DIY Modern Christmas Wreath

Hello there! How is your holiday decor coming along? I’ve managed to get these DIYs done this holiday season. However, it can never be called complete without a wreath on the front door and that’s exactly what we will make today! I found wreaths with Christmas villages on Pinterest so adorable! I had to incorporate them this time, and also add in some bells as I have seen wreaths with bells trending everywhere this year! I am using leftover pine needles from this year’s Christmas tree and wooden baubles, along with branches from a eucalyptus spray (also used in the Fall wreath).

For the frame, I used a metallic gold ring, but there are many other options; an embroidery hoop, the traditional grapevine wreath, a photo frame, a triangular frame. The gold color from the ring added to the festive look.

Let’s jump right into what materials we are going to need and how to put them together.

What we need:

Gold metallic hoop or this
Greenery:
- Pine needles and Eucalyptus
Embellishments
- Baubles made from split wood beads
- Gold leaves from a gold ribbon
- Christmas village houses, bells
  - Polymer clay – Sculpey
  - Clay rolling pin
  - X-Acto knife / regular knife
  - Parchment/baking paper
  - Pearl sprinkles as lights for houses
  - Gold spray paint
Hot glue gun
Twine/floral wire/zip ties to attach the stems to the ring. I used a copper wire
Wire cutters

Steps:

Base

Create bundles of all your green stems and cut the excess stems or bulbs with wire cutters.
Create a mockup of how you want your wreath to look, the wideness and thickness, etc.
Tip💡: Take a photo of this mockup as a reference for arranging the greenery later on in the process. It will be extremely helpful!
Start placing the greenery on the hoop and all the long stems.
Bend the stems and secure them with a wire, cut down the extra stems with wire cutters.
Add hot glue wherever required to secure the stems to stop them from twisting around the frame.

Embellishments

Add in the gold ornaments, and gold leaves over the greenery.
Make templates for bells and cute houses with paper.
Roll out the clay until soft on a piece of parchment paper about half a cm thick. Cut around the outside of the templates.
Bend the bells over a pen/roller to make them look 3d.
I decided to adorn the houses and the tree with little lights, so I made a design for the same.
Bake the clay according to the instructions on the clay packaging. Once baked, let them cool.
If there are any rough edges or surfaces, sand them with sandpaper.
Spray paint the bells with gold, and I added two small beads to represent the clapper. Hang the bells from the wreath using a ribbon
Tip💡: I painted the houses and the tree, a plain white just to even them all out and hide small bumps.
Glue in the pearl sprinkles in the design made earlier. The small holes made earlier help the pearls settle on the clay easily
Find the center of the wreath and layout the houses and the tree.
Apply a generous amount of glue to keep the houses in place. The houses are made of clay, so they should be held ok using hot glue, if in doubt use E600.
I added support to the bigger house just to secure it further, as it was sitting just on edge.

Styling tip: Add a gold ribbon bow on the top or on a side like in the inspiration photos.