foliage wreath tutorial

Secure the reel wire to the copper wreath ring.

Place a handful of moss on one side of the copper wreath ring. Loop the reel wire around the moss to attach it to the frame. The wire should be pulled tight. Keep adding handfuls of moss, using the whole bag until you have covered the entire ring. Leave the reel wire attached ready for the next step.

Take your evergreen foliage and cut the whole pack down to useable sized pieces of approximately 20cm - around the width of your handspan.

Add bundles of the evergreen foliage and use the reel wire to secure it to the copper ring. Ensure you only wrap wire round the bottom part of the stems so the top of the foliage is free to create the shape of your wreath. Layer the next bundle on top of the first bundle, again only wirings around the bottom part of the stems. Keep layering and fixing the evergreens on until you have everygreens around the entire wreath.

Turn the wreath over so you are looking at the back mossed side. Cut the reel wire and fix it back to the copper wreath ring in exatly the same way it was fixed on at the beginning. Ensure it's well fastened so your wreath doesn't fall apart.

Now you have the evergreen wreath base, it’s time to start personalising your design with the fresh foliage. Cut down the mixed foliage into usable sized pieces. Cut the stems diagonally so the tip is a sharp slant as this will make it easier to insert into the wreath, as well as assist with moisture uptake from the moss. Strip any leaves from the bottom inch of the stem and feed through the evergreen foliage and into the moss base. The layers of reel wire and moss will mean that the foliages are well fixed in the wreath. Keep adding all of the mixed foliages, considering how you would like your end design to look.

Fix the stub wires to the pinecones to create an anchor point. On the bottom end of the pinecone, place the stub wire through the gaps. Pull the wires all the way around the pinecone until they meet and twist them together.

Feed the wired pine cone through the wreath in the same way the foliage was inserted. When the wire comes out through the back of the moss, bend it backwards over the original copper wreath ring to secure it firmly in place.

Group the limes into 3 or 4 slices and push the stub wire through the soft part of the lime. When the limes are at the mid point of the stub wire, bend the two ends so the wire is in a 'U' shape. Twist the wires together to form an anchor point. You can then push the wires through wreath to secure them in the same way the pine cones were secured.

Turn the wreath over so you can see the back of the copper frame. If the moss is covering the copper frame you may have to dig into the moss to expose it. Tie one end of the ribbon around the fram in a tight double knot. About 1/5 of the way around the wreath, knot the ribbon around the copper frame again. How long you leave the ribbon will be dependent on the fixing available on your door. When you turn your wreath back around you will have a triangle type hook on the back.