Festive 4th of July Wreath

I'll just start off by saying...don't even remind me how LONG it's been since my last post! I have finally admitted to myself that the blog is taking a back seat to other things in life right now. And I'm ok with that! Also my craft projects have been few & far between lately. I guess it's just not "craft season" around here...it's too nice outside. So once the snow starts flying, watch out!

This 4th of July wreath isn't exactly the plan I had in mind when I first started the project. But the longer my supplies sat on the table and the closer it got to July, I decided to go with Plan B.

The new supplies were simple: 

Styrofoam wreath

Red, White & Blue garland

Staples

And even simpler to assemble:

Wrap garland around the wreath. The most difficult part was spacing it out evenly since it would have been nice to have about one more foot of garland. But it is fluffy enough to cover the gaps :)  Then just staple the ends to the wreath, and that's it! The whole thing is held together with 4 staples, so I guess I could even take it apart and use for another holiday later on!

Have a great 4th of July everyone!!

Spring Wreath

Now that it's FINALLY feeling like spring here, I wanted to share the spring wreath I made for our front door. Seriously, it has been so cold this month! A little May Day surprise earlier this month was a snow day for some kids (not mine, too bad for them!) It is Iowa of course, but I've never heard of a snow day in May!! We have gone from 35 degree days to 80 degrees in a matter of one week. Crazy!

Anyway...here is my spring wreath!

It's pretty much the same style I used for my "team colors" wreath last fall.

It hasn't been up very long, and I'm already thinking about what I can do for a 4th of July theme wreath! Maybe that's wishful thinking for some even warmer weather!! ;)

BOO! Halloween Wreath

Believe it or not, I completed my first Halloween craft in the first week of October! It is hanging just inside my front door, scaring the pants off anyone who DARES to enter.....ah ha ha ha ha!!!!

Okay, I exaggerate juuuust a little. Anyway, moving on...

Since my "team colors" wreath turned out pretty well, I thought I'd use the same basic design. I went with some black & white printed fabric, and got some orange tulle to wrap around it.

I really would have liked the fabric to have more black than white, BUT, since it was on the clearance rack, I decided I could live with it! I started out the same way I did with the Team Colors Wreath, and just wrapped the styrofoam wreath with strips of fabric that I had torn, then hot-glued the strips to the wreath and it ended up like this:

Next came the frustrating part (isn't there a little of that in every project??) 

I had gotten the orange tulle to wrap around the wreath, similar to my other one. But when I knotted the tulle & started wrapping, it just didn't look right. So I experimented a little with making "bows"...

I tried a couple different sizes, and they just didn't do it for me. They were also kind of tricky to try and glue on. So on to Plan B. Orange felt! I knew that I would need to add something to help my wooden letters stand out (see them in the right corner of the picture there?) So I cut out 3 strips of orange felt to put around the wreath.

Here's how they look on the wreath. Much better! We're getting closer!!!

Next it was time to add wooden Hobby Lobby spray-painted letters to the wreath

I also added a cute little felt owl. (No, I didn't make it!) I feel like such a cheater, I picked this up at Hobby Lobby too! When I bought it, I wasn't sure what I would use it for. But after the letters were on, it just needed a little something more. Here is the finished wreath: 

I really like the clean look of it without that messy tulle. (But notice I did find a way to work it in to the wreath after all!)

I am going to try and get at least one more Halloween project done before the end of the month. AND get a super-awesome costume for our neighborhood fiesta. And this year, I'm vowing not to wait until the day before to pick something out :)

Linking to:

Live Laugh Rowe

Two Yellow Birds Decor

Made in a Day

One Artsy Mama

The Taylor House

Alderberry Hill

The Dedicated House

Keeping It Simple

The Blackberry Vine

The Rustic Pig

Navy Wifey Peters

Team Colors Wreath (Hawkeye Version!)

Welcome back! (I'm not really sure if I'm saying that to everyone reading...or to myself!) I think I have finally come to the realization that I'm not cut out to be one of those big-time bloggers. I just don't have the time, which for me is probably a good thing! So I will no longer fret over the huge gaps between posts :) Anyway....

I have been wanting to make a black & gold wreath for a while. Mainly because:

A) It's Hawkeye football season;

B) It's too early for Halloween decorating;

and 

C) It has definitely been SUMMER until just today! So it's not quite time for a fall wreath.

(Yesterday 91 degrees, today 68!) NO ONE has really been in the "fall" mood just yet!

So here's what I came up with:

It all started with a styrofoam wreath, some bandanas & silk flowers (mums to be exact, there's a little history behind those. More about that later) I had 2 yellow bandanas & 1 patterned. As it turns out, you probably only need one of each color.

I started by tearing a yellow bandana into strips about 2 inches wide:

After hot-gluing down the end, I started wrapping the strips around the wreath

This was to make sure all the white was covered up before doing the second layer

The next layer was more strips with knots tied every few inches. I was looking for a way to add some texture, and I think this did the trick...

Next I made some strips with the polka dot fabric, and wound it through the spaces between the yellow knots:

The last step was adding some yellow silk flowers (mums!)

And the finished wreath...I still feel like it might need something else, so look for an update next week.

And now, if you're still curious, the mums...these are an old Hawkeye football tradition. It's not something you see much anymore, but back in the day, REAL mums with a little black cardboard letter "I" in the middle were all the rage. I remember my dad would get one for my mom every year to wear to the game. Haven't seen them for a while - I'm not even sure the florists sell them anymore. But if Dad is reading this (ok, Mom, you may have to pass on the hint...tell him to go out and get you a mum this year!)

And oh by the way...GO HAWKS!

UPDATE - OCTOBER 6TH:

I did find something to add to the wreath! The "I" was just what I needed for a finishing touch. I actually put it on shortly after this post back in September, but have just now gotten around to adding the picture. Here it is:

Linking this post to:

Alderberry Hill

Craft-O-Maniac

Destination: Craft

DIY Home Sweet Home

The Blackberry Vine

Stringtown Home

Keeping it Simple

The Winthrop Chronicles

DIY By Design

The Stuff of Success

The Crafty Blog Stalker

Navy Wifey Peters

One Artsy Mama

The Taylor House

Made in a Day