In hindsight, I *should* have taken more pictures of the process. But trust me, this is such an easy DIY craft to fill the empty space where your Christmas wreath hung. January always feels empty when all the decorations come down, and I love having a wreath up year round, but I hate fake plastic flowers, so I came up with this!
To make your own you’ll need:
4-5 oranges (I used both navel and cara cara)
A ready made grapevine wreath from your local craft store like this one
A bouquet of Baby’s Breath. I got mine in the sale section of our local grocery store for $2.
Twine
A hot glue gun
Step one is to dehydrate the oranges. We have a dehydrator, but I did this on a gloomy rainy morning in our oven instead, following this method. It was easy, just time consuming–so perfect for a rainy morning at home. A few were burned, but for the most part, they turned out beautifully. I made a small garland with the rest like the blog covers, and then placed three together and hot glued each edge to each, and then hot glued one stacked on top of the three I used for the base. So easy, right?
Then I poked twine through the centers of two outside edge pieces and tied it around the back of the wreath, pulling it tight and making a knot so it would stay put. The outside of the oranges hid the twine pretty well, but it also blended in with the color of the wreath.
Finally, cut your baby’s breath so the stems still have about 4-5 inches below the flowers and just start poking the stems and weaving them as best you can into the wreath. The great thing about baby’s breath is that even when it gets old or dried, it still looks beautiful. No need for plastic flowers!
And last, I’ve been adding a few drops of Tangerine, Grapefruit, Orange and Vanilla essential oils to the dried oranges on the wreath. you get a little whiff of energizing citrus whenever anyone opens and closes the door.
Happy Creating!
❤
Keri
