Five Dollars and 20 minutes to update the Christmas Door Wreath!

As you can see in the picture on the left, the ribbon on my Christmas Door Wreath was in very poor condition when I pulled it out of storage last month. I created this wreath about 10 years ago, and for the most part, it withstood the harsh weather conditions I put it through for 10 years!  (I put my Christmas wreath up on November 1st and keep it there until about May 1st every year. It gets hot afternoon sun.)

I tried to bend the ribbon back into some form of shape and it looked OK for a few weeks. However, I looked at it Saturday morning and it just looked pitiful. The ribbon ends were all torn and falling apart.

It was time for an update! Just because it caught my eye, I purchased some new silk flowers a few weeks ago at the big box store the last time I was there. I got one bunch and it cost five dollars. I really liked the contrast between the gold and red.

The new ribbon came from my leftover stash. These three were the best matches. I chose the one in front because it too had gold and red in the ribbon and matched the silk flowers. Of course the one I wanted only had about 18 inches (45 cm) left on the roll! I wanted to use it like I did in the old wreath but 18 inches was not enough to go around the entire wreath! I had to make a smaller bow.

Step one was to remove the old items. The ribbon was attached with floral wire so I needed to cut that off and then I just pulled out the old flowers.

Now, start adding new pieces.  There isn't any 'special' way to do it. Decorate it to please you. The only 'rule of thumb' I can give you is that an odd number of items looks better then an even number. For example, using three poinsettia flowers/ using one pine cone, etc.

Start with the first piece. I placed a flower on the wreath and pulled the stem through to the back. 

Sorry for the blurry picture. I needed three hands for that one!

Now, just wrap the stem around the base of the wreath. No wire or glue needed. I usually wrap it a few times so it won't fall off. The only piece I attached with wire was the ribbon.

Continue adding pieces until you like the way it looks!  It took all of 20 minutes (from start to finish) to make mine! Once I put it on the door, I adjusted it a bit more so the ribbon showed up better. This is what it looks like now.

Pretty to look at, quick to do, and very frugal!