This week has been full of preparation for mini wreath making at the Instagram Christmas Party last night which was held in a rooftop wigwam at an amazing London venue called The Queen of Hoxton…
I’d collected, and bought, lots of foliage, berries and flowers…
and put together a table inside the wigwam so that people could enjoy a bit of festive wreath making alongside their hot toddies…
I collected ivy and Virginia Creeper twigs and the garden really seems like it’s girding itself for the cold at the moment. It has also now experienced the first frost of the year, so it’s probably a fond farewell to the ever tenacious nasturtiums ( although I still have a few I’ve saved in the fridge! )Ivy is a great base layer for a wreath as it’s bendy and lush, and seems to lend itself to the circularity needed…Virginia Creeper twigs are also very usefully bendy…However, wire really is the magic component for a wreath… I made circular wire wreath frames… added moss… and secured it all round with wire… To secure the foliage you want to use, work the wire from underneath the wreath and when you have it on either side of a leaf, for example, give it a tight twist, and leave it open so it can hold down more embellishments later on…Never feel you’re using too much wire, as if you keep it tight, it just disappears…
Also, generally speaking, less is more on a mini wreath…it’s amazing how just a few flowers can give the right balance… I’d polished my old copper dolly especially for the party as I knew I’d need somewhere to store the wreathes…If you don’t want to hang them on the door, you can use them as candle holders…
Or even wear them!
Putting together these little wreathes is actually pretty easy, so you don’t need to feel intimidated by it, and adding the layers actually becomes sort of addictive, but it’s also a wonderfully immersive thing to do…
…maybe it’s something to do with the combination of circles and seasons Anyway, whatever the reason…it’s a lovely seasonal occupation!
( you can also see my mini wreath Steller DIY here )
