7 DIY Holiday Wreaths

Santa postcard cookies bring a sweet surprise to a Christmas wreath, as pictured on the cover of the November/December 2011 Midwest Living® .

Insert pine clippings into a moistened floral foam wreath. Add carnations and sprigs of holly berries. Using florist's wire, secure other accents: candies, ornaments or pinecones. Cookies, attached with glued-on wooden picks, top off the delish display.

Season's Greetings Cookie Postcards recipe

A grouping of three to five boxwood wreaths adds up to one stylish statement on a wall that needs Christmas cheer. We added olive green accents, such as velvet ribbon and a hanging ornament, for simple tone-on-tone looks.

Find boxwood wreaths at local garden centers or tree farms. Or to make your own, start with a wire wreath frame. Secure florist's wire to one end of the frame. Bunch four to six boxwood sprigs, wrapping stems with the wire and securing to the frame. Repeat, overlapping branches so stems are hidden underneath foliage. Make three sizes for a casual, asymmetrical holiday display.

Resources: Boxwood wreaths Bachman's (866) 222-4626; bachmans.com or Teufel Holly Farm (800) 525-2692; teufelhollyfarms.com Velvet ribbon Midori. midoriribbon.com General This and other wreaths, crafts supplies, ornaments and wreath forms are available at Hobby Lobby. (800) 888-0321; hobbylobby.com

Shiny ribbons and ball ornaments in shades of blue create a calm and bright scheme.

We covered a foam wreath with a mix of powder blue satin and grosgrain ribbons. First, glue wide ribbon around the interior and exterior edges of the wreath form. Then cut three to four rolls of ribbon into 9-inch strips with pinking shears. Fold each ribbon piece into thirds and attach with fern pins. Pin coordinating ball ornaments on top. It's a blue Christmas you'll embrace!

Resources: Ribbons Double-faced satin. Midori. midoriribbon.com

For a wreath that lasts from fall through Christmas, try this brown and gold arrangement.

Wire dried artichokes, lotus pods and pinecones to the bottom of a grapevine wreath. Tuck brown- and gold-tinted magnolia leaves (from a crafts store) between twigs. If needed, secure leaves with hot glue. A glittery bird ornament perched on a pinecone (and secured with wire) adds shimmer.

An old sweater becomes a warm and welcoming wreath with a few snips.

Cut sleeves from a sweater, and separate along seams. Stretch each sleeve tightly around a foam wreath form, securing in back with fern pins. Pink felt holly leaves, pinned to one side of the wreath, add holiday charm. Before pinning, pinch leaves to give them shape. Download our holly leaf pattern below. Matching hot-glued pom-poms become bunches of bright berries.

Download free holly leaf pattern

White and silvery crimped-paper circles form a light and whimsical wreath.

To make shapes, cut scrapbooking papers into 4x6- and 3x5-inch sheets. Pull sheets widthwise through a paper crimper (available at crafts stores). Following crimp marks, fold like an accordion. Make a fan by folding paper in half and gluing ends. Join two "fans" for each circle. Use T-pins or hot glue to attach about 25 of them to a 12-inch foam wreath. Jewel-like or holiday brads, centered on medallions, finish the project with flair.

Resources: Backdrop T7047 Metallic Silver wallpaper. Thibaut. (800) 223-0704; thibautdesign.com

Insert cut flowers (roses, cockscombs and Amaryllises) into a moistened 15-inch florist's foam wreath. You'll need eight to 12 stems of each. Attach two to three bunches of artificial grapes with u-shape fern pins. Mini faux red apples, attached with wood floral picks, accent the crimson creation. For a lasting decoration, replace live flowers with silk ones.

Click below for more great holiday decorating tips and ideas.