Seven Easy Steps and Under $5 for a Pampas Grass Wreath

My older daughter wants to be a psychologist (granted she is only 14 and will probably change her mind one or ten times).  I secretly hope she continues on this path so that she can clue me in on how the brain works.  Why can some people look at the trunk of car and a bunch of suitcases and know automatically that they will fit while another person can’t even figure out how to pack said suitcase let along fit them all in a trunk.  Why am I able to go out in my front yard and look at a bush that needs to be pruned to the ground and think 

My mother-in-law is always complimenting me (yes, complimenting me, because she is an amazing, thoughtful woman) on how creative I am and can’t understand how I think of my projects.  I equate it to a cook who just knows what spices go well together or an artist who can determine exactly what colors to use. I have always loved to make things.  I was the kid making fairy houses at the base of trees and using acorns for their soup bowls!

Sometimes I think being creative is just a matter or mindfulness.  If you can slow down for a few  minutes and really look at the things around you – even if in a store, you can see items in a different light.  I particularly love doing this in the dollar store or a hardware store. 

In the case of this Pampas Grass Wreath it all started at the dollar store where I found a wreath form for $1!  Now I wish I would have bought all of them….rookie DIYer mistake.  Once I had the form I was on the lookout for something to use on it.  Finally, come Saturday (and yardwork day) I was trimming our hedges when I saw my neighbor and asked if this feathery grass bush was supposed to be trimmed in the winter (having just moved to SC and never seen one before).  She said yes and down to trim down to the last foot of the ground.  That is when the lightbulb went off that these clippings would make a great wreath!

DIY Dollar Store Find – Pampas Grass Wreath

TOOLS NEEDED

• WREATH FORM – SIZE DEPENDS ON HOW LARGE YOUR FORAGING CUTTINGS ARE
• FLORAL WIRE
• SCISSORS
• FORAGED STEMS/ GREENERY
• FELT (OPTIONAL)
• COMMAND HOOK, WREATH HANGER, OR HAMMER AND NAIL

STEP ONE: Gather your materials. In the case of Pampas Grass – be sure to keep the curly cue pieces as well as the feathers.  They add a lot of texture and interest to the wreath. These don’t seem to have a significant bug problem when I brought them in the house – I gently shook each stem outside before bringing them in and only had one creepy crawly escape while building the wreath.

STEP TWO: Trim your stems down to have only about three inches exposed.

STEP THREE: Uncoil some of the floral wire and attach to the wire wreath at any location by looping it through the wreath form and twisting the wire around itself like a twistie tie.  I like to attach it to a vertical cross member instead of just the round wires so that the wire doesn’t slip around the form while you are adding the greenery.

STEP FOUR: Grab a stem from your foraged pile of Pampas Grass or other greenery. Place it through the wire form looping it over the outside ring, under the middle ring and back on top of the inner ring.  Angle it in the wreath form as you are going around so they fan around the wreath in a circle. 

Once you have the first stem in, take your wire and wrap it around the wreath form and the Pampas Grass/ Greenery, pulling tight as you go, to secure the stem to the wreath form.  If your coil of floral wire isn’t too large you can weave it through and around the rings of the wreath form to make it even more stable.  If it is too large you can just wrap around the outside of the form. Don’t be too worried about it being messy or the stems sticking out. Once you get all of the Pampas Grass fanned around the form and attached they cover up any of the wire and stems.

Continue to do this all the way around the wreath, strategically placing the curly cue pieces in so that they curl into and or the edges of the wreath.

STEP FIVE: Once the wreath is all assembled step back and see if any of the grass needs to be adjusted or fluffed.  You can also tuck in some additional curly cue pieces where needed.  I find that these really up the game of the wreath.

STEP SIX: This final step before you hang your wreath is optional but if you are at all worried about your wreath form of the stems scratching your wall, if you are giving it as a gift, or trying to sell them, I would add some felt to the back of the breath cut to the shape of the wreath form to protect the wall surface as well as cover up the “ugly side” of the wreath.  You could use a glue gun to attach it.  It would also serve as added insurance that everything will stay in place. If you use the felt be sure to leave a portion of the top of the wreath form metal exposed to hang on a hook or nail.

STEP SEVEN: Hang your wreath with a wall command hook, over the door wreath hanger or good ole’ fashion nail and hammer.

Keep in mind this is NOT an outdoor wreath.  While it does normally live outdoors the feathers get pretty matted in the rain so if you want your wreath to hold its shape it is best to keep it inside or on a heavily covered porch.