom ask for?? =)

If anyone tries it, please post pictures and let me know how it turned out! I am in love with these things and my FMIL and I are going to make 4 more in late summer to use on the 4 giant wooden doors of the Barn! I'm so excited- I think they're going to look great with lots of greenery and some white flowers, and maybe even with wooden letters of our initials hanging in the center! Too cute!

Speaking of cute... here's Sadie in the window watching Mommy take pictures outside =)

So I really enjoyed making these, in case you couldn't tell, and I'm hoping to blog more about some of my other crafty projects I have in mind, so stay tuned!