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Thursday, August 2, 2012

Craft Wars Inspired: Mini Holiday Wreaths


In last week's Christmas in July episode of TLC's Craft Wars the three contestants (Margot Potter, Cheryl Darrow, and Ivan Lopez) were challenged to create a holiday wreath using winter clothing.  After watching the show I felt inspired to make my own holiday wreath from two wire hangers, a couple old scarves, and some winter gloves. Well, once I went through my craft bin and realized the gloriously fanciful wreath I had planned out in my head would not come to fruition (I wish I had a Michaels craft closet!), I decided to create three mini wreaths.  When I think of the month of July, the first thing that pops in my head is Independence Day, so with a red, white, and blue theme, I combined two of my favorite holidays, the Fourth of July and Christmas! 

First, I placed a bowl onto a piece of cardboard and traced around the rim of the bowl to make a circle.  To create a smaller circle on the inside of the first one, I flipped the bowl over and traced around the edge.  After I cut the larger circle out, I cut out the inner circle to make a hole in the center like a doughnut (Mmmm... doughnuts...forgive me, it's past my usual snack time).  I repeated this process three times to make three wreaths. 

TIP: For all you crafty high schoolers and college students, I know throwing away your notes at the end of the year is the most liberating experience ever, but if you keep the cardboard cover and backing from your spiral notebooks, it can be useful for future projects.


Red Rose Wreath
First, I painted the cardboard doughnut with silver glitter paint. Next, inspired by Margot's beautiful creation on the show, I made rosettes out of an old red scarf.  Then I grabbed my handy dandy hot glue gun (Yes, I used hot glue! Sorry Tori...) to glue the rosettes around the edge of the circle leaving enough space to tie a cute bow with a scrap of fabric. 






Ribbon and Bows Wreath
I loved the layering in Cheryl's wreath, so for this one I cut long half-inch strips of fabric and tied them in bows around the entire cardboard doughnut one-by-one.

TIP: The more bows that are tied around the circle, the fuller the wreath will look.

As a finishing touch, I found two shades of blue curling ribbon and cut three equal lengths (two light blue, one royal blue) and tied them in a bow at the top of the wreath.


Swirls of Joy Wreath
In the challenge, Ivan used Scrabble letters to create a message on his wreath, and I knew instantly that I wanted to use some for my last wreath.  Continuing my red, white, and blue color scheme I wrapped the cardboard circle with baby blue yarn.  Then, I drew swirls on the surface using Christmas Red 3D fabric paint.  I cut a short piece of wire to attach the Scrabble pieces across the center of the wreath, and another piece of wire was formed into a loop for hanging purposes. 


If creating a large wreath feels like a daunting task, try creating these miniature wreaths.  It's also a great project for kids. They're super easy to make and they can make great tree ornaments! Enjoy!

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