Everyone seems to be jumping full force into this fall season...but I love summer. I love the sunshine and warm weather. Trips to the beach and wearing shorts. It's one of the reasons why I am so happy to be living in Tennessee.
So, I have decided to just slowly decorate my house for fall. A small pumpkin here and some autumn colors there. I've also decided to use mostly natural items for now.
I started with my front door wreath. Thanks to a large pine tree in our front yard, we are constantly picking up pine cones. One day, I collected a grocery sack full and left them in the garage. The cones seem to be tightly closed and a little damp when they first fall off our tree. After a few days, the cones had dried out and "bloomed" nicely. (Please don't judge my lack of proper pine-cone terminology)
I was going to try hot gluing the cones to a wreath form - but Martha said floral wire was the way to go. In the end, I was thankful for the wire - this allowed me to "pose" my pine cones as I went along. And since I may use this wreath for multiple seasons, the wire will help my wreath to last longer.
Martha suggested a wire wreath form, but since I had part of a grapevine wreath already in my wreath stash, I thought I could avoid a trip to the store. When I buy a grapevine wreath, I usually cut the vine that is wrapped around the entire wreath. I can then get two wreaths from the same set of vines.
To make this pine cone wreath, I first cut a bunch of 6-8 inch pieces of the floral wire. Wearing my gardening gloves (because those pine cones are prickly), I did what Martha said and wrapped the wire around the top part (I am sure there is a name for that) of the cone.
Then I wrapped the wire tail around the grapevine, tucking in the leftover wire.
I was pleased with the end result and I love how it looked against my blue door. In January, I might paint the tips of the pine cones with white paint to resemble snow.
I took a little walk today with a pair of sturdy scissors and came home with a little bit of bittersweet. Most of the berries are still green (usually til after the first frost), but I was able to find a few branches that were turning that pretty shade of orange.
Little pieces of the vine stuck nicely in between the pine cones. As the berries open up, more and more orange will be exposed. Eventually, these berries dry a burnt orange color. I still have a vase full from two years ago. They seem to last forever.
So, for $0, two nature walks and a nap time, I was able to decorate my door in a natural way. I love the little bits of color that the bittersweet added. And I love that my blue door tells me it's OK to hold on to the cheery summer weather for a little bit longer.
I started with my front door wreath. Thanks to a large pine tree in our front yard, we are constantly picking up pine cones. One day, I collected a grocery sack full and left them in the garage. The cones seem to be tightly closed and a little damp when they first fall off our tree. After a few days, the cones had dried out and "bloomed" nicely. (Please don't judge my lack of proper pine-cone terminology)
I was going to try hot gluing the cones to a wreath form - but Martha said floral wire was the way to go. In the end, I was thankful for the wire - this allowed me to "pose" my pine cones as I went along. And since I may use this wreath for multiple seasons, the wire will help my wreath to last longer.
Martha suggested a wire wreath form, but since I had part of a grapevine wreath already in my wreath stash, I thought I could avoid a trip to the store. When I buy a grapevine wreath, I usually cut the vine that is wrapped around the entire wreath. I can then get two wreaths from the same set of vines.
Then I wrapped the wire tail around the grapevine, tucking in the leftover wire.
I was pleased with the end result and I love how it looked against my blue door. In January, I might paint the tips of the pine cones with white paint to resemble snow.
I took a little walk today with a pair of sturdy scissors and came home with a little bit of bittersweet. Most of the berries are still green (usually til after the first frost), but I was able to find a few branches that were turning that pretty shade of orange.
Little pieces of the vine stuck nicely in between the pine cones. As the berries open up, more and more orange will be exposed. Eventually, these berries dry a burnt orange color. I still have a vase full from two years ago. They seem to last forever.
So, for $0, two nature walks and a nap time, I was able to decorate my door in a natural way. I love the little bits of color that the bittersweet added. And I love that my blue door tells me it's OK to hold on to the cheery summer weather for a little bit longer.
Does bittersweet grow in Ohio? I really need to figure out what it is! I love the contrast of colors of that with your door. I have been collecting buckeyes to add to my decor right now.
ReplyDeleteI honestly don't know. I know that it grows in Virginia too.
Delete