Fall is here! Well, at least the onset I'd like to believe. And what better way to get into the mood than to begin decorating your home for fall with fall colors and decor. Therefore, I am re-sharing one of my earliest blog posts (edited and revamped) on how to make a fall wreath that will transition perfectly through Thanksgiving. Look to the very end of my post to see pictures of my current wreath-in-progress.

I've gone through a time in previous years when I went overboard on holiday decorating. I love it. Fall? Here I come Hobby Lobby! Halloween? Here I come Hobby Lobby! Thanksgiving? Here I come Hobby Lobby! Christmas? Now I'm moving in Hobby Lobby! And so on...

I went to Hobby Lobby strategically on a weekend that their ad said floral stems were 40 or 50% off. The trick I've found with Hobby Lobby is that whatever is on sale one week will be on sale again in two to three weeks. Buyer beware because you can save yourself some serious dough by watching for this pattern. Knowing this from my many years of crafting and holiday decor shopping there, I've timed out my shopping sprees and projects to best utilize this. *Note: I am plugging in the link to Hobby Lobby everywhere in this post so you can look at their ad if needed, but mainly so you can find their coupon. There's always a coupon there! Make sure to have this handy when you shop because you can always use it on an item that isn't on sale that particular week. Solid gold.

My old apartment!  I did a lot of crafting on that table. — My old apartment! I did a lot of crafting on that table.

I am not opposed to Michael's in the slightest and very often do shop there as well. It's closer to me actually and has plenty of great things. They usually have great coupons if you sign up for their emails and you can last minute find one on your smart phone through their website as well. The selection is just not as large when it comes to faux flowers so I stuck with Hobby Lobby for this project.

I simply picked up an inexpensive grapevine wreath for less than $10, some burlap ribbon and a pre-made bow (grew up helping at my parent's flower shop and I still cannot make one), a bundle of golden wheat, and then selected the flowers and gourds I liked. I spent around $60 total I think, but I also had to purchase wire cutters etc.

It's hard for me to visualize things like this somethings so I made sure to get more than I thought I might need and assumed I would be making a return with any unused items. Make sure you have wire cutting scissors, floral wire, and a hot glue gun! **These are crucial.**

Shopping List:

floral wire
wire cutters
hot glue gun
hot glue sticks
grapevine wreath, or other wreath desired
burlap ribbon, or other ribbon desired
faux fall leaf stems
faux pumpkin stems
faux corn, maiz, or other ghord stems
faux florals in fall colors
a premade bow if desired

I've always been intimidated about making a wreath. But, it was not difficult at all. I put on a great podcast from Pastor Jeremy Foster from Hope City Churc h from his 6 part Love, Sex & Dating series, lit a pumpkin-caramel type of fall candle, and got busy making it. All in all it was easy to do, though I am not convinced that it saved me any money versus just buying one, but that is because the first one is an investment to purchase the right tools and that's OK. Either way - I can claim it to be my own creation so that's a perk.

Lay out the florals, leaves, and bow around the wreath similar to how you want to affix it. Wrap the ribbon around the wreath as desire and temporarily clip it to the wreath. You will secure it with hot glue later.

Begin cutting the stems and tucking them into the wreath itself and between the ribbon as needed. You can proceed in adjusting this as you add to the wreath - things will shift some as you work. Once you have it all in place to your liking, you can begin gluing the stems to the wreath, along with a dab of glue here and there to secure the ribbon onto the wreath.

Above is the wreath, pre-hot gluing it in place. I found that I needed to use some floral wire and as well as the hot glue to secure everything. The last thing I added was the bow. The perfect touch!

I felt pretty good about the final product, especially for my first wreath. I didn't think I'd make a new wreath this year but as of last weekend decided I would. My process is the same and I purchased it all from Hobby Lobby just like I did in 2014! Only this year it is a 30" wreath so quite a bit bigger. I haven't finished it yet because I need to add a few things and rearrange a couple things but generally it's falling into place. ;) Get it? Fall-ing. I'll pick up the items needed sometime this week and then hot-glue it all into place. #outwiththeoldinwiththenew

The colored arrows do actually mean something...to me. =)

How to Make a Fall Wreath