There are few things more welcoming at Christmas than an evergreen wreath hung on a beautifully-painted front door. Wreaths symbolise the circle of life, the seasons moving from autumn and winter into spring and summer.
For centuries, they’ve have been used by different cultures to signify everything from social status to love affairs, warding off evil spirits and preventing disease.
The Ancient Greeks, for example, left a wreath on their lover’s door as a symbol of devotion, and Christmas wreaths are still full of symbolism today.
Greenery foraged from the garden, your nearby park or woodland represents eternal life, while pine cones, seeds and nuts are for rebirth.
Dried fruit is a thank you for the harvest, and the hope of good fortune for the next year’s crops.
It’s easier than you think to create a show-stopping Christmas wreath. And while traditionally, they’re hung on the front door to welcome guests across your threshold, they also look spectacular on your Christmas dining table, the centre filled with flickering pillar candles.
You will need:
- Metal wreath ring (available online or from florists)
- Moss
- Bountiful greenery - fir or pine stems, other evergreens from the garden, holly, mistletoe and trailing ivy work well.
- Long-stemmed herbs like rosemary
- Dried oranges, pine cones, cinnamon sticks, faux berries, gold-sprayed faux foliage, pheasant feathers and anything else you fancy
- Ribbon
- Florist’s wire
- Secateurs
1. Create your base
On a flat surface, lay your metal wreath ring flat side up. Pack tightly with moss, making sure there are no gaps. Starting at the bottom, wind florist’s wire tightly around the ring to keep all the moss in place. Turn over, so the domed side is on top.
2. Choose your greenery
Bunch together sprigs of foraged fir, pine, other evergreens, holly, rosemary, mistletoe and ivy – or whatever you’ve got. Leaving a three-inch piece of wire at either end, wind florist’s wire tightly around the base of each bunch, making sure all stems are secure. Push both ends of the wire through the moss to the back of the wreath, twisting to secure around one of the wire struts.
3. Keep bunching
Working in one direction, wire on one bunch at a time, making sure you layer each bunch on top of the stems of the previous bunch, and that you can’t see the wire ring. Ensure the outer and inner edges of the ring all have equal attention. The fuller your wreath, the more professional it will look.
4. Find the top
Hold your wreath up, and work out which is the top. Make a hook out of florist’s wire and attach it to the back of the wreath, where you want the top to be. This will hang on to your wreath hook or a nail.
5. Add interest
Place your wreath face up on a flat surface, keeping your hook at the top.
For true country style, wire together pine cones - always use odd numbers of cones - and wire on to your ring at various points.
Poke long pheasant tail feathers into the moss, in the direction of the foliage, or tie a generous hessian or raffia bow for a rustic, homespun feel.
Bunches of dried oranges and cinnamon sticks make for a homely look, or you could add traditional Christmas sparkle with miniature baubles, faux gold foliage and a bright red ribbon – there’s lots of inspiration in our gift shop.
Delicate string lights, wound in and out of the foliage, brings a sprinkling of magic. Again, you’ll find lots of these in our gift shop and Neptune store-in-store.
6. Aftercare
To keep it looking fresh, spray your wreath regularly with water as it hangs on the door, or wait for overnight rain and leave it on the lawn for a soaking - making sure you remove the string lights first!
